Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-07-11
Democrats Hope to Obscure 1t by
Anti-lmperialism.
WILL PLAY Fer GERMAN VOTE
Interest in the Course Bryan Him.
self Will Take.
P ACIFIC COAST STATES

The question Of absorbing interest TO the
the issue of anti-imperial,sm VIII actually
become paramount in the campaign. as the
Kansas City convention decreed IL should
The advantage anticipated for the BRYAN
ticket from having the question of mperial-
ISM overshadow every ng else Is not
looked upon as being dependent upon q
dominating sentiment in the country In on
position TO what is meant by the term i'm
perialism. At most. the votes added to
the Bryan strength through opposition TO
the administration policy on the part Of
men who have heretofore supported the
republican ticket can be only a compara-
lively small contribution toward success.
The chief effect anticipated is from its OBJ
securing other issues which the name OF
Bryan stands for. and which lost TO him
many votes in '9j.
silver Men All Right.
Bryan is not likely to lose many silver
votes from having the money question OBJ
scured, since they satisfied that no
matter how obscure the issue may be dur
ing the campaign. the policy will be strongly
stamped upon an administration with
Bryan at the head. 1t was due more TO
Bryan's pride Of consistency than TO any
demand OF the silver men that the term l6
to L was forced into the platform by the
firmness oI the candidate. The silver men
are generally willing to trust their cause
TO Bryan, and do not care much about the
figure it cuts in the campaign. In a gem
eral way they may be set aside as helong-
ing TO the Bryan column. and not taken a
further account Of in estimating the result,
As the political wise men view the s.tua-
ton, the contest will turn upon the sun.
port Bryan can win from sources hostile
in SO. not so much through the attractive
ness OF the anti-imperialist issue as
through the efficacy OF that platform in OBJ
securing all the features of the old Chicago
PLATFORM which were objected to.
Play for the German Vote.
Both parties agree that one great feature
of the campaign will be the struggle to Sc.
cure the German vote. If free silver is
overshadowed by Imperialism the demo-
Gratis will be very hopeful of getting a very
good proportion of the votes of the Ameri-
canized Germans and The citizens of Ger
man extraction, and upon this Largely must
depend their hope Of success. But if free
silver Is seen too clearly through the
screen. If 1t is given great prominence. IL
the efforts to obscure ii fail the coveted
German vote is not likely 20 be captured
1t was manifest to any one who took The
measure of the Kansas City convention
that the democrats there assembled were
wiling TO let silver III to 1" siIde and
ina they would have done so had 1t not
been for Bryan; but whether. having nut
10 to i in the platform, they can obscure
II IN the campaign is question. Some re-
puhlicans feel strong enough IN their con-
fidonce that the people will support pxpan-
sion to be willing to accep. that as the
chief, the paramount issue. but they do not
intend TO let the German voters lose sight
Of the fact that 16 to l is in the democra.io
platform and that Bryan sands pre-eri-
nently for free silver. They Will there
Tore Keep the issue alive in The campaign.
Bryan's own Course.
The course of Bryan himself is the SUBJ
Ject Of gravest speculation by democrats.
They feel that it lies with him to deter
mine how prominent silver shall be made
in the campaign. If he persists in putting
1t in his speeches-for consistency's sake
as he did in the platform. the issue cannot
be obscured and the republicans will have
little difficulty in making II as prominent
as they desire But if he treats it as the
convention wanted to. making anti-imper-
ialism actually the paramount issue in his
canvass, the democrats will have greater
hope for the success Of their plans.
Just how the matter will strike the coun-
try the shrewdest politician is still unable
TO judge. but there is a pretty general
agreement that the chief hope OF the
democrats lies in having silver obscured as
an issue in the campaign.
The Pacific Coast States
The best information from the far west
is that the republicans have a more than
fair show Of regain ng their supremacy in
the Pacific coast and intermountain states.
The democrats realize that they are In for
a hard fight in Washington wyoming,
Colorado. Montana. Utah and Idaho and
hardly count at all on Cal fOrnia and Ore
gon. Hin and Croker have inspired them
with the idea that there is some chan-e for
them in New York. so that they will put
up fight there. largely under the general
ship Of HILL but the great battle ground is
expected to extend right through Ohio,
Indiana Illinois. Wisconsin. Minnesota and
Michigan. They count on Maryland and
Kentucky as things practirallN assured.