Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1900-02-19
SENATOR PLATI'S
VIEWS ON COMING
CAMPAIGN.

New York. Feb. 19.-The Herald quotes
Senator Platt, of New York, as saying In
an interview:
..while the republican platform upon
which we will make our next
has not been definitely decided upon. IT
is pretty we'll understood that We villa
make our fight on the lime of policy OF the
| present administration. The campaign IS
| being shaped every day. and thedemo-
| Gratis are entitled to all thecomforts they
| are able to derive from what they seem
! delighted to call republican mistakes.
The ridiculous exhibition Of incpacity on
! the part of the democratic leaders While
! the financial bill was pending IN congress
was sufficient to convince all observing
persons that. they are hardly capable of
conducting the business affairs of this
great nation in a manner acceptable to
the American people.
II understand the democratic leaders
are declaring hat we weakened on the
, silver question by adopting a bimetallic
| amendment to the financial bin in the
! senate and the propose to make that one
of their campaign issues. They also as
sert they will draw heavily upon our
forces if the refunding provision OF the
financial bill becomes a law.
'Some of my constituents are troubled
about the blmetalllc amendment, and I
have received several letters on the sub
J6CL ASKING IL Gle IepuUktcdlAS q fot
lowered their colors to the silver hosts
by the adoption Of that amendment. My
reply has invariably been that there was
/ no lowering of colors to the silver forces
or no substantial deviation from the
former policy of the republican party
relative to the. subject of bimetarlism.
'"The senate amendment to the finan-
cial bill which was offered by Senator
Aldrich at the instance of the committee
on finance. was simply a declaration or a
+ reaffirmation of the party principles on
that subject as laid down in the last ma
tional platform of the republican party.
"As to our colonial policy, that is being
formed now and I have not given the
subject sufficient investigation to discuss
it at this time. Our policy toward Ha-
wall is pretty we'll defined, and before the
coming week expires we may have q
pretty good idea what we mend to do with
regard to Puerto Rico. In the, discussion
of the Puerto Rican question the whole
question of our colonial possessions will
come up and there is a wide difference o1
opinion on the subject it would be prema.
ture to build a party platform so far II
advance of the meeting OF the nationa
convention.
Eat the proper time President McKin
ley and Senator Hanna, chairman of tn
national republican convention, will ca
a conference of the party leaders, with {
view 10 determining upon WIlaL lines l
may be deemed advisable to make tn,
sampaign. I have not been consulted b,
either President Mckinley or Mr.. Ham;
on the subject and I don't know that
shall be, but my interests in the success,
of the party induces me to try to keel
posted as to what is going on within on
lines, and when I get a chance l take
peep into the enemy's camp.
II deprecate anything that avors o
over confidence in a political contest ant
therefore I am not going to follow the ex
ample of the democratic leaders by MAX
ing a lot of rash predictions as to the fu
} ture. In my judgment, the majority O
, the people IN this country are Statistic,
; that their interests are better protected
by the republican party thar they woul,
be if the administration were turned owe
to he democrats. I rely upon the intel
{ ligence of the American people to choos
| between Mckinley and Bryan"