Waterbury Democrat., 1901-03-23
BRYAN'S OFFER TO CLEVELANI
He Gives the Ex-President Few
 Pointers on Democracy.


 Pointers on Democracy.
 Lincoln, Neb. March 23.-In yester- days issue of Mir Bryan'S COmmOner there appeared an article entitled Five Dollars Reward,' saying, ill part:
 Former President Cleveland has written another letter in which he gives expression to his yearning desire to have the democratic party return to what he regards as true democracy and correct principles. His advice is so general and indefinite as to be ut terly useless. All democrats believe that democratic principles should be applied to present problems. but as
 the Kansas City platform applies dem- ocratic principles to present problems, why use the words return and old? "Mr Cleveland and his political as 1 sociates are long on high sounding i phrases, but short on definitions. if | Mr Cleveland's recent admonition had ! been spoken. instead of written. it l might have been explained by q wink 1 or q gesture suggesting that he him. | self was the embodiment of the prnci- 1 ples to which the party should return.
 but when the words appear in cold type they require a key.
 1 Tt seems proper that this paper l SuOuIu give lne lOEuleI | democrat an opportunity to suggest | plans for democratic structure which
 would be commodious enough to afford 1 a place of refuge for him and at the | same time allow standing room for | real democrats. A reward of So Is | therefore offered for written state
 ment. not to exceed 300 words, signed
 by Mir Cleveland, applying democratic principles, as he understands them, to
 at least five questions now before the l country. The offer is open to him or | to any one who can secure q Statemen; from him. An additional reward of | S1 will be given for a statement, | signed by MT Cleveland. explaining
 why he considered his opinion on pub-
 lie questions of no importance during
 the recent campaign, but regards such opinions as s'important now.
 ''When the battle was on between a republic and an empire-between q democracy and plutocracy-betwee bimetalliSm and monometallism-he re T fused to say word or lift his hand in
 behalf of the rank and file for whom : he now expresses such an affectionate solicitu6e. AS soon as the election was over he came forth from his se
 clusion and made the air vocal witt
 his suggestions. Assuming to be in spired by q purer democracy and T boosting of q superior virtue, he beSar ? to offer unsolicited advice to the party ? to which he once belonged. He is like
 the soldier who was described as in
 visible in war and invincible in peace. '.To desertion of the party organIZa
 ton and betrayal of the principles o
 the party. he adds ostentatious pre- tense of interest in the plain people
 while he conceals his ideas in ponder
 ous and platitudinous phrases. If h'
 will clearly and candidly define th' democratic principles about which h. is so prone to talk, the people can de s eide for themselves whether he is th , same MT Cleveland who turned th' Il treasury over to a foreign financia nl syndicate and intrusted J. PierpOn ii Morgan with the combination of tn f government vaults, and then support led the republican ticket because hi
 administration was not indorsed; tn
 same Mir Cleveland who denOuncet
 trusts in his messages but failed t enforce the law against them-th r same Mir Cleveland who condemnet imperialism and then gave passive sup t port to an imperialistic president. o t | whether he has repented of his foll. s and is ready to accept the democrati creed." .5s