New-York tribune., 1901-07-17
MAKING THE BEST OF 1T.

Colonel Bryan seems 10 be slowly recovering
from the first shock of the blow dealt his pres
tige by the Ohio Democracy. After nearly
week of silence he outlined at Lincoln last Mon
day the comment he proposed to make in The
Commoner' on the Columbus conventions effort
to unseat him from party leadership. But in
this dazed and colorless forecast how difficult
ii is 10 recognize the imperious self-confidence
of Colonel Bryans better days. The Nebraska
orator speaks with the measured caution and
rueful melancholy of man whose self-appreci-
alton has suffered painful but illuminating
jolt The face he puts on his predicament is not
one of outraged merit or indignant protest. 1t
is. ON the contrary one of injured resignation.
and the tone of subdued irony which his state
ment breathes contrasts almost pathetically
with the thunders aimed from Lincoln scarcely
two weeks ago at any and all backslders in
the party base enough to sacrifice its established
principles to temporary "expediency.'
According TO the correspondents who were
permitted to see advance sheets of The Com
moner's' coming broadside, Mr.. Bryan's criti-
cism Of the Ohio convention is much less harsh
than was the conventions criticism of Mr..
Bryan" The Nebraska leader, 1t seems, mildly
commends the effort of his few personal friends
in the convention to force vote on indorsing
or not indorsing the Kansas City platform.
But he generously admits their mistake in urg-
ing renewed vote of confidence in his own
peerless leadership AS he says in the abb
stract:
The vote should have been on the naked prop
osition to indorse the platform Of last year, and
ment of Democratic principles by pleading his
dislike for Mr.. Bryan. The cause ought not be
made to bear the sins of the individual. Mr..
Bryan Will endure without complaint any pun
ishment which the Democracy of Ohio may see
fit TO administer to him. but he does not want
his name used to the injury of a good platform.
The gold papers assume that the convention
fused TO adopt the Kansas City platform be-
cause it contained silver plank. If SO. it would
have been more courageous to have declared
openly for the gold standard. If the gold stand
ard is good it ought to have been indorsed; if
bad ii ought TO have been denounced To ignore
the subject entirely was inexcusa BILE.
There is no echo in all this of THE Common
er's' recent extraordinary edict excluding nom
believers in the Kansas City platform from
membership in any Democratic State or county
convention, or from service on any Democratic
committee, precinct. county, State or national"
The failure of the Ohio convention to reindorse
the national platforms Of 1896 and 1900 is not
assailed as in itself a criminal betrayal of party
trust. Indeed, Colonel Bryan ironically hints
that the convention might legitimately have
gone still further and openly declared in favor
of the single gold standard. II is merely it's
disingenuousness in leaving its real views on
the silver issue open to conjecture which he
criticises as ''inexcusab bile" For the conven-
tion's amazing retreat from practically all the
positions the party held year ago he can find
no harsher epithat
The real reason of Colonel Brvan's new horn
moderation is perhaps not far to seek Some of
his superservceable friends in Ohio announced
the other day that they would call a new Demo
cratic State Convention to frame straghtout
Bryan platform and nominate straghtout
Bryan ticket. To forestall this movement.
which could only emphasize the passing of his
power within the party. the defeated Presi-
dental candidate of 1896 and 1900 naturally
hastens 10 minimize his personal chagrin at the
snub just administered to him at Columbus and
to offer his unqualified support to the State