The Birmingham age-herald., 1902-06-24
Says He Asks the Party He Stabbed to Return to
 His Teachings
SEES No HARMONY IN
 RECENT TILDEN DINNER
Says the Ex-President Asks Democrats to Leave the Paths of Virtue and Follow His Ideas
 of Debauchery.

Lincoln, Neb., June 23.-The ab- gence of William J. Bryan from the Democratic harmony dinner at New York is pretty we'll explained by a statement given out by MT. Bryan this afternoon, commenting upon the din ner. At the outset MT. Bryan says there Is no such thing as Democratic harmony where former President Cleveland is concerned. He says:
 "The banquet given on the eve of June 19, by the Tilden Club of New York City, was advertised as 'har- mony meeting,' but it turned out to be what might have been expected of such a gathering, an ovation to the chief guest, former Democrat, Grover Cleveland. There can be no such thing as harmony between men like him and those who believe in Demo cratic principles, and he is frank enough to say so. He spent TO time looking for middle ground upon which to gather together discordant clements He boldly called upon the members of the party to abandon their convictions and accept the construction which he pleased upon Democratic principles He even taunted the party with being sort of prodigal son. and invited it to give up it's diet of husks and return to its fathers house.
 As to His Retirement.
 ''He spoke If his retirement from polit- ical activity, ard said perhaps there are those who would define my position as one of banishment inste a6 of retirement Against this I shall not enter protest. It is sufficient for me in either case that I have followed on the matters of differ ences within our party the teachings and counsel of the great Democrat In whose name party peace and harmony tonight are invoked. Confession of party sin should therefore be expected of me. I have none to make; nor do crave political ab- solution"
 He not only boasted of his course, but put his brand upon these who sat at the meal with him. Having asserted that his Democratic faith compelled him to leave the party Cor resulted in his banishment, he described the banqueters as sharing in that faith.
 He Is not cnly defiant. but he insists that party success only be secured bV open ana aVOWcd return IO HIS ;dees Harmony Is to be secured not by the suppression of differences but by the elimination of those who differ from, him."
 Mir. Bryan says he will print in his paper MT. Cleveland's speech ito show that the re-organiZers do not want har- lncny, but control anC that their control means the abandonment of the partys DC ostiou, snd return to the policies and practices of MT. Clevelands second ad- ministration.
 Secured Nomination by Bargain.
 He continued as follows:
 ''He Cleveland, secured his nomination In 1892 by a secret bargain with the f1n- anciers; his committee collected from the corporations and spent the largest campaign fund the party ever had; he filled his cabinet with corporation agents and placed railroad attorneys on the United States supreme bench to look af ter the interests of their former clients. He turned the treasury over to Wall street syndicate, and the financial mem Der of the official family went from Washington to become the attorney of the man who forced CD the treasury de- partment to sell him government bonds at 1O5 and then resold them at IF. He tried to prevent the adoption of the in- come tax provision, the only tariff reform measure passed since the war, and while laundering against the trusts in his mes- sages, did even less than Knox has done to interfere with their high handed meth eds
 His administration instead of being a fountain of Democracy senoiDg forth pure refreshing streams, became stagnant pool from whose waters foul vapors arose, poisonous to those who fingered near.
 He debauched his party; he was of- fended by its efforts to reform, and gave comfort to the enemy. Virginius killed his daughter to save her chastity Cleve- land stabbed his party to prevent its return to the paths of virtue
 Invites Party to Return.
 And now, gloating over his political crimes, he invites the party to return to him and apologize for the contempt which 1t has expressed flor him. Will it? Not until the principles of Jefferson are for gotten and the works of Jackson cease to inspire.
 If we are to have reorganization. Cleveland himself should accept the presidential nomination. It would be due him: his reinstatement would be poetic justice to him and retribution to those whose Democratic conscience revolted against his undemocratic conduct. Of course he would get no Democratic votes, but being closer to plutocracy than any Republican likely to be nominated, he might divide the enemy and even Demo- crats would have what little consolation would come from Republican disappoint- ment in advance.
 A merchant about to fail invited his creditors to a dinner and after stating his condition secured a years extension from all present. One of the numoer. relative waited until after the others had retired and then accosted the debtor: ".Of course I promised with the rest to extend the time, but you are going to make me a prefer ed creditor, are you not?
 "sYes' replied the debtor, I'll make you a preferred creditor. I'll tell you now that you are not going to get any thing; the rest won't find cut for a year MT. Cleveland's nomination would have this advantage over the nomination of