The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-03-17
Democratic Unity.

At the banquet Of the Iroquois club in
honor Of Jackson at Chicago last night,
Mr.. Edward M. Shepard, Of New York
undertook to lay down winning program
for the democracy, embodying the estab-
lishment of equal rights, the abolition Of
special privileges and the maintenance OF
democratic self-government.
The frisky De Armond,, of Missouri,
also delivered a characteristic rally
speech, in which he went back on Shep-
ards reflections by declaring that 1.-The
man for us in 1904" must inevitably be
lone who was in the democratic column
in '96 and again in 1s00.''
Colonel Bryan was not present with his
silvery tongue, so the proceedings were
necessarily tanner than they would other
wise have been. Mr. Shepard, however,
said some very interesting things, and, as
IS usual with most democratic orators.
tried to "arraign'' the republican party
for all the evils and disabiliti peculiar
to the democratic party, and represented
the democracy as struggling to restore
against the obdurate leaders Of the re-
publican party.
Shepard did not say a word about the
Bryan program, appropriated from the
populist properties, but De Almond made
up the deficiency. Denying that the re-
publican party ever deserved the name Of
guardian Of sound f1nacial policy, Mr..
Shepard declared that the country would
have to look to the democratic party for
sound financial relief and to give it an
elastic currency, in the face Of the fact
that the democrats in the senate killed
the Aldrich bill, designed to expand the
currency during emergencies. He also
said that the democratic party had never
| made an attack upon the freedom of
those who had made fortunes, to make
| them larger, when, during the last two
presidential campaigns Bryan led the
party in a crusade avowedly against
wealth and the acquisition Of wealth
while declaring for the abolition of in
dustrial consultations policy at once
inimical to the prosperity of the country
and the welfare Of the workingman. Mr.
Shepard, indeed, predicted, in speaking
Of labor unions, that they might, become
unfavorable to liberty in their opposition
to the Capitalization Of economic power
workingman.
| It may be asked why Mr.. shepard's
party opposed so vigorously the anti
trust program of the republican party
during the recent session Of congress
Under pretense Of advocating more dras
Heat the only measures which it was pos
sible to pass, although Mr.. Shepard
claims that his party thinks and care!
for no question which can be named, will
| the intense so1icitude it entertains as t
the trust peril-the abuses Of trusts. Mr.
shepards triple party program involves
! policies to which the democratic party il
stranger, as its record shows in 1851
when it swung under the banner of tn,
revolt against American unity; when i
. declared that the war for the union was
J failure, and, a little later. declared TO
! the payment Of the national obligations
in deprecated paper money, ana contin
ued, certainly through the campaign 0
1900, the champion of reputation, tn
enemy Of thrift.
| Mr.. Shepard, who attacked the republi
can party as the enemy Of sound financia
relief for the country, may recall, If HI
| jogs his memory, that it was the republi
can party that raised our paper from 81
per cent to the par of gold and liftet
the national credit from per cent bond
at SO to 4 per cent bonds above par. afte
la long and exhausting war and incidental
imitation, and, within the last decade, ha
twice saved the country from the crim
Of Reputation conceived by the cham
pions Of free silver, and has influenced
public sentiment unalterably against dis
honest finance.
l The democratic party will have to re
form itself before it can undertake to ef
1 feet any reforms in the country. a.
( present, as between Bryan, Cleveland
J Hill. German, De Almond and the othe