The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1904-07-13
Bryan to Parker
The Commoner Office, I'll, 1904.


Dear Alton:
I'm nit and you're it. You've down
ed me, but l don't feel badly, for I'm
used to being downed. First I was
downed twice by the whole country,
which is a pair Of wallops about, as big
as can be handed to man. Then
was sat down on by the Democratic
prty I made the latter feel good
deal as if it had sat down on cactus
crown or a porcupine, but it gritted
it's teeth and kept right on sitting. AS
soon as I got myself adjusted to the
cramped position so that I could talk.
felt all right. That is the general
cure-all with me-just to talk. So
long as I can keep my face running
full time I'm fine as a fiddle. NO
misfortune troubles me SO long as my
vocal chords are unrestrained. Now,
after years of getting trained to the
matter of defeat, l was wholly pre-
pared for the body blow you landed
on me at ST. Louis. l am down and
out at present, but l shall unhesi-
tatingly challenge the winner of the
heavyweight bout in November. [
am going to talk for you all through
the campaign, and if you can be elect
ed in spite of that you're peach.
defeated mighty good man twice by
talking for him through whole
campaign. Modesty forbids my men
tioning the good mans name, but
history will bear me out-that is, If
1 were not already out.
Knocked fiat as I am, however,
cannot refrain from conSratulating
you on the way you did it. The most
marvellous thing to me is. how you
managed to keep from talking Tor so
long To me, your feat out-Tanners
Dr. Tanner in his forty-days' fast. A
mere abstinence from food for forty
days would be nothing to me if I were
given a chance to talk. But to go
right on eating and drinking and
thinking and reading and hearing
and not tall2-great Macklnac, Alton'
you're a wonder! Not peep was
there from Esopus until l thought
had you fixed with the New York
Democrats. I had actually gd to
thinking you were stricken dumb, and
that you couldn't talk. But as soon
as I had played with Davy Hill
(there's a chump, Alton, and you'd
better cut him ouD and eliminated
that gold plank from the platform, up
you spoke as clipper as a squirrel and
as cleverly as if you had been talking
all the while. 1t was, as the prize
fighters say, as neat a ''hit i'll the
breallaway" as was ever executed
AS soon as I had expressed satisfac-
,1ot
you come on with a teleSra phic dy-
Mantle cartridge that says that I'M
less you are understood to be on Il
gold standard platform, you want to
be left out and have the delegates nom
mate someone else. That was where
you got me, Alton, and you did it
cleverly. 1 was helping the referee
give you the count, and just when We
had said Eight" up you sprang to
your feet and handed me one in the
solar plexus that put me into the
midst Of Dreamland. But it's all
right, old man. I'm beaten. was
too much the talllee talkee and
thought you were too much of a dummy
but I'm ready to acknowledge there's
something in the policy of keeping
ones head shut for fear OF drafts,
though it is a policy I could never FOL
low three days in succession without
exploding.
fought you as hard as could be-
fore the nomination. I shall now be
consistent and talk for you in pubic.
That will fix you and render it entire
Iy unnecessary for you to engage a
n,ovino.yan to take your square piano
and plush chairs from EsoDus to the
White House. \ steady flow of my
speeches is a positive and unfailing
preventive of Presidential success.
You would be defeated anyway, SO
I'll give you the satisfaction of hay
ing me to charge it up to.
ours hopefully,
5 ". ]. B.
Wv. GILLIAN.
Baltimore American.