The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1904-07-26
PARKER AND
GOLD PLANK
The 'sManliness" Of WI. Bryan
and That Of the Present
Candidate Contsasted.
THE PROPER TIME TO SPFAK

It may be a bitter thought, yet can
dor compels the statement that the
one American whose course in a sim.
liar exigency had furnished Judge
Parker with a model of conduct was
none other than William Jennings
Bryan. At Kansas City four years age
Mr.. Bryan confronted this situation
The resolutions committee was sharp
| ly divided upon the question Of ignor-
| ing the money question, and there was
a prospect that It's report would be
lsilent.on that issue. Instead of wait
I ing until after the platform had beer
adopted and the nomination of him
self had been made, Mr.. Bryan prompt
ly sent word to the convention, be.
fore any action whatever had been
taken, that he must not be considered
a candidate for the nomination in case
the money question were ignored in
the resolutions. That was straight
forward and 1t was dealing fairly with
all wings and members of the Demo
cratic party.
1t is very far from our desire to criti-
else Judge Parker 5 course too harshly
or to impute to him motives at all dis
honorable. Yet the cutting, stinging
truth Of Mr.. Bryans statement in the
convention Saturday night cannot be
laughed away. " It is a manly thing, =
said Mr.. Bryan, for a man to express
his opinion before the convention adj
journs 1t would have been manlie1
to have expressed it before the con
vention met.
The ridiculous, yet very wearing
episode of the conventions closing
hours was the fruit of that policy Of
silence which was so conspicuous a
feature of the Parker movement. The
Southern delegations, which really
brought about Parker's nomination,
baked at the critical moment oyer the
gold plank which the New Workers
sought to have incorporated In the
platform. They had been in the past
silverites almost to a man, and thay
did not dare to precipitate in the con.
yention itself the struggle which
would have followed the presentation
Of a minority report. Senator Bailey
Of Texas, admits this in an authorized
statement, which says Mr.. Hill was
not only informed by Mr., Bryan's fol
lowers, but by more conservative in
terests in the convention, that il
would be useless for him to contend
for the gold plank and that if he die
he would throw the convention into
an uproar and would be likely to IA
tally divide the party. 1t was only
after he had been fully impressed
with the seriousness Of the situation
that he refused to demand a record
vote by the convention itself
This development was well known te
Judge Parker Friday afternoon, for the
Friday evening papers contained the
definite news that the platform would
ignore the money question entirely
" The New York Evening Post" Fri
day afternoon had the staring head
line. mo Money Plank" Then was
the proper time for Judge Parker tc
have spoken to the convention itself
but still he was silent, and the plat
form was adopted by the convention
as at least modus yiyendi, if not a
final treaty of peace, concerning differ
ences Of opinion that have harassed and
divided Democrats in the past. From
The Springfield Republican.