The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1908-07-18
Shake OFF
Party Shackles.

The New Orleans Picayune of yes
terday. very aptly remarks anent
N.tparty shackles"":
Several of the Picayune's cores
pondents who had been heretofore
classed as Democrats, have proposed
that the Southern people shall shake
on party shackles" and vote for Judge
Taft for president.
The term, saking of party shackles,
becomes ridiculous when it means
abandoning Democratic affiliations for
Republican connections. What is the
difference between Democratic Shac-
kles so-called, to which We are accus
toned, and Republican shackles,
which are Just as combining, and to
which we have not become Injured?
The old fable in which all persons
carrying heavy burdens OF care, mis-
fortune and grief were ordered by
fate to drop their loads, and this being
: done each individual was allowed to
: pick up the package he could easiest
carry, comes in in this connection
Each person chose some other indi-
viduars burden, but only for a moment
was the change pleasing. Each soon
found that the other fellows load was
excessively hard to carry, and each
begged to have his own old burden re-
stored to him.
We in the South are accustomed to
+ Democratic affiliations, and we will do
well to stick to them, therefore be
ware of Republican political shackles,
no matter whether Taft or Roosevelt
be the jailer As to talk about Mr..
Bryan's radicalism and Judge Taft's
conservatism, what guarantee have
we that Taft, who is Roosevelt's pro-
tege and political heir, is not as radi-
cal as his political father? The Re-
publican party is as unSound on the
money Question as any party posi-
bly, can be. Its financial history is
thus given by the Philadelphia Re-
cord:
Immediately after the war John
Sherman was a greebacker, and ad-
vocated paying the 500 bonds in paper
money. That issue was decided in
1868, and in 1874 Sherman was the
; author of the Resumption act, passed
when the Republicans expected to go
out of power, and they left this law
TO plague the Democrats. By the help
of the Eight-to-Seven Commission the
Republicans counted in Hayes, and it
fell TO Sherman to carry out the pro-
visions of his own act For all the
rest of his life he was regarded by
the Republicans as one of their great
est financiers in spite of his original
greenbaekism.
William Mckinley never took much
part in currency debates, but he wrote
to a constituent that he favored the
free coinage of silver. and in his
stump speeches he attacked Cleve-
land for opposing free coinage. Yet
in 1896 he accepted a nomination on
a gold standard platform, and Republi-
cans describe him as an eminent
champion of sound money. The Sill
yer Purchase law of 1890 was passed
because the Republicans were divided
on the coinage issue and it was known
that BENJAMIN. Harrison would not We
to free coinage bill. Yet the Repub-
licans pretend To be the pToprietors
of the sound money issue.
Now some of our esteemed RepubH-
can contemporaries are asking how a
gold standard Democrat can accept a
nomination on the ticket with Mr..
Bryan. and how sound money Demo
Gratis can support Bryan in the event
of his nomination. If they had no
other reason they could do il by fol-
lowing Republican presidents.
In fact, they have already done so.
A great part of the gold standard
Democrats supported Mr.. Bryan in
1900 on the ground that SiIverlsm was
no longer an issue. The issues were
the tariff and Imperialism. Silverism
is a dead issue. The live issues are
the tariff and public extravaganza
On those Mr.. Bryan represents the
universal Democratic sentiment. In
regard 10 corporations Mr.. Bryan Is
no more radical than Mr.. Roosevelt,
and the Republicans are not yet rest
ed from their tremendous shouting
over the president in the Chicago con-
vention- The Democrats can bury
dead issues as well as Republicans
can, and the business interests are
no more afraid of Mr.. Bryan than of
Mt Roosevelt and his man, Taft, who
Is pledged 10 perpetuate his policies"
OF course, some Democrats will be
misled by the talk about party
shackles,' but they will be a few by
comparison There is no financial
soundness IN the Republican party,
and as to its willingness TO load the
South with favors only the South
ern people will forswesr tTfeir princi-
Pies, nothing can be more absurd. The
Republicans will always give us as lit
tie as possible, and what we get is by
swapping votes on appropriations. II
we lost our chance to use such inf1u-
ence, We would get nothing.