New-York tribune., 1910-04-13
BRYAN A FALLEN IDOL
Raises the Ghost of Free Silver
Again.
LETTER AMAZES FRIENDS
Drops Tariff and Trusts and
Blames Overproduction of
Gold for High Prices.
rFrom The Tribune Bureau. ]

Washington, April 12-The incubus mas
incubated again. The peerless leader has
OF &C more insisted on thrashing the patient
donkey and driving him into the thistle
% 1sture to continue his prickly diet and
gaze through the fence toward green fields
Of patronage and power. William J. Bryan
has again spoken to the Democrats Of the
country through letter to the Jefferson
Democratic club. Of Washington, and the
jefferson Democratic Club does not know
whether il Will heargen to its masters
voice or place the letter i'm cold storage,
along with the broken phonograph records.
Last night the executive committee OF
the club met and opened the Bryan letter.
which was to be read tomorrow night at
the jefferson Day dinner, which is TO be
addressed by Mayor Gaynor. Pipes were
lighted and everybody prepared to feast on
defamation and give three cheers for the
revivification. The opening sentences, re-
sonant with ALTERATION and alIegory took
the company back to the good old days Of
Populism. jefferson was placed rampant
on AL the good things of the republic He
was Clorited as the pattern of the South
American republics. and as the guardian
angel of the Democratic party, who had
been off the job for number OF years, but
whc would return this fall. To all this the
executive committee agreed and declared
that the peerless leader was never in better
voice since he put on the sketch about the
crown OF thorns and cross Of gold. Then
came paragraph about the cost OF living.
and IL was here that the white elephant
made its semi-snnual pperance.
Pitfully William Jennings told the story
OF starving children and hollow eyed house
80 = Il Ii.
pockets. robber barnos. and parasite cor
porations which suck the lifeblood of the
nation. And the cause of this high cost, he
said. was named by President Taft when
he declared that it was "overproduction of
gold" Not the tariff not the trusts. but
overproduction OF gold. But" the peer
less one added, 1T is not original with
President Taft. I am he who first told the
Democrats and the country about the in
fuence on prices Of the quantity of precious
metal available for money. 1t was upon
this. remember. it was upon this sagacious
and original theory. taht ] advocated free
silver / am clearly vindicated.''
Free silver" The Executive Committee
fell of their chairs. With a thousand
speeches prepared on the absses OF the
tariff, with the Republican party indicted
by a grand jury consisting practically of
the entire Democratic party for it's pattern
ity of the Payne bill; with hundreds Of
orators memorizng philippics on the trusts:
with printers Eroaning over handbnls on
extravag gance-it was too much 10 have the
ghost Of free silver enter the cemetery and
startle the skeletons. Never was an Ex-
ecutive Committee so perplexed.
Il move the letter be torn up" said a
member OF the committee in sepulchraI
tones.
Scratch out the free silver paragraph"
suggested another.
Bryan is hopeless. After all our trouble
at Denver he's still an intransigeant," ex-
claimed another
Let us confer with our other great
leader, Champ Clark" came from still an
other.
so they conferred all day to-day. but
came 10 no decision. The letter will prob
ably he read tomorrow night No mem
Der Of the executive committee quite dares
to offend the Peerless Leader They feel
that he will probably again be a candidate
for the high Office Of President Of the
United States. with a silver dollar in one
hand. an image Of Thomas jefferson in
the other and an exoneration Of the Payne
tariff law in his pocket and they are die
posed to value discretion more than vaIor
The letter was postmarked Lincoln"
Neb.," and was addressed to Cotter T.
Bride, Of the general committee Of the JEFF
ferson Day dinner. II was not made public.
Several members of the committee said
they did not believe Mr. Bryan knew any
thing about the letter, as he is not in this
sbuntry and will be unable to attend the
dinner.
declared to-day that the letter mailed to
Cotter T. Bride, Of the general committee
of the jefferson Day dinner at Washing
ton, was genuine. c. W Bryan mailed the
original from this city and kept carbon
copy. The letter was sent to Lincoln by
w. J. Bryan.