Twin city review. [volume] (Champaign, Ill.) 19??-1929, 1925-07-31
WILLIAM JENNINGS BRYAN

WILLIAM JENNINGS BRYAN
William Jennings Bryan, the last Of
three great Americans who have
swayed the nation or the last Thirty
years. died last Sunday afternoon at
the scene of his last battle. Robert
NJ. LaFolette preceded him by only
few months, and Theodore Roosevelt
by few years. No tnumvirate in
the history Of any nation has held
such sway over the common people.
They were in the thick Of the fight
from beginning to end, and not one OF
them surrendered, save to the call OF
death. Fearless, aggressive, outspok-
en-, determined, every one of them.
Not always night in theory, but always
right in motive.
In few respects were the three alike,
yet in the ability to catch the ear OF
the masses they had much in common
OF the three Bryan was the more gen.
orally revered, doubtless because OF
his Christian piety. There was no
greater preacher in America than
Bryan when he hit his stride in such
sermons as the prince of Peace"
no greater orator than he when he
delivered his eloquent speech THE
Cross of Gold" before the Democratic
convention of 1896.
In reality he made few enemies. In
politics very often his theories were
ridicued by his political opponents
and their satellites, but even his enc
mics respected his apparent sincerity,
though they feared his tongue.
Bryan could not in any sense be
classed as a thinker The recognized
thinkers of his party were not with
him in any of his three presidential
campaigns. Not thought, but prin-
ciple was the basis of his intense bias
in one direction or another. His atti-
tude on the free silver question in
1896 was determined by his demo-
crazy, plus his contact with the popu-
list party. The fact that in later years
he practically ceased to urge the free
silver cause indicated that he had
arrived at his theory without serious
thought. The thinking men of his
nortN mopa n1,,nut ip,yo "a bl, auaiD 81
him--Grover Cleveland and Alton B.
Parker in the early stage of his
meteroric career and Woodrow Wilson
in his latter days. Bryan was a pro-
hibitionist from principle, but not until
after he had ceased to be the Demo
cratic hope for the presidency did he
join the fight for national prohibition.
Before his entrance into the fight
against the saloon the victory had
been won by John b, Cough, John G.
Wooley, the ministers of every city,
village and hamlet and the W. C. T.
U. Bryan merely put on the cap
sheaf.
Not until Evolution was thoroughly
entrenched in the Universities did he
throw the weight of his oratory
against science and in favor of fun
damentalism. No, he could not be
classed as a thinker; but he had an
unaccountable faculty for diagnosing
the public mind and readiness to
fall in line and forge his way to the
battle front.
A few quotations from Bryan's most
noted speeches serve to show his
friendship for Labor.
THE humblest citizen in all the
land when clad in the armor of a
righteous cause is stronger than the
whole hosts of error they can bring"
Il am within the limits of truth
when | say that the senate for some
years has been the bulwark of preda-
tory wealth"
The man who is employed for
wages is as much a business man as
his employer
"Govemment by injunction is really
an attack upon the jury system, and
ought to arouse d unanimous pro-
test
These are but a few expressions of
Bryan's favor for the ideals of Or