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MAY 30. 19 IS
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The Commoner.
The Grasty Dinner at Baltimore
Charles H. Grasty, editor of the Baltimore
Sun, gave a complimentary dinner to Mr. Bryan
at Baltimore. Referring to the affair, the Sun
says:
Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan
came to Baltimore fresh from his successful mis
sion to California in the interests of interna
tional peace and harmony, to be tho guest of
Charles H. Grasty at a dinner given in his
honor at the Hotel Belvedere.
It was Mr. Bryan's first visit to Baltimore
since the memorable convention of tho demo
cratic party last summer, in which he played so
prominent a' part, and it gave him the oppor
tunity to renew many acquaintances he made
on that occasion, to meet many of his political
friends and to give a number of former political
enemies a new light upon his character.
Gathered around the board were men in the
democratic party who had fought Mr. Bryan
in the past, tooth and nail; standpat republicans
and bull moosers, as well as men who have fol
lowed the banner of the commoner wherever
it has led in the years gone by, and who still
hold for him feelings of loyalty and affection
as deep as it is possible for one man to hold
for another. But no matter what their previous
political condition had been, they were all Bryan
men last night and joined in the applause and
the cheering which greeted the telling points
in his speech.
The speech was a memorable one and some of
those who had heard Mr. Bryan on a' number
of occasions said it "was one of the best he had
ever delivered. Its breadth, charm, generosity
and philosophy delighted all who heard it, and
at one period of its delivery, when he suggested
that he vas about to conclude, cries of "No, no;
go on!" rang out from all parts of the banquet
hall.
Mr. Bryan spoke from the heart. His speech
Was extemporaneous, for he had no time to
prepare anything. His mission to the Pacific
coast had required all hiB time, thought and
patriotism, and, incidentally, it proved his mettle
as a statesman. He arrived In Washington only
yesterday morning and 'after making his report
to President Wilson he came to Baltimore to
be with those who had been asked to meet him.
Mr. Bryan's speech effectually put the quietus
upon all rumors that have been afloat ever
since 'he entered the cabinet of President Wilson
to the effect that there was friction between
himself and the president, that he could not
stand- the strain of playing second fiddle and
that he would retire.
Of course, those who know Mr. Bryan and
President Wilson have known all .along that
there was nothing to these rumors, and that the
two men were not only in harmony, but' they
have a sincere regard for one another. But the
rumors .have been given with so much circum
stantiality tlmt many believed them.
No man who heard Mr. Bryan, last night now .
believes there ever was a scintilla of truth in
them. Every word he uttered breathed the
truest sincerity, and his tributes to the presi
dent the generosity with which he denied that he
was instrumental in bringing about Mr. Wilson's
nomination and the earnest loyalty to the presi
dent and his policies which marked his every
reference to either carried conviction.
Not only that, he convinced his hearers that
he bore no grudge's toward those who had op
posed him in the past. What has gone before
with him was "as we say in diplomatic circles
a closed incldenjt." That brought out a jolly
laugh, but his succeeding statement that he was
convinced that no load breaks down a man so
quickly as a load of revenge was followed by a
roar of applause. The entire trend of his re
marks showed that, in his heart there was no
bitterness, that his view of conditions was the
view of the philosopher,, who has seen his teach
ings justified and is satisfied..
As for the' outcome of the democratic conven
tion and the part he played in the result, he was
frank. It was pleasant, he told his hearers, to
have enthusiastic friends extoll the part he
played, but they did not deceive him. No one
man, no set of men could have brought about
that result It was- no local movement, no re
form springing up In the west, it was not even
an American movement; it was the result of a
movement as wide as the world. And so far
from having heartburnings at the victory of
another, he rejoiced that another could win
"Where he had lost. And he felt It was better so,
- Mr. Bryan's tribute to his chief was genuine
and sincere and- brought .out the warm applause
it merited. "He has already won his place in
history, and from what ho has already done ho
has convinced us all that wo will not bo dis
appointed in tho performance of tho tasks that
are yet before him."
In introducing Mr. Bryan, Mr. Grasty said;
"In 189G, in Chicago, in a western cyclone of
patriotic protest against privilege and abuse,
tho progressive democracy was born."
Just hero Omor E. Hershoy callod out:
"Whero were you then?"
"In the cyclone collar," replied Mr. Grasty.
"Whore are you now?" shouted another
voice.
"On the roof," said Mr. Grasty. And ho went
on with his speech.
"In 1912, In this old city of Baltimore, on
tho very rim of what had boon the enemy's coun
try, in a similar outburst that cauHo saw its final
triumph.
"I think you may scan the pages of history
in vain for another case of the same man pre-
siding at the birth of a cause and with his own
hand managing its consummation.
"More remarkable still, ho guided it through
' all itB 16 years of peril and storm, standing
when it was to stand, fighting when it was to
fight, and, with Martin Luther, grimly saying:
'Hero wo stand; wo can do no otherwise; God
help us!'
"Many a time the pioneer's fate has threat
ened him. Many a time others have struttod
in his plumage. When the whlgs abandoned
the issue of free trade and tho tories adopted
it Disraeli said that 'the whigs went in swim
ming and tho tories stole their clothes.' While
the democratic progressives were wandering
naked in the wilderness Roosevelt borrowed
their raiment. It didn't fit him or his party, so
they cast it off.
"Is it not poetic justice that tho Roosevelt
who was so deft in appropriation is the same
Roosevelt who made easy and sure the coming
of the democratic progressives into their own?
And now the Roosevelt rooster is not crowing
as Jt used to. Ho is kind of pippy. He's like
the historic chanticleer. That rooster crowed
every morning just before sun-up. One night
he went to spend the night with the pheasants
and overslept. When ho awoke the next morn
ing the sun was high in tho heavens.. It broke
his heart. He had always thought that it was
his crowing that made the sun rise.
"Baltimore Is the place whero our honored
guest will always be most honored. We re
member every detail of his lion-like leadership
in the greatest convention ever lipid. And wo
can never forget that wild night when he caught
predatory Wall street and crooked politics with
the goods on. They vowed that they wore not
convicted because he didn't press one of tho In
dictments. But they have sat mighty tight and
quiet ever since. They are like the man charged
with stealing a pair of pants. The jury acquitted
him. The crowd filed out of the courtroom, but
the acquitted man kept his seat. Finally his
lawyers went to him and said: 'You are free,
why don't you go home.'
" 'Because,' replied tho man, 'I have the pants
on, and I'm afraid if I get up the judge or the
jury will see them.'
"And now the democratic progressives have
'come unto a land where i Is always afternoon.'
None have over been enemies who now aro
friends. A generous amnesty sheds its warmth
upon every wanderer. The mantle of charity
covers every past fault. The first forward-looking
man whom the president callod to his side
brought with him, in a solid wall of support, tho
host of Americans who had followed him, and
in his patience and courage and self-effacement
and deep practical Christianity there is inspira
tion for the great tasks to be performed, and
in their performance, in the realization of his
dream of equality of opportunity and social
Justice, there will be reward a-plenty according
to his heart's desire for the commoner."
Secretary Bryan's speech in full was as fol
lows: "Mr. Grasty, honored guests, gentlemen: I
am grateful to Mr. Grasty for tho opportunity
that he has given me of meeting you around this
board. The introduction to which I have lis
'tened makes it impossible or me to avoid one
line of thought that he has suggested. I do not
como here to make any speech on any particular
subject. I came here to be his guest and to meet
his friends, and my thought was entirely on the
pleasure that I would derive from this gather
ing, and sot upon anything that I would be.
expected to say. Even if I woro proparod to
epoak at length, I think that tho opportunity of
spoaking is to bo shared by others at least it
would bo a fatal dofoct in this program if others
were not given an opportunity to speak, for wo
have thoso hero who can and ought to.
"Wo havo another roprosontntlvo of tho stato
department. I hopo ho will not bo allowed to
escape. (Laughter.) I havo to roly upon my
third assistant (referring to Dudloy Field Ma
lono) to toll mo what it is proper to do In diplo
matic matters, and ho ought to share my por
tion tonight.
"You havo hero a representative of tho presi
dent and ho really ought to havo boon intro
duced beforo myself, because I am only a sec
retary (laughter) and thero aro 10 of us and
only ono Tumulty. (Applause)
"Then wo have a representative of tho scnato
hero and that august body ought to bo hoard.
Wo havo also a representative of the house of
representatives a very roprosontntlvo mombor
of tho house of representatives, a member of tho
ways and moanB committeo, and I am suro that
this body would never forglvo Itsolf If it did
not give Palmer a chance to express his oxalta
tion ovor tho passage of this tariff law. (Ap
plause.) "Then wo havo here also ono who Ib bo much
better versed in diplomacy than any of us young
men that I think ho ought to bo heard from.
How many more aro there? (Laughtor.) And
I havo not spoken of your local lights horo, but
there are enough around to make my candle
seem dim.
"But, if I must say the word on tho subject
that has been brought forward, It will not bo
.a word of consuro. I havo no disposition to
night to speak harshly of tho 'storm collar I
have no intention of calling tho roll to seo how
many woro in and how many wore out,
(Laughtor.)
"A man who has had as, much trouble as I
havo had is so glad to have them out (laugh
tor) that ho never refers to the fact that they
were in. (Laughtec and applause.) You know
in diplomatic circles wo speak of an incident be
ing closed. I havo closed many incidents In my
life. (Laughter and applause.) After each do
feat I have habitually forgiven those who were
responsible 'for Jt. '(Laughter and applause.) I
havo forgiven them for several reasons. In
the first place, sq many havo contributed to it
that my Indignation, when scattered over thorn
all, amounted to very little to each. (Laughtor.)
And then I had another reason. There Is no
load that will break a man down so quickly and
so surely as a load of revenge. Tho man who
tries to get even with others has few oppor
tunities of gratifying his hatred, but he is all
the time corroding' himself. (Applause.)
"I have had so many friends to get even with
that I knew I never could got even, and surely
a man ought to wait to get even with his friends
before he begins with his enemies. "And, then,
I have not felt like being harsh with those who
differed from me, because I have felt that If I
were right and they were wrong, I had reward
enough to satisfy mo and they had punishment
enough for them to bear. (Applause.)
"Tho older I grow the less inclined I am to be
harsh in criticism. I was speaking in an English '
town a few years ago and speaking of the valuo
of acquaintance, and I was encouraging visiting
between countries as a means of getting ac
quainted. I was speaking of the value of ac
quaintance as a means of preventing misunder
standing when thero flashed Into m"y mind tho
thought that I had never heard emphasized
and I gave expression to it, and I think it Is
worth repeating. I thought of Christ's prayer
upon tho cross.
" 'Father, forglvo them, for thoy know not
what they do.'
"I believe that has not been emphasized as
it ought to have been. That is,' wo have not
sufficiently considered tho element of ignorance
in tho making up of our judgments. We havo
not sufficiently considered the effect of lack of
information. When people err it Is more often
a lack of information than it is a desire to err.
"Few people desire to err and yet all of us
err. To err is human. Thero Ib lack of infor
mation; there has been and there was in 1896.
There were many people in 1896 who thought
that tho silver question was the paramount
issue. They may havo been Justified In think
ing so, because the platform so declared. And
It ought probably to havo been said that the
silver question Is the surface issue, because it
was .merely a manifestation of a difference.
"People wrangled over th silver question,
but the real question and many did not see it
(Continued on Page 10.)
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