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About The Conservative (Nebraska City, Neb.) 1898-1902 | View Entire Issue (July 26, 1900)
10 t/bc Conservative * A FREE SILVER SKNATE IF BRYAN IS ELECTED. In order to back the contentions of the democratic plank stating that "im perialism" is really the "paramount issue of this campaign , " the oracles of the democratic party in the doubtful states are laying increasing stress on the argument that the passage of the cur rency bill has practically eliminated silver as an issue. This argument is curious in its pro gressive deductions. From the follow ing three premises it proceeds : First , the new currency reform law removes from the option of the president the maintenance of the gold standard and makes it a perfunctory duty of the sec retary of treasury to keep up the gold reserve. Second , so long as the republi can party keeps control of the senate the new currency law cannot be repealed and no free silver bill or any other infla tion scheme recommended by Bryan , if president , can become law. Third , the republican party cannot possibly be wrested from control of the senate dur ing the next four years , whatever may be the political complexion of the state legislatures in the meantime. Ergo , the guarantee , through the republican sen ate majority , against any legislative ac complishment of Bryanism removes the menace to the prosperity of the country that the election of Mr. Bryan 'would otherwise mean. As Theodore Roosevelt so pithily said in his speech at the Philadelphia con vention : "We have passed suoh wise laws on finance that they ( the silver democrats ) actually appeal to the patri otic , honest men who deserted them at the last election to help them now , be cause , forsooth , we have done so well that nobody need fear their capacity to undo our work. I am not exaggerating. This is literally the argument that is now addressed to the gold democrats as a reason why they need no longer stand by the republican party. " As to the above three premises of democratic reasoning , republicans can with pride admit the absolute truthful ness of both of the first two. The third premise , however , can be used as a basis for safe argument only by assuming as a positive fact the probability that Bry an cannot carry this fall enough states from the group comprising Maryland , Kentucky , West Virginia , New York. Ohio , Indiana Michigan and Illinois to get elected. If the unexpected should , however happen through a "landslide" in Bryan's favor and nothing but an unlooked-for landslide conld carry enough of these states necessary for Bryan's success then it is difficult to believe that the republicans would re tain control of the legislatures of those states whose electoral votes were thus lost. By losing a few legislatures of states deemed surely republican , because they went republican in 1890 , the repub licans would probably lose control of the senate. If control of the house of rep resentatives were also lost , as would most likely happen in event of the gen eral election being lost , there would be no barrier whatever to the legislative accomplishments of every populistio fad and fallacy that Bryan as president might propose. To prove this it is only necessary to analyze the composition of the senate vote on the currency reform bill last March of the present year. That bill was passed by a majority of 17 votes. Had nine of the votes cast in the affirm ative been cast instead in the negative the bill would have been defeated. Should nine of the sound money sena tors who voted for this bill be succeeded during the next four years by the silver democrats or populists the new currency law would almost certainly be repealed. Free silver successors to two of them have already been chosen. The Ken tucky legislature has retired William Lindsay , honest money democrat , and elected to his place J. 0. Blackburn , the boon friend of Bryan and one of- the most rabid members of the school of free siiverism. The Louisiana legis lature has retired Donelson Oaffery , honest money democrat , and elected to succeed him M. J. Foster , silver demo crat. Following is a list of those senators with terms expiring in 1901 or 1908 , who supported the bill and who represented states normally democratic or fusion , or which gave Bryan their electoral vote in 1896 : Baker ( Kan ) 1001 Shoup ( Idaho ) . . . . 1001 Caffery ( La.a ) ( ) . 1001 ThurBton ( Neb ) . . 1901 Carter ( Mont.1901 ) Warren ( Wyo ) . . .1001 Deboo ( Kv. ) 1903 WellinKtoniMd.1903 ) Lindsay ( Ky.a.1001 ) ( ) Wolcott ( Cole ) . . . 1901 PritchardN.C..1903 ( a ) Sound-money Democrat. J. O. Blackburn , silver democrat , is now senator-elect to succeed Lindsay. M. J. Foster , silver democrat , is senator- elect to succeed Oaffery. From states where democrats say they expect to have good fighting chances in coming elections , are the following : Cullom (111) ( ) 1001 PlnttN ( Y ) 1903 Fairbanks ( Ind ) . . 1903 Platt ( Conn ) 1903 Foraker ( Ohio ) . . . 1003 Perkins ( Cal ) 1903 Hansbrouph ( ND)1003 ) SowellNJ ( ) 1901 McBride ( Ore ) . . . . 1901 Simon ( Oregon ) . . 1903 McBlillen ( Mich.1901 SpoonerWIs.1003 ( ) Mason (111) ( ) 1903 There are thus eleven sound-money senators whose terms will expire within the next four years and who , even in the event of McKinley's re-election , may quite possibly or probably be suc ceeded by senators of Bryan's political persuasion. In addition there are thir teen senators with terms expiring in 1901 or 1908 who come from states whose electoral votes and legislatures the dem ocrats profess strong hopes of carrying , through the aid of the German vote and of the vote of those gold democrats be guiled into thinking that "imperialism" is the "paramount issue. " From California a vacancy has since . been filled by the election of T. R. Bard , taxwtstst republican. From Delaware , Pennsyl vania and Utah there are still vacancies through failures of legislatures to elect. All three of these legislatures are at present republican , though those of Del aware and Utah may quite possibly have their political complexions changed through the next elections , even though McKinley is re-elected president. If we add four votes from these states to the present sound-money strength of the senate it will be raised from 51 to 65. If the republican state of New Hamp shire elects a sound-money senator to succeed Chandler we may add one more vote to the strength , making it 56 , and also cut down the free silver strength by one vote , making it 88. If then , there should be a "landslide" drift of sentiment for Bryan , his party in the senate would most likely gain before the end of his term of office every one of the above eleven votes from Louisiana , Montana , North Carolina , Kentucky , Idaho , Nebraska , Kansas , Wyoming , Colorado and Maryland , while it would also be practically cer tain to gain several and possibly all of the above thirteen votes from Illinois , Indiana , Ohio , North Dakota , Oregon , Michigan , New York , Wisconsin , New Jersey , Connecticut and California. Democratic gains from all of the eleven on the first list would change the rela tive strength from 56 sound-money republicans and 88 democrats , to 45 sound-money republicans and 44 demo crats. Gains from the second list , some of which under the circumstances would be certain , would turn the sound money majority into a free silver majority. If all of the thirteen votes on the second list should be gained by the democrats , the relative strength would then be sound money 82 , democratic 57. If New Hampshire should allow Senator Chan dler to continue to represent it , and if Delaware and Utah should fill present vacancies with democrats and South Dakota elect an out-and-out silver man to succeed Kyle , the relative strength would then be : Sound money , 29 ; free silver 61. By a majority of thirty-two , fifteen greater than the present sound money majority , the senate could then vote not only to repeal the currency reform bill but to pass a free silver bill for Bryan to sign. The democratic platform calls specif ically not only for 16 to 1 but for the repeal of the currency law the very law which gold democrats are now being told prevents silver being a "paramount" issue. If Bryan should be elected presi dent through the aid of the gold demo crats who deserted him 1896 , he could with small doubt be able to sign not only a bill for the repeal of the currency law , but a free silver bill passed by the fifty- eighth congress , if not by the fifty- seventh. If Bryan should be elected , but the senate kept republican , as has been alto-
