ILLINOIS
CURRENCY CONVENTION

BY C.
AUTHOR OF "DEMOCRATIC

R.

TUTTLE

GOSPEL,"

"MEN

AND MEASURES

OF THE 39TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY," ETC., ETC.

IT IS THE OFFICIAL BOOK
SPRINGFIELD, ILL , MAY 23,

1895.

To THE PUBLIC —

This will certify that Mi, C R Tuttle, of Chicago, is authorized to edit and publish
the proceedings of the Illinois Democratic Convention, called for June 5, 1895, to consider the currency question, in book form, and that the book may be pioperly considered
an official report of the proceedings of the Convention
Respectfully,

Chairman Illinois Democratic State Central Committee.!

CHICAGO
CHARLES H. KERR & COMPANY
175

MONROE STREET

1895

Copyright, 1895,
BY CHARLES H. KERR & COMPAHT.

Unity Library, No. 46.
Monthly, $3.00 a year.
June, 1895,
Entered at| the postoffice, Chicago, as second class matter,

CONTENTS.
CHAPTER

I.
II.

PAGE

C A U S E OF T H E CONVENTION

7

CLEVELAND AND P A L M E R

21

III.

CHAIRMAN H I N R I C H S E N ' S S T A T E M E N T . . .

29

IV.

PROGRESS OF T H E CONTROVERSY

41

V. B E N E F I T S OF T H E CONVENTION
VI.
VII.
VIII.
IX.
X.
XL
XII.
XIII.
XIV.
XV.
XVI.
XVII.
XVIII.
XIX.

ANTE-CONVENTION INCIDENTS

....

54
59

CHAIRMAN H I N R I C H S E N ' S S P E E C H

69

T H E TEMPORARY ORGANIZATION

76

MCCONNELL'S GREAT SPEECH

82

BRYAN'S A B L E ADDRESS

100

A N D R E W J. H U N T E R ' S S P E E C H . . . .

107

GOVERNOR A L T G E L D ' S S P E E C H

123

M R . M I C H A E L I S ' ADDRESS

136

T H E PLATFORM

140

GOVERNOR S T O N E ' S L E T T E R

145

SUMMING I T U P .

148

T H E ISSUE D E F I N E D

156

LOOKING F O R W A R D .

160

R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S OF T H E P R E S S

175

PREFACE.
THIS volume has been written and compiled in the
cause of the restoration of the double standard monetary system of the fathers, and is therefore in the
interests of true Democracy. I t sets forth in clear,
plain, truthful terms the causes that led to calling
the Illinois Democratic Currency Convention of June
5, 1895; embraces, in convenient form, a summary
of the arguments, pro and con, on the silver controversy in the West previous to the convention;
contains the proceedings of the convention in full,
including the speeches and resolutions; states and
defines clearly the real issue before the country; estimates the political forces at work for and against
the restoration of the people's money; and draws
from existing circumstances more or less correct conclusions as to the outcome of the great silver campaign.
I t is in a large sense the first silver campaign book,
and, because of its strict adherence to the truth,
and to the teachings of historic Democracy on the
money question, will perhaps recommend itself to
readers everywhere.
Respectfully,

C. R. TUTTLE.

Chicago, June 10, 1895.

ILLINOIS
CURRENCY CONVENTION.
CHAPTER I.
CAUSE OF THE CONVENTION.

THE Illinois Currency Convention was the first gun
in the campaign that may settle the question whether
the money power or the people is to govern the United
States. That gun was fired by the people, and may
be regarded as a warning to the money monopoly and
the politicians in its service that the people are rising in a struggle to assert their rights. How far they
will succeed, remains to be seen. The most hopeful
indication in the struggle is that the currency controversy has resolved itself into a campaign of education.
Almost immediately following the adjournment of
the last Congress, an attempt was made to organize
a free silver party in the United States, distinctive
from the two old parties. With this movement readers are familiar. I t was justified on two grounds.
One of these is that neither the Republican nor Democratic party, in the past, has shown a disposition to
carry out its platform pledges to restore the double
standard monetary system in this country. The other
7

8

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

is, that the people, having suffered severely from the
demonetization of silver in 1873, were ready to support any movement that promised to restore bimetallism.
In Illinois, as elsewhere, the Democratic managers
knew perfectly well that the rank and file of the
party were heartily in favor of the restoration of silver as fundamental money, and, realizing that the
new silver movement, in the form of a separate political organization, would tend greatly to destroy the
Democratic party, determined to put their organization in line with the well-known sentiment of the
people on this question.
President Cleveland, in defiance of the national
Democratic platform of 1892, had espoused gold monometallism, and some of his immediate advisers, who
were most enthusiastic for the single gold standard,
set on foot in Chicago a movement to banquet the
president in the name of the business men of the
city. At this proposed banquet, according to the
plan of the gold advocates, Mr. Cleveland was to
make a great speech in support of their views.
This movement of the gold standard men of Chicago, together with the efforts put forth elsewhere to
organize a distinctive silver party, precipitated, as
one can readily see, a crisis in the Democratic party,
not only in Illinois, but throughout the whole country. I t was plain that some steps were necessary to
preserve the usefulness of the party, and I am bound
to say, that Hon. W. H. Hinrichsen, the Secretary
of State of Illinois and Chairman of the Democratic
State Central committee, proved himself equal to the

CAUSE OF THE CONVENTION

9

occasion. An account of his action in the premises,
together with his reasons for the same, is presented
in this volume in his own language. I t required
great force of character and decision, amounting
almost to boldness, to meet the exigency, but it appears that Mr. Hinrichsen possessed these in a sufficient degree to grapple with the situation. Whatever may be said of the wisdom of his conduct, as
the head of the Democratic organization of Illinois,
he stands peculiarly and personally responsible for
the currency convention which has just been held.
Whatever of good shall come out of it, must in a
great measure be entered up to his credit. If on the
other hand, evil results follow, he will be in like manner chargeable with them.
Probably the history of political parties, so far as
state organizations are concerned, affords few parallels of the bold action taken by the Illinois Democratic State Central Committee in calling a currency
convention at a time when, perhaps, to the minds of
the majority of the professional politicians, inaction
appeared preferable to experiment, but Mr. Hinrichsen's political foresight was so clear and unmistakable, in his judgment, that he determined, at some
risk, to involve the fortunes of the Democratic party
of Illinois in a controversy in which, as time has already shown, the people were anxious to engage.
Already the question of the restoration of silver
had become irrepressible. I t was useless to evade
or conceal the fact that the sentiment of the west,
and to a great extent, the whole country, was in favor of bimetallism. It was true then, as it is now,

10

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

that the people of the west were as firmly devoted to
honest money as the people of any other section of
the country can be. The difference between the contending elements, then as now, arose from confused
notions as to what constitutes honest money on the
one hand, and selfish and dishonest motives on the
other. These selfish and dishonest aims did not and
do not obtain among the advocates of bimetallism,
for these people do not constitute the governing class;
while on the other hand, among the gold monometallists were to be found many persons who were actuated by dishonesty.
The most distressing indication in this whole controversy is the fact that the real defenders of dishonest money are organizing themselves everywhere into
"honest money leagues." I t is true that the enemy
of the free coinage of silver and gold, at a ratio of
16 to 1, is the hypocrite, and is traducing the cause
of honest money by every available species of deceit.
The people realize that the monetary system of the
present day is dishonest, and that those who are
fighting so eagerly to maintain it, are either money
monopolists or their hirelings.
One of the circumstances most detrimental to the
cause of silver, is the fact that too many people are
unable to distinguish between the forced coinage of
silver or subsidiary coinage, and the remonetization
of silver, which would make it a fundamental money.
The demonetization of silver in 1873 has been properly called a crime, but the forced coinage of silver
by the government of the United States under acts
of Congress passed since that date, is equally a crime

CAUSE OF THE CONVENTION

11

in fact, though perhaps not of equal magnitude. By
the forced coinage of silver the country has lost more
than $150,000,000 within a few years, but this loss
may be repaired by remonetizing that precious metal,
which will restore the intrinsic value of the present
standard silver dollar by re-establishing the parity
between gold, silver and commodities. I t is a remarkable fact, that the men who are responsible for the
present dishonest monetary system, which is scarcely
less than a direct fraud upon the people, are the most
enthusiastic advocates of its continuance. They are
upholding dishonest money with one hand, and organizing u honest money leagues" with the other.
The people are beginning to realize that through
demonetization in 1873, the resultant gold standard
money has been appreciated to such an extent that it
is out of all honest proportion in value to the value
of commodities as measured by that standard. As
a result, money, being dear, is scarce, commodities
are depressed, business is paralyzed, the poor are becoming poorer daily, and the rich richer. Under gold
monometallism the wealth of the nation is being
rapidly transferred to the few. Great fortunes are
being built up at the expense of the masses; the
debtor class is being robbed; labor is impoverished;
our silver product, depreciated to half its intrinsic
value by the gold yard-stick, is being carried to foreign countries.
By gold monometallism the United States is held
in commercial slavery to Great Britain. Gold is constantly rising, the national debt is rapidly increasing, and as our bonds are made payable in gold, our
people are being robbed by foreign countries.

12

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

I t is expedient to call attention to these things
here, and to present a somewhat full statement
of the effects of demonetization, in order to set forth
the causes which led to the Illinois currency convention. I t is a simple question of cause and effect.
Our fathers fought long years to achieve the political independence of the United States, and when
this great work was accomplished they began to lay
the foundations of commercial, industrial and financial independence. They addressed themselves to this
task with great patriotism and ability, but a subsequent generation of politicians has torn down the
magnificent structure which they reared, so that today the enslavement of the people of this country
to Great Britain and other foreign nations is more
complete than it was a hundred years ago.
As early as 1792 the builders of our nation established a monetary system on the plan of bimetallism,
or the double standard. In doing this they followed
the teachings of the experiences of all past generations. Making the dollar the unit, they decreed that
3 7 1 | grains of pure silver should constitute a dollar,
and fixed the ratio between silver and gold at 15 to 1.
In a large sense the silver dollar was the unit, and
the value of gold was counted from that unit. This
is shown by the fact that the quantity of pure silver
in a dollar was not changed from 1792 to 1873, while
the amount of pure gold in the dollar was subsequently decreased so that the fixed ratio was changed
from 15 to 1 to 16 to 1.
This continued to be the monetary system up to
1873. During all this period the silver dollar was

CAUSE OF T H E CONVENTION

18

unchanged, and it continued to command the full
dollar value in comparison with gold, for, as stated,
it was, to a greater extent than gold the unit of value.
The only change in the fixed ratio between silver and
gold from 1792 to 1873, was when, in 1834, the gold
dollar was changed from 24.7 grains to 23.2 grains
of pure gold, thus making it smaller.
During the whole period both coins were legal
tender in payment of all debts, and the mints were
open to the coinage of all the silver and gold that
were presented. I t will be seen that up to 1878 the
monetary system of the United States was on a bimetallic foundation, and to a great extent, on a silver basis. This is true, for the standard or unit silver dollar was never changed, while the gold dollar
was, as stated, decreased in size in 1884.
W. H. Harvey, the author of "Coin's Financial
School," holds that silver was the unit, absolute,
but the writer agrees with him only to the extent
stated. Concerning this feature of bimetallism that
author aptly remarks:
"Our forefathers showed much wisdom in selecting silver, of the two metals, out of which to make
the unit. Much depended on this decision. For the
one selected to represent the unit would thereafter be
unchangeable in value. That is, the metal in it could
never be worth less than a dollar, for it would be
the unit of value itself. The demand for silver in the
arts or for money by other nations might make the
quantity of silver in a silver dollar sell for more than
a dollar, but it could never be worth less than a dollar. Less than itself.
u
I n considering which of these two metals they
would thus favor by making it the unit? they were

14

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

led to adopt silver because it was the most reliable.
I t was the most favored as money by the people. I t
was scattered among all the people. Men having
a design to injure business by making money scarce,
could not so easily get hold of all the silver and hide
it away, as they could gold. This was the principal
reason that led them to the conclusion to select silver, the more stable of the two metals, upon which
to fix the unit. It was so much handled by the people and preferred by them, that it was called the people's money.
"Gold is considered the money of the rich. I t was
owned principally by that class of people, and the
poor people seldom handled it, and the very poor
people seldom ever saw any of i t . "
Under bimetallism, which extended from 1792 to
1873, there was never any trouble with our monetary
system. Those who controlled the money power had
not the advantage over the producing class that they
now have. A parity was maintained not only between silver and gold, but between fundamental
money and commodities of all kinds.
But in 1873,the money monopolists "stole a march' v
on the people, and on February 22 of that year Congress passed an act revising the coinage laws of the
nation. It demonetized silver, by repealing the act
of 1792, and substituted the following:
" T h a t the gold coins of the United States shall be
a one-dollar piece, which at the standard weight of
twenty-five and eight-tenths grains shall be the unit
of value."
This was a fatal blow at the people's money. It'
deprived silver of the unrestricted right to free coinage, destroyed it as legal tender money in the payment of debts except to the beggarly amount of fivfr

CAUSE OF THE CONVENTION

15

dollars. Then the work of enriching the rich and
impoverishing the poor began. At the time the people were using only paper money, and were therefore
not aware of the theft that foreign countries had
perpetrated through a Republican Congress on them.
None but the robbers and their corrupt agents in Congress knew what had been done. I t is believed that
many of the latter were ignorant of the magnitude
of the crime which they committed.
England was whipped by the United States in the
War of the Revolution, but the United States was
betrayed into the hands of England by a Republican
Congress by the demonetization of silver in 1873.
This betrayal brought a mighty change. Previous
to it silver enjoyed free coinage at the ratio with gold
of 16 to 1, and was a legal tender for all debts. So
did gold. Since then silver has been discarded, gold
is the unit and enjoys a monopoly. Silver is refused
at the mints, and, in sympathy with other commodities, has fallen in value as measured by the monopoly
gold standard. Harvey very truthfully says:
"We might get along with gold as the unit, if silver enjoyed the same right gold did prior to 1878.
But that right is now denied to silver. When silver
was the unit, the unlimited demand for gold to coin
into money, made the demand as great as the supply,
and this held up the value of gold bullion.
u
A t the time the United States demonetized silver,
in February, 1873, silver as measured in gold was
worth $1.02. The argument of depreciated silver
could not then be made. Not one of the arguments
that are now made against silver was then possible.

16

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

They are all the bastard children of the crime of
1873."
The results of the "crime of 1873" have been so
disastrous to the people of the United States, so destructive of their commercial and industrial interests, that they are rising from one end of the land to
the other to secure a repeal of the law of 1873, and
a restoration of the monetary system that existed
for more than three quarters of a century previous
to that date, under which they prospered. The Illinois Currency Convention is the advance guard of
that uprising.
I t is not the intention to delay, here, to enumerate any considerable number of the disastrous results
of the demonetization of silver, but a few must be
noted. Official statistics, showing that by the appreciation of gold, silver and wheat have steadily fallen,
in sympathy with each other, under gold monometallism, are at hand as follows:
Years.

1889......
1890
1891
1892
1893
1894

Revised Totals.
World's
wheat production.
Bushels.

Silver (avail
able for coinage] output
world.
Ounces.

Wheat prices,
farm
average,
U. S.

Silver
prices oz.
London
average.

2,137,000,000
2,304,000,000
2,425,000,000
2,438,000,000
2,521,000,000
2,566,000,000

99,710,000
105,560,000
116,416,000
131,929,000
139,859,000
125,000,000

69c.
83c.
83c.
62c.
52c.
49c.

42 6d.
47.7d.
45. Od.
39 8d.
35.6d.
28.9d

Under gold monometallism, gold standard money
is constantly rising, and by its measure of value,
which is false and dishonest, commodities are steadily
falling. The debtor is being robbed; the producer

is being robbed., and the government m& the people

17

CAUSE OF T H E CONVENTION

generally are being robbed by foreign countries. I t
is time to call a halt.
Nothing can be plainer than that the demonetization of silver has depreciated the commercial value
of that metal and all other commodities. It is proved
by Mr. Sauerbeck's statistics and in a thousand
other ways. For twenty years previous to 1873, while
the free coinage of silver was the law in the United
States, notwithstanding England was under gold
monometallism, the commercial value of silver in
the London market did not vary either way more
than two per cent, and the extreme was always in
favor of silver. But how has it been since 1873?
Let Mr. Sauerbeck speak for himself:
Yearly
Years
Yeavly
Years
I n d e x - n u m b e r s I n d e x - n u m b e r s from 1873
from 1873
b a c k t o 1854.
of Silver.
of Silver
o n t o 1892.
1878
1872
1871
1870
1869
1868
1867
1866
1865
1864
1863
1862
1861
1860
1859
1858
1857
1856
1855
1854

97.4
99.2
99.7
99.6
99 6
99.6
99 7
100.5
100.3
100 9
101.1
100.9
99.9
101.4
102.0
101.0
101.5
1010
100.7
101.1

97.4
95 8
93.3
86 7
90 2
86.4
84 2
85.9
85 0
84.9
83.1
83.3
79.9
74.6
78.3
70 4
70.2
78.4
74.1
65.4

1873
1874
1875
1876
1877
1878
1879
1880
1881
1882
1883
1884
1885
1886
1887
1888
1889
1890
1891
1892

But let us take the figures for 200 years, from 1687

18

ILLINOIS CUBEENCY CONVENTION

to 1892, and note the official commercial ratio of
silver and gold. These will provide overwhelming
proof that the demonetization of silver in 1873 was
a death blow at that metal, as other statistics, given
later on, will show it to have been destructive of labor
and all other commodities also:
Year. Ratio 1JYear. Ratio Year. Ratio
1687
1688
1689
1690
1691
1692
1693
1694
1695
1696
1697
1698
1699
1700
1701
1702
1703
1704
1705
1706
1707
1708
1709
1710
1711
1712
1713
1714
1715
1716
1717
1718
1719
1720
1731

14.94 1722
I4.94 1 U 7 2 3
15.02 1724
15.02 1725
14.98; 1726
1 4 9 2 1727
1 4 . 8 3 1728
r 4 - 8 7 1729
15.02 1 7 3 °
15-0° I 7 3 1
15.20 I 7 3 2
15.07 1733
14-94 1734
14 81 1735
15.07 1736
15.52! 1737
15.17 1738
15.22: 1739
1 5 . n ! 1740
I 5 . 2 7 | 174*
15.44 1742
15.41 1743
15.31 1744
15.22 1745
1 5 . 2 9 1746
I 5 3II 1747
15.24 1748
X5.I3 1749
1 5 . " 1750
15.09 JI75I
I 5 - I 3 1752
I 5 - " 1753
1 5 0 9 1754
15.04 ,1755
15.05I I1756

15.17 1757
I5-2G 1758
15. I I k759
15. I I 1760
15.15 1761
1 5 . 2 4 1762
r 5 . i l 1763
14.92 1764
14.81 1765
14.94 1766
15.09 1767
I 5 . I 8 . 1768
15 3 9 1769
15.41, 1770
15.18 I 7 7 i
15.02' j*772
14 9 1 1773
14 9 1 1774
14.94 1775
1 4 9 2 1776
1 4 8 5 1777
14.85 1778
14.87! 1779
14.98] 1780
15.13! 1781
15 26 ! 1782
15-11 1783
1 4 . 8 0 1784
14.55 1785
14.39 1786
14.54 1787
1 4 . 5 4 1788
1 4 . 4 8 1789
1 4 6 8 1790
1494

Year Ratio. Year. Ratio. Year

14.87 1791
14.85' 1792
14.15 1793
14.14 1 1 7 9 4
1 4 . 5 4 1795
15.27 1796
1 4 . 9 9 1797
14 70 1798
14.83 r 7 9 9
14 8 0 1800
1 4 8 5 1801
14.80 1802
14-72 1803
14.62 1804
14 6 6 1805
14.52 1806
14 62 1807
14.62 1808
14 72 1809
14-55 1810
14 54 1811
14.68 1812
14.80 1813
14.72 1814
1 4 . 7 8 I1815
14.42 118 L 6
1 4 4 8 1817
14 7 0 1818
1 4 9 2 11819
1 4 9 6 1820
14.92 1821
1 4 . 6 5 1822
14.751 1823
1 5 . 0 4 1824

15.05 1825
15.17 1826
1 5 . 0 0 1827
15 37 ,1828
15-55 1829
15.65 1830
15.41 1831
r
5 - 5 9 1832
15.74 1835
1 5 6 8 1834
15 46l 1835
1 5 . 2 6 1836
15-41 1837
1 5 . 4 1 1838
15 79, 1839
1 5 5 2 1840
15 4 3 1841
1 6 0 8 1842
15.96 1843
15 77 1844
15.53 1845
r 6 11 1846
1 6 2 5 1847
15 041 1848
15-26 1849
1 5 . 2 8 1850
I5-H !i85i
15 35 J1852
1 5 . 3 3 '853
15.62 1854
15.95 1855
1 5 . 8 0 1856
1 5 . 8 4 1857
1 5 . 8 2 1858

15-70
15.76
15-74
15.78
15.78
1582
15.72
15.73
15 9 3
15 73
1580
15 72
1583
1585
15.62
15.62
i 5 7o
15.87
15.93
15-85
15.92
15 9 0
1580
1585
15.78
i5-7o
15 4 6
15-59
15-33
15.33
15.38
15.38
15.27
15.38

1859
i860
1861
1862
1863
1864
1865
1866
1867
1868
1S69
1870
1871
1872
1873
1874
1875
1876
1877
1878
1879
1880
1881
1882
1883
1884
1885
1886
1887
1888
1889
1890
1891
1892

Ratio.

I5rI9
15-29
1550
15.35
15-37
1537
15-44
15 4 3
15-57
15 5 9
1560
15 5 7
15-57
1563
T5-92

10,17 •
16.59 Z
17,88 f t
17,22 Z
17,94
18,40**
18,05 4
18.10**
18.19 t t
18.04"
18.57 *•
19.41 tf
20.78 ~
21.18&
21.99©
22.09 g
19.75 7.
20.92*
28.72 A

If the years 1893, 1894, and 1895 be added, which
show that the pure silver in the standard dollar has

19

CAUSE OF T H E CONVENTION

fallen to 51 cents, as measured by the single gold
standard, the proof becomes positively alarming, for
all commodities are falling in value, or in single gold
standard value, in proportion to the decline of silver.
I speak of the decline in the value of silver and other
commodities, which ought to be expressed, and would
be more correctly expressed by the term, u appreciation of single gold standard money."
The average export price, as measured in gold, of
wheat, cotton and silver, each year since the demonetization of silver, teaches a lesson from which the
gold monometallists can find no escape, and to which
they can make no answer. Here it is:
Years.

Bu
Wheat.

1872
1873
1874
1875
1876
1877
1878
1879
1880
1881
1882
1883
1884
1885
1886
1887
1888
1889
1890
1891
1892
1893

L40
1 25
1 35
1.10
1.20
1.17
1.30
107
125
111
1.19
1.13
1.07
.86
.87
.89
.85
.90
83
.85
.80
.63

Lb.
Cotton.
18^0
18.2
15.0
15 0
12 9
11.8
11.1
99
11.5
11.4
11.4
10.8 .
10.5
10.6
9.9
9.5
9.8
9.9
10.1
10.0
8.7
7.0

Oz.
Silver.
1.32
1.29
1.27
124
1.15
1.20
1.15
1.12
1.14
1.13
1.13
1.11
1.01
1.06
.99
.97
.93
.93
1.04
90
.86
.72

But one might go on until figures became tedious
arid taxing, as well as instructive, go blighting and

20

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

destructive has the effect of silver demonetization
been that in less than a quarter of a century a vast
proportion of the population has been reduced to a
condition of poverty and misery. The conditions of
u
life to half the people are so hard that
individual
selfishness is the only thing consistent with the interest of self-preservation.' 5 Harvey truly says:
u
Ail public spirit, all generous emotions, all the
noble aspirations of man, are shriveling up and disappearing as the volume of primary money shrinks
and as prices fall. Honest labor seeks employment
it cannot find, and hungry and shelterless, our unemployed are seen daily on the streets, without hope
and in despair."
Such are the circumstances and conditions which
led to the Illinois Currency Convention of 1895. But
thir is not all.

CHAPTEE II.
CLEVELAND AND PALMER.

WHILE Chairman Hinrichsen and his colleagues
were considering the situation, and canvassing among
themselves the propriety of placing the Democratic
party of Illinois in touch with the struggling masses,
President Cleveland, having decided not to visit Chicago in the interests of gold monometallism, was
drafting a letter to the business men of that city
"regretting" his inability to make the visit, and declaring for "sound money."
This letter has proved the most disturbing force
if not the most injurious to the Democratic party
in the West and South, ever let loose. It was most
insulting in tone towards the advocates of bimetallism, misrepresenting their position and libeling
their patriotism. I t was received as an affront by
every supporter of bimetallism in the country, and
from the hour of its issuance Cleveland was regarded
as a gold monometallist and a traitor to the national
Democratic platform of 1892.
President Cleveland's letter was ambiguous as well
as insulting. He said: " W h a t is now needed more
than anything else is a plain and simple presentation of the argument in favor of sound money." I t
was plain to the people of the West that Cleveland,
21

22

ILLINOIS CUEEENCY CONVENTION

since he secured the unconditional repeal of the Sherman law, had taken the place so long held by the
author of that law, Senator Sherman, and had become the acknowledged leader of the single gold
standard advocates, in both political parties.
The people had hoped that the president would
give them a plain statement of what he understood
"sound money" to consist of, but he failed to do
this. He did not say what "sound money" was, but
in his letter he made frequent use of that and kindred phrases in a way that was calculated to belittle
bimetallism. In the course of his letter he spoke
three times of "sound money," twice of a "safe and
sound currency," once of "safe and prudent financial
ideas," and once of"wholesome financial doctrine."
He also spoke once of a "debased currency," once of
a "degenerated currency," and once of "cheap money." In one place he described bimetallists as " t h e
forces of silver monometallism," but nowhere did he
say what he considered "sound money" should consist of.
Now, everybody in the West favored "sound
money" and a "safe currency," but a plain and
straightforward statement of what he meant by the
terms was withheld. In an open letter to him in
reply, ex-Congressman Bryan, of Nebraska, who
fully expressed the feeling of the West, wrote:
If by "sound money" you mean a gold standard,
why did you avoid the use of the word "gold" in your
letter? If by a "safe currency" you mean bimetallism, why did you avoid the use of the word "bimetallism" in your letter? Your letter nowhere contains
a direct reference either to the gold standard or to

CLEVELAND AND PALMER

23

bimetallism, but is quite replete with expressions
which may mean a great deal or nothing, according
to the interpretation placed upon them. Your opponents have always given you credit for courageously
defining your position on public questions; will you
prove their confidence well founded by stating frankly what kind of a financial system we shall enjoy "if
the sound money sentiment abroad in the land" succeeds in saving u u s from mischief and disaster?"
Your opponents candidly avow their purpose and
clearly outline the legislation which they desire; is
it not fair to ask that you define your policy with as
much frankness?
Your opponents favor the free and unlimited coinage of gold bullion into dollars, each containing 25.8
grains of standard gold; are you in favor of this?
Your opponents are in favor of the free and unlimited coinage of silver bullion into dollars, each containing 412.5 grains of standard silver; are you in
favor of this? If not, are you in favor of the coinage of silver bullion into dollars of any size? If not
in favor of the free coinage of silver, what charge, if
any, would you make for coinage? If you are not
in favor of the unlimited coinage of silver, what
limit would you suggest? Your opponents not only
believe in the restoration of the free and unlimited
coinage of both gold a ad silver at the present ratio
of 16 to 1, but they are in favor of taking this action
at once, without waiting for the aid or consent of
any other nation on earth; do you agree with them?
If not, do you favor the restoration of bimetallism
by international agreement? If you are in favor of
an international agreement, what ratio would you
advise and what nations are, in your opinion, necessary to such an agreement? If you favor an international agreement, how long are you willing to wait
for it? Your opponents are in favor of making
standard gold coin and standard silver coin equally
a legal tender for all debts public and private, and

24

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

are opposed to making a silver dollar a promise to
pay a gold dollar, or a gold dollar a promise to pay
a silver dollar; do you agree with them?
Your opponents believe that the free and unlimited coinage of gold and silver at the present ratio of
16 to 1, by the United States, regardless of the action
of other nations, will give us "sound money" and a
"safe currency;" they not only believe this, but they
support their position by arguments so "plausibly
presented" that even you are frightened into the belief that " t h e sound money sentiment" "must be
crystallized and combined and made immediately
active" in order to prevent their success at the polls.
Can you. define your position so clearly and defend
it so plausibly as to scare your opponents as badly
as they scared you? Is the failure of gold standard
advocates to define their purposes and defend their
financial system due to lack of knowledge of the subject, or to an unwillingness to let the people know
what they intend?
In short,the Democrats of the West who had not
sold out to the money power—-and the number probably constituted four-fifths of the party—felt that,
beyond his recognized views as a tariff reformer,
Cleveland was not a Democrat, and that he had gone
over to Wall Street, soul and body.
It was under these circumstances that the call for
the Illinois Currency Convention wrent forth from
the pen of Chairman Hinrichsen to the Democracy
of Illinois. It was moderately criticised by Hon.
Ben. T. Cable, who represents the State of Illinois
on the National Democratic Committee, but in terms
that indicated that Mr. Cable, while unwilling to
create an open breach with Mr. Cleveland, was by no
means ready to take sides with the President as
against the people. Mr. Cable knew very well that

CLEVELAND AND PALMER

25

the vast majority of the people of the West, of both
parties, was in favor of bimetallism, and that, under
the influence of the mighty educational wave going
over the country, the laboring and producing classes
in all the states of the Union would be in favor of
the restoration of silver as fundamental money, long
before the close of the campaign of 1896. Being a
wise and experienced politician,he took conservative
ground, saying only that he regarded the movement
as hasty.
But it remained for Senator John M. Palmer to
announce himself the slave of Cleveland and the
money power. This thoroughly disgusted the rank
and file of the Democracy all over the country. Of
all men in the National Senate Palmer owed his elevation to the common people; to the free silver wing
of the Democracy, if that expression may be used.
He was elected in a desperate struggle in 1891 between the Democrats and the Kepublicans, in the
Illinois legislature, when, by the grace of two Populist votes, he was sent to the United States Senate
pledged to the restoration of silver by every vow
that can appeal to manly honor.
In that struggle Democracy placed its all on the
altar of labor, and consecrated its life anew to the
cause of the struggling masses. Palmer was the impersonation of that consecration. But he has turned
out the embodiment of hypocrisy. His declaration,
after four years service in the United States Senate,
for the single gold standard, in view of his election
promises, not only shows that he has gone from the
people to the service and slavery of their enemies,

26

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

but it proves once more, that whenever the Democratic
party goes outside of its own ranks for a leader it
will be betrayed. Palmer's betrayal of the people
of Illinois, in this regard, is one of the most distressing political misfortunes that has overtaken any
party. His political career may be written in words
of lamentation. He has certainly disappointed
many of his once warm and enthusiastic friends.
Four years ago the working people of Illinois rallied
to the support of Palmer. To-day they see in him the
friend of their enemies, the money monopolists.
By his espousal of gold monometallism, Palmer
sold his political birthright, but for what, remains
to be seen. Like every other citizen, John M. Palmer
has a right to his opinions and to enjoy the liberty
of expressing them whensoever and wheresoever he
pleases. But to steal his way into the United States
Senate with false pledges to support a movement for
the restoration of silver, and then when that movement crystallizes among those who redeemed his
political life from failure and oblivion, to denounce
it as a "silver craze," as he has done, is a political
crime that may well obliterate from the memory of
man all his good deeds. Yes, Palmer, returning from
Washington, fresh from the inspirations of Cleveland, espoused the cause of the money power, and
opposed the Illinois Currency Convention, thus once
more turning his back upon the people and embracing their enemy.
The attitude of Cleveland and Palmer towards bimetallism and the Illinois Currency Convention was
criticised by ex-Judge S. P. McConnell, in the Cook
County Convention, held May 4, to elect delegates

CLEVELAND AND PALMER

27

to the Springfield Convention, in the following plain
and forcible language in his speech upon the occasion
of his being elected chairman:
In 1892 the Democratic convention solemnly resolved in favor of a bimetallic system, most solemnly
resolved in favor of the restoration of silver and its
free coinage, most solemnly, most positively resolved
in favor of a bimetallic system. And upon that platform we elected a man to the Presidency, we elected
him for the second time, believing that if he accepted
that nomination, if he took our suffrages and
became the President of the United States, he
would recognize the policy which had been so solemnly
declared in that platform, and attempt and help the
national legislators to enact it in a provision which
would make it effective. I t is not necessary for me
to say that that gentleman who secured from us our
suffrage, who stood upon that platform as we believe,
is to-day the apostle, the prophet, and everything
but a man who has been attempting to carry out the
declaration of the Democrats in national convention
assembled. (Applause.)
Gentlemen, the President of the United States, the
man who was elected by Democratic franchise, has
repudiated the Democratic party. (Applause, and
cries of "Right.") We repudiate him. (Applause.)
We stand on the platform of 1892. We are in favor
of the restoration of silver as we declared then.
(Applause.)
In 1891 there was a tremendous struggle at Springfield for the election of a United States Senator. We
had 101 men who endured through many ballots,
who cast ballots, consistently, constantly, persistently for a Senator of the United States. They succeeded in electing him. They were rejoiced; so were
we here. These 101 gentlemen subsequently met as
they sat in their respective houses and all of them
voted for a resolution then instructing the Senators

28

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

and Representatives in Congress to vote for a freecoinage bill which was then pending, and which was
designed for the purpose of restoring silver to the
place which it had held in our monetary system prior
to 1878. I t was unanimously voted for by all of
the 101. I understand, gentlemen, that the Senator
who was at that time selected by the 101 noble, loyal
Democrats, is in this city to-day, and will to-night
speak in favor of the continuity of the policy of
Grover Cleveland, which is not the policy of the Democratic party. (Applause.)

CHAPTER III.
CHAIRMAN HINRICHSEN's STATEMENT.

HON. WILLIAM H. HINRICHSEN, Chairman of

the

Illinois Democratic State Central Committee, was
asked for a statement of the causes which led him to
summon his committee and advocate the issuance of
a call for the Currency Convention, with the understanding that his reply should constitute a chapter
of this volume, and, in response, he furnished the folio w in g:
The election last November, which resulted in the
overwhelming defeat of the Democratic party throughout the United States, convinced the Democratic
leaders of Illinois, that either the policy of the party
was not in line with the sentiments of the people, or
that the Democratic Congress had not carried out
their wishes. The Democratic State Convention of
'94 had selected a State Committee made up of unusually strong material, the following being the
members:
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE.
W. H. Hinrichsen, Chairman, Springfield, 111.
Thomas Gahan, Vice-Chairman, 4209 S. Halsted St.,
Chicago.
Theodore Nelson, Sec'y, 41 Palmer House, Chicago,
Wm. B. Brinton, Treasurer, Tuscola, 111.
John P. Hopkins, 2428 115th St., Chicago.
39

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

William S. Foreman, East St. Louis, 111.
Samuel B. Chase, 396 Garfield Ave., Chicago.
Dennis J. Hogan, Geneva, 111.
W. O. Wright, Freeport, 111.
Daniel Heenan, Streator, 111.
Walter Watson, Jacksonville, 111.
Reed Green, Cairo, 111.
COMMITTEE ON STATE ORGANIZATION.
E. F. Binns, Chairman, Pittsfield, 111.
J. B. Ricks, Taylorville, 111.
George E. Brennan, Joliet, 111.
Thomas Byrne, 4209 S. Halsted St., Chicago.
Frank J. Quinn, Peoria, 111.
S. S. Hallam, Monmouth, 111.
J. H. Baker, Sullivan, 111.
J. D. Baker, Lebanon, 111.
Ross R. Fuller, Charleston, 111.
COMMITTEE ON COOK COUNTY ORGANIZATION.
Jos. P. Mahoney, Chairman, A.shland Blk., Chicago.
John P. Leiendecker, 356 State St., Chicago.
William Loeffler, 2 19th Place, Chicago.
Rudolph Brand, 53 Cedar St., Chicago.
Charles Williams, 85 Janssen Ave., Chicago.
COMMITTEE ON CLUB ORGANIZATION.
J. W. Potter, Chairman, Rock Island, 111.
R. E. Spangler, 858 Warren Ave., Chicago.
Ben. T. Cable, Rock Island, 111.
Adams A. Goodrich, The Rookery, Chicago.
M. C. Conlom, 349 W. Monroe St., Chicago.
The old members of the committee realized that

pome measures should be taken to gather together

CHAIRMAN HINRICHSEN5S STATEMENT

81

the remnants of their political army, and after a
number of consultations, it was decided that I should
be chairman of the committee, with the understanding that the campaign to be carried on was to be a
vigorous one, and that all were to bend their energies to the work of reorganizing and reinstating the
Democratic party in the good opinion of the people.
Immediately after my election, I began, through
correspondence and personal interviews with Democrats in every locality in the State, to investigate the
cause of our crushing defeat, and to find out, if possible, the prevailing sentiment on the issues likely to
be predominant in the next campaign. After a thorough investigation, I found the situation to my mind
to be as follows:
A large number of Democrats at the November election voted the Republican ticket; a large number had
voted the Populist ticket; a still larger number had
refused to vote, and many of those who had voted,
had only done so through the urgent requests of the
candidates for county offices. The causes of these
defections and apathy were generally given as being,
first: dissatisfaction with the national administration in the matter of patronage and for its financial
policy as shown in its opposition to the use of silver
as money and to its bond purchases; second, the inability of the Democrats to agree earlier on the Tariff
Bill; third, the failure of the administration and
Congress to establish a permanent currency system
for the country and their evident intention to drive
silver out of that system and to use gold as the only
monetary standard.
I found that the money question was the one great
subject of discussion amongst the people, particularly
the farmers and laboring men. I found that they
did not care to talk about the tariff. The general
opinion was that no tariff legislation would be attempted for some time; that McKinleyism was dead;
and that a gradual reduction of the tariff without

82

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

regard to party lines was inevitable. The repeal of
the Force Bill took away another subject for discussion and there seemed to be a disposition to make
the currency the only question for the next campaign. The representatives from the different counties in the State indicated that fully 90 per cent of
the Democrats favored the free and unlimited coinage of silver at a ratio of 16 to 1 without waiting for
the action of any foreign government. I also found
that at least 30 per cent of the Eepublicans were in
sympathy with the same plan. I found that many
of the bankers and other moneyed men, together
with their paid attorneys, their hangers-on and representatives, were in favor of the gold standard, and
opposed to use of silver except as a token currency.
I found that they masked their monometallism under
the cover of alleged bimetallism. They claimed to
be in favor of the use of silver, but demanded an international agreement or an increase in the ratio,
or some other thing that was impossible to obtain.
Soon after the silver manifesto was issued from
Washington, and the movement for the establishment of a distinctive silver party was set on foot, I
received many letters from members of the State
Committee and others, calling attention to the situation and pointing out the necessity of action. Among
them was the following from Hon. J. B. Ricks of
Taylorville, 111., which I give here because it is strikingly typical of my daily mail at that time:
"TAYLORVILLE, I I I . , March 2,

1895.

W. H. HINRIOHSEN, Chairman State Central
Committee, Springfield, 111.
U
M Y DEAR S I R : — I n the last few days, I and the
Chairman of our County Central Committee have
been urged by prominent Democrats of this county
to call a mass-meeting of the party in this county
and take some stand upon the monetary policy of
the party.
"HON.

CHAIRMAN H I N R I C H S E N ' S STATEMENT

33

"The silver manifesto in to-day's papers brings the
matter prominently before the people. As I have
had no intimation from our committee, I have not
felt safe in either taking any action or expressing any
opinion with reference to the matter, further than
the general statement of the usual declaration of our
party in favor of maintaining the parity of the metals.
" I realize the importance of unison of action and
unanimity of opinion upon the part of the Commitee,
as far as it is possible to have it so.
" I t looks to me very much like this question is
destined to be a controlling one in the fates of the
party in the struggle of 1896. I am among those
who want to win, if it is possible to do so, and maintain the integrity of the party.
"Your county was about the first to take a stand.
I do not know what, if anything, you had to do with
it, or what your attitude is.
"If the committee has not consulted about it,
either in whole or through its executive branch, it
seems to me that it should be done at once.
"To make this committee effective, it must have a
common opinion and a common purpose. And I do
not think it safe to take part in any meeting that
would give an expression, unless I know that it is to
be in harmony with the general policy of the party of
this state.
"Personally, inter-nos, I am strongly impressed
with the position taken in this manifesto as the correct party policy, and in looking over the committees
you can count me that way, for the present.
" I wish you would let me hear from you at the
very earliest time you can, giving me your own views
and what you believe will be the policy pursued by
the committee and party in this state. Very truly
yours,
JAMES B. R I C K S . "
Having these facts before me, I determined upon

84

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

the movement which is now in progress. I quietly
worked out all the plans, put them on paper so t h a t
there might be no weak places in them, and having
arranged in advance the details, and having prepared
myself to meet every objection that might be urged
against the plan, I laid it before Theodore Nelson5
Secretary of the State Committee, and with him
went over it. He approved it heartily. I then selected two friends in Jacksonville, both thorough
politicians, one of them a prominent lawyer, Judge
Owen P. Thompson, the other, M. F. Dunlap, a leading banker and recognized as one of the best business
men in. our county. After a thorough discussion
they agreed that the plan was a good one. I then
consulted Senator Reed Green, Thomas Gahan, Senator J. R. Campbell, Lieutenant-Governor Joseph B.
Gill, J. W. Yantis and other Democrats in whose
judgment I had confidence. All approved the plan.
I then laid it before Governor Altgeld, in whose political sagacity I have always had great confidence.
After taking two or three days for consideration, he
also approved it. I then, as opportunity offered,
laid it before the other members of the committee,
until I had seen a majority of that body. Every one
consulted on the subject favored it.
I had at first intended that the convention should
be held some time in the fall of '95, but the organization of the National Silver Party at Washington
induced me to make it earlier. Free silver clubs were
being formed throughout the state, and county meetings were being held to discuss the currency question. I t was evident that if the National Silver
Party succeeded in launching its boom, it would carry away a good many Democrats who had lost faith
in the ability of the Democratic party to agree on
the question. The date of the convention was fixed
at a time when it was supposed that the legislature
would have adjourned, which was as early as it was
wise to call it.

CHAIRMAN H I N R I C H S E N ' S STATEMENT

35

Much has been said of the irregularity of the action of the committee in calling this convention, but
everything was perfectly regular. Every member
was notified by letter urging him to be in attendance, and saying that important business would be
considered. Stress has been laid by Senator Palmer
and objectors on the fact that the object of the meeting was not stated in the notices. This is never done.
A State Central Committee may at any meeting take
up any subject, advance it or carry it out, and it is
the duty of every member to be present in person or
by proxy in order to take part in the discussion.
The committee consists of thirty-one members, twenty-one of whom were present in person or by proxy,
sixteen being a quorum. When the committee met,
I placed before it the situation of the party in the
state and nation as I viewed it. I also laid before
it the plan for calling a convention together. After
considerable discussion, a resolution was adopted
calling the convention for June 5th for the purpose
of discussing the currency question, and the chairman and secretary of the committee were directed
to issue a call. This call is as follows:
HEADQUARTERS DEMOCRATIC STATE CENTRAL COMMITTEE.

SPRINGFIELD, I I I . ,

April 5th, 1895.

To the Democracy of the State of Illinois:—
The only National question now before the American people is that of the currency.
The war is over. The Force Bill is repealed never
to be re-enacted.
Tariff legislation of a general
character will not be attempted for several years.
The next national campaign must be fought out with
the currency as the issue between the parties, and it
behooves the Democratic party as a party to assume

36

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

a decided position on this question and to draw its
party lines according to the wishes of a majority of
its members.
The basic principles of Democracy forbid the decision of important questions by the party leaders
without instruction from the people, and it is therefore proper for this committee to call on the Democrats of the precincts, townships and counties of this
state to meet in convention in their respective localities to discuss freely the great question before the
people, to give expression to their views in appropriate resolutions and to select delegates to a convention to be held at the state capitol.
In order that the proceedings of the Democracy as
a party may be regulated, it is suggested that each
county committee in the state call a convention of
the Democracy of the county for the purpose as stated
above. The time and place for holding such convention to be fixed by the county committee, but it
should be previous to the date of a state convention
to be held at Springfield, on the
FIFTH DAY OF JUNE, 1895, AT 12 O'CLOCK, NOON.

The basis of representation to be one delegate for
every 300 voters or fraction of 150 or over cast for
Bernard J. Claggett for state treasurer in 1894
On this basis, the counties will be entitled to representation as follows: [See opposite page.]
The Democrats of the state are urged to turn out
to these meetings, and to give free expression to
their views in order that there may be no doubt as to
the position of the party on this great and important
question
W. H. HINRICHSEN. Chairman.
THEO. NELSON,

Secretary.

COUNTIES.

Democratic Delevotes. gates

COUNTIES.

6,580 1_T
1,058 4 Logan
1,057 4 Macon
224 1 Macoupin
1,264 4 Madison
2,377 8 Marion
776 3
994 3 Mason
1,992 7 Massac
3,316 11
3,026 10
2,034 7 McLean
Clark
! 1,407 5 Menard
Clay
! 2,080 7 Mercer
2,960 10 Monroe
Coles
101,031 337 Montgomery
Cook
1,791 6 Morgan
Crawford
1,619
Moultrie
Cumberland
1,117 4 Ogle
DeKalb
1,908
DeWett
1,774
Perry
Douglas
D u P a g e . . . . . . . . 1,304 4 P i a t t
3,270 11 P i k e . . . . .
Edgar
548 2 .Pope
Edwards
2,256 8 1Pulaski
Effingham
1,990 7 P u t n a m . .
Fayette
1,985 7
Ford
1,731 6 Richland
Franklin
4,342 14
1,474 5 Saline
Gallatin
2,202 7
Greene
1,316 4 Schuyler
Grundy
1,870
Hamilton
Scott
3,673 12 Shelbv
Hancock
644 2
Hardin
828
Henderson
St. Clair
1,729
3,273 11 Tazewell
2,324 8 Union
1,964 7
1,901
Wabash
Jefferson
1,710 6 Warren
Jersey
2,2161
Johnson
547 2 Wayne
Kane
3,110 10 White
1,695 6
490 2 Will
Kendall
1,911 6
Knox
1,029
Lake
Winnebago
6,667 22
LaSalle
1,513 5
Lee
1 1,975| 7 1

Adams
Alexander
Bond
Boone
Brown
Bureau
Calhoun
Carroll
Cass
Champaign.

Democratic Delevotes. gates

3,187 11
2,693 i 9
3,585 1 12
3,998 13
4,207 14
8
2,302
6
1,896
1,975
7
1
368
2,902 10
1,662
4,228 14
5
1,523
1,422
^
1,321
4
9
1 2,820
3,571 12
1,450
5
1,430
5
5,519 18
1,829
6
1,522
5
2,931 10
448
2
556
2
444
1
i 2,414
8
! 1,431
5
! 2,423
8
1,452
5
6,881 23
1,825
6
1,229
4
2,815
9
498
2
5,786 19
3,317 11
3,217 11
2,150
7
2,843
9
1,242
4
1,947
6
1,644
5
2,107
7
2,823
9
1,613
5
4,181 14
1,810
6
1,329
4
2,H3
7
321,5511 1076

88

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

When the call was issued, or authorized, April
5, I gave out an interview as follows:
" W h a t do you expect will be the result of the
proclamation issued by the State Convention?"
"We expect that our call will be responded to in
every county in the state. The meetings will be
held and resolutions will be adopted unifying the
Democratic party on this one great overshadowing
question of the day and of the next campaign."
u
W h a t do you predict will be the tenor of those
resolutions?"
U
I am in receipt of information from every county
in the state, outside of Cook, and this information
convinces me that 90 per cent of the Democracy favors the free and unlimited coinage of silver at the
ratio of 16 to 1 without waiting for the action of any
foreign government. The resolutions adopted by
the County Conventions will, of course, be on line
with this feeling."
"Will not this commit the party to a fiat currency
and cause the disappearance of all gold from circulation and thus cause it to go to a premium?"
"By no means. The object of this movement is
to prevent that very thing."
"How can that be?"
u
This movement will spread from Illinois to every
state in the Union, and long before the election comes
around it will be evident that the Congress to be
chosen in 1896 will pass a 16 to 1 Free Coinage Act.
Now, when capitalists realize that on the first day of
July, 1897, the government will begin giving a legal
tender dollar for every 412^- grains of standard silver
presented at the mint, they will begin to purchase
silver bullion, which can now be bought for, say 55
cents for 412^ grains. The sure profit of 45 cents
on each 412-J grains will bring out all the gold from
the bank vaults and hiding places. The result will
be that the price of silver will rise steadily, and when
the law goes into effect, the question of the parity
will be settled."

CHAIRMAN HINRICHSEN's STATEMENT

39

"But will the bankers not combine and refuse to
buy silver bullion?"
"Hardly. They do not control all the money in
the country and the profits on silver speculation will
be sure, and the chance of loss so minute, that they
will tumble over each other in order to buy. Gold
will roll in from Europe to purchase silver, bullion
certificates will be in demand and trade stimulated
by the letting loose of hoarded millions, and the certainty of a final settlement of the currency question
will bring on a most prosperous period, without the
danger of following panics."
"Will not many leading Democrats be driven from
the party by this movement?"
"A few, perhaps, but most of them will be swept
along in the tide, especially as the character of the
movement and its certain results will remove the
only serious objection to the free coinage of silver."
" W h a t is this objection?"
" A great many Democrats, myself among the number, feel that the legal tender coin issued by the government should be worth as much before it is coined
as it is afterward, and this movement is so certain
to bring the price of silver up to the point where this
condition is met, that no man who is not an absolute monometallist can consistently afford to oppose
it."
" W h a t will the Republicans do?"
"As a party they are pledged to monometallism
and can take no other ground, unless they straddle
the question. Thousands of them will join the Democrats, for they believe in free silver."
"You expect to carry the state and country, then,
in 1896?"
"Certainly. This movement will be in effect a reorganization of the Democratic party. I t will be
built from the township up, and the men nominated
for office will not dare to deviate one iota from the
instructions given them in such plain language by

40

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

their constituents. We expect to carry every state
west of the Alleghanies and south of the Ohio River,
and it is more than possible that we will carry every
state in the Union."
u
W h a t do you think of the attempt to organize
an independent silver p a r t y ? "
"The attempt begins at the wrong end. A few
men at Washington cannot control twelve million
voters. The county movement grafted into a strong
party organization is the only way in which such
political results can be produced. The extreme gold
men in our party will go over to the Republicans.
The free silver men of all parties must come to the
Democracy, and with our objectionable statesmen
eliminated, the confidence of the people in the Democratic party will be strengthened and confirmed."
"This means a Western man for President, does it
not?"
"Certainly. The party will hardly trust the execution of its wishes to a man susceptible to the control of the Eastern monometallists."
I t has been asserted that the success of the silver
movement was due to the organized efforts of the
State Democratic machine. There is nothing to the
story. With the exception of sending out the call to
the various counties and transmitting a circular letter calling attention to it to the school district committeemen, no organized effort was made to bring
about results or to influence public sentiment. The
people seemed ready, and even in small communities
where the leading Democrats were opposed to the
movement, the masses forced them to take action
and decide to send delegates to the convention instructed for free silver at the ratio of 16 to 1.

CHAPTER IV.
PROGRESS OF THE CONTROVERSY.

THE general discussion of the silver question among
the people of the West was greatly intensified by the
call issued for the Illinois Currency Convention to
be held June 5. Ffom the gold monometallists it
elicited the bitterest opposition. President Cleveland's letter, before referred to, addressed to Henry
S. Robbins, a prominent lawyer and well-known
Democratic politician of Chicago, was the signal for
the organization of the Chicago u Honest Money
League," into which were at once gathered the gold
monometallists of the city. Democrats in Chicago
rapidly took sides for or against the restoration of
silver as fundamental money.
The motive behind the organization of the u H o n est Money League," which elected Mr. Robbins to
the post of president, was the defeat of the silver advocates in their efforts to send delegates from Cook
County (Chicago) to the Currency Convention
pledged to the free coinage of silver at the ratio of
16 to 1. At first appearances indicated that there
would be a lively fight at the primary elections.
The Cook County Democratic Central Committee
promptly responded to the call from the State Committee, and the County Convention for the election
41

42

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

of delegates was convened May 4. The primary elections were held May 3, but the u Honest Money
League," having gone far enough in the campaign to
realize that fully four-fifths of the Democratic voters
of Chicago were supporters of bimetallism, retired
from the contest, and issued a card to the public, requesting the "advocates of sound money" to take no
part in the election of delegates to the county convention. Notwithstanding this, some of the "goldbugs" did take a hand at the primaries, and out of
729 delegates elected to the county convention, 23 of
them were supporters of the single gold-standard.
At the convention held in Chicago May 4, the following resolutions were adopted by a vote of 7Q6 to 23:
The Democratic party in its national conventions
and the Democracy of Illinois have uniformly declared in favor of the use of both gold and silver as
the standard money of the country. Silver and gold
have constituted the money of the Democratic party,
the money of the American people, and the money
of the whole commercial world. I t was by the use of
both that the world progressed and our people prospered. As long as the mints of the world, or even
of one great nation, remained open to the free coinage of both metals, silver and gold, in obedience to
a natural law, maintained a substantial parity. That
law is that the privilege of coining other metal into
debt-paying money makes a demand for whichever
metal tends to be the cheaper. This natural demand
increases the value of the cheaper metal, the lack of
demand decreases the value of the dearer metal, and
thus an automatic and natural stability is obtained.
This is not theory, it is the history of centuries; and
this natural law maintained the parity of gold and
silver at substantially their coinage ratio, even when

PROGRESS OF THE CONTROVERSY

43

the ratio of their production fluctuated violently.
When the world's production of gold was three times
that of silver, and when again it was only one-third
that of silver, still the bullion value of the metals
under free coinage was relatively the same.
To make any single metal the standard of value is
to choose a standard which must fluctuate in obedience to the laws of supply and demand. Gold monometallism and silver monometallism are therefore
both unsound systems, but gold monometallism is
fraught with peculiar dangers because its burdens
fall on those who are least able to endure them. Bimetallism furnishes a standard more stable than any
other, because each of the two metals automatically
prevents or counteracts the undue appreciation of
the other.
The gold standard is dishonest and oppressive, because gold tends steadily upward and makes the
debtor pay more than he owes.
Upon the Eepublican party rests the responsibility
for the closing of our mints to silver and the practical supremacy of gold monometallism, and we adjure
its members, in the name of patriotism and humanity,
to forsake their false guides and to join with us in
prompt and thorough-going measures to correct the
evil which they have brought into existence, and to
return to the double standard approved by Hamilton
and Jefferson.
There are other abuses of the currency system
which must also be removed,until we stand upon the
firm foundation of the precious metals as the basis
of our money system, every dollar of equal intrinsic
worth, and no money founded upon mere promises to
pay, but backed by gold and silver.
Not until silver was denied free coinage at the
mints did its value and that of gold begin to diverge,
and we maintain that the apparent depreciation of
silver is really, to a great extent, the appreciation of
gold. Gold has become dearer because the immense

44

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

added demand for gold, consequent upon the demonetization of silver, has made it dearer. This is evidenced by the increased purchasing power of gold and
the general decline of prices of commodities since
1873. There never has been, and is not now, enough
gold in the world to do the business of the world.
The total amount in existence is less than four billion dollars and amounts to only about $2.50 per
capita for the population of the world.
We deny the statements of our adversaries that we
favor repudiation or 50-cent dollars, and insist that
by the operation of the natural law of supply and
demand the gold and silver dollars when freely coined
at the ratio of 16 to 1 will adjust themselves at a
practical equality just as they did before 1873.
There is not and never has been in the United
States a 50-cent silver dollar, and the only reason
that the bullion in a silver dollar can be said to be
worth 50 cents is because that bullion has been excluded from the mints and is unfairly compared with
appreciated gold.
We are not opposed to an international agreement.
We invite such action. But we are opposed to
waiting one day or one hour for foreign aid. International conferences have heretofore been a failure,
whether well intended or conceived in the interest of
delay. We believe that this Nation can and should
legislate for its own people; therefore, be it
Kesolved, by the Democracy of Cook County, That
we demand the immediate restoration of the free
and unlimited coinage of gold and silver at the present legal ratio of 16 to 1, as it existed prior to 1873,
without waiting for the aid or consent of any other
nation, such gold and silver coin to be full legal tender for all debts public and private.
The newspapers and places of public resort throughout the West were now practically absorbed with the
silver argument. At the start the single gold stand-

PROGRESS OF THE CONTROVERSY

45

ard advocates declared that the free coinage of silver
at the ratio of 16 to 1 would fill the country with 50cent dollars and create a financial panic. They
shouted vehemently about an "unsafe currency,"
"cheap money," and declared that the present wide
divergence in the relative commercial values of silver
and gold rendered the free coinage of silver an impossibility.
These scarecrow arguments were met everywhere
with the record of the experiences of past generations. The advocates of the free coinage of silver
and gold at the ratio of 16 to 1, pointed to the period
of the nation's history from 1792 to 1873, when the
people enjoyed free coinage of the two metals at the
fixed ratio named, and when the country had a u safe
currency," "sound money," and "100-cent dollars."
They pointed to 200 years of the world's history—the
200 years next preceding 1873—when bimetallism
prevailed almost everywhere, except for half a century in gold standard England, and showed that, under the fixed ratio, silver and gold did not fluctuate
commercially, or as fundamental moneys, and they
insisted that the remonetization of silver in the
United States would re-establish a parity between
silver and gold, fundamental money and commodities, and maintain better commercial and financial
relations between the rich and the poor, and. the
United States and European nations.
They demonstrated that the depreciation of silver,
and labor and its products, was due to the dishonest
appreciation of gold, brought about by the demonetization of silver in J 873, and brought forward data

46

ILLINOIS CURRENMY CONVENTION

and figures that could not be disputed to clinch their
arguments.
As the date for the Springfield Convention drew
near, the single gold standard advocates shifted from
the scarecrow program and took their position on the
international bimetallism propaganda. They practically admitted that bimetallism—the restoration of
silver as fundamental money at the fixed ratio of 16
to 1—would be a good monetary step for the United
States to take, provided this nation could obtain the
consent of England to take it.
The confession was practically made, in this concession, that the United States, financially, at least,
was a dependency of Great Britain. In effect, the
British lion had his paw on the neck of the American
eagle, and that once proud, but now subdued bird,
was not in a position to scream, except for mercy,
until John Bull should call his animal off.
The free coinage of silver advocates admitted that
the Republican party had sold this country into bondage to England by the demonetization law of 1873, in
the same spirit of treason, treachery and disloyalty,
that Joseph was sold by his brethren to the Egyptian
slaveholders, thirty-six hundred years before Christ,
but they declared that in remonetization, or the restoration of silver, the United States would find a
Moses that would smash these slavish chains, and
deliver the country from bondage.
Some of the "hard money" or single gold standard
arguments going the rounds previous to the Illinois
Currency Convention were ridiculous in the extreme.
Perhaps none were more absurd than those which re-

PROGRESS OF THE CONTROVERSY

47

cently found their way to the world in the Chicago
Tribune from the pen of one Charles M. Haft. He
wrote, among other things:
To begin with, there is a great variance between
the commercial and legal ratio of silver to gold; the
commercial ratio being about 32:1 and the legal ratio
being 16 to 1.
Let us consider for a moment just what the advocate of free silver is contending for. It is a law permitting a man who is the possessor of silver bullion
to take 371^ grains of that metal to any of our mints
and have it coined, without expense to him, into socalled standard dollars, which shall be returned to
him, and he can then take that so stamped or coined
3 7 1 | grains of silver, worth 50 cents, and discharge
an obligation of 100 cents which he has incurred or
may at any time incur, because the advocate of free
coinage demands as a part of this system that the
law shall provide that every creditor shall be obliged
to accept these so-coined 50 per cent dollars (?) in
discharge of 100 cents of an obligation without limitation.
The injustice of such a system is not appreciated
until one considers the fact that the 371i grains of
pure silver, which the owner of it can have gratuitously coined, is nowhere worth at the present time
more than about half a dollar in gold. If the silver
dollar contained 100 cents' worth of silver it would
not be necessary to pass a law compelling people to
take it in payment at its face value.
The reader will see that he sets down the difference between the legal and commercial ratios of silver and gold as 16 to 1, and 32 to 1, respectively.
Then he proceeds to say that a dollar coined from
silver bullion at its present commercial value, at the
legal ratio of 16 to 1, would be worth only 50 cents,
and would, by law, be forced on a creditor for one

48

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

dollar. Now, if Haft were not a little " d a f t " in
monetary science, he would know that in 1873, before
silver was demonetized, the amount of pure silver
contained in the standard silver dollar, 371^ grains,
was worth $1.03 in gold; he would also know that its
commercial value has been depreciated by demonetization by the constantly lengthening gold yard-stick,
by which alone it can be measured; and he would
likewise realize that the restoration of silver as fundamental money, on the free and unrestricted coinage basis of 16 to 1, would restore the parity between
gold and silver, not only as money but as commodities, as also an honest parity between fundamental
money and the products of labor of all kinds.
Bimetallism did this for 200 years, as statistics
previously given show; it did this in the United
States from 1792 to 1873, as the experience of this
country bears witness, and if truth is truth, it will
do so again. Restore silver as fundamental money,
on the unlimited free coinage basis, at the legal ratio
of 16 to 1, and what? Why, by the honest depreciation of gold from its present dishonest vantage
ground, and the appreciation of silver from the depreciated gutter into which demonetization has dishonestly thrust it, a parity will be established between
the legal ratio and commercial ratio values of the
two metals, and not only that, but financial and commercial honesty will be inaugurated in place of the
over appreciated, and therefore dishonest single gold
standard money now prevailing, which is a fraud
upon the producer.
There never was, and there never will be a 50-cent

PROGRESS OF THE CONTROVERSY

49

dollar under bimetallism, in this or in any other
country. The silver dollar of to-d&y, measured by
the commercial ratio of silver and gold, according to
the single gold standard, is a 50-cent dollar, and is
dishonest money. Remonetize it; take the ban off
its brow; restore its birthright of free coinage, and
it will at once be worth 100 cents in gold, or in any
other standard of value measures on earth.
What becomes of these Haft, and other single gold
standard special pleadings when the full force of
truth is let down upon them? They fade away and
are forgotten; but the arguments for the restoration
of silver, the pleadings of the free silver advocates
for the return of the money of the fathers, the voice
of the common people coming up and out of the
wilderness of commercial and industrial distress in
a demand for the restoration of bimetallism, appeal
to history, and are founded upon the experience of
the best and most glorious years of the nation's life.
These can neither be forgotten nor destroyed. They
will live as long as man, and will not cease to be
heard until their demands are fully met.
I t is with great reluctance that the gold-bugs resort to the international propaganda. I t is a makeshift, more foundationless than the unsupportable
Haft nonsense, quoted and exposed above. But it is
more than this. I t is humiliating. I t is disloyal
and disgustingly unpatriotic.
The only ground upon which international bimetallism, as brought forward now in opposition to free
silver coinage, at the ratio of 16 to 1, has to stand
upon is that this country has been a borrower in

-50

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

European markets since 1878, and has agreed to pay
those obligations in gold. The restoration of silver
will not prevent the country from paying its obligations in gold, for there is to be free and unlimited
coinage of both gold and silver; but the re-inauguration of bimetallism will depreciate gold as well as
appreciate silver, and therefore the English gold syndicate will not be able to steal as much from the
wealth producers of the United States as they expected they would when they made the loans, and as
they really will, if the appreciation of gold goes on
under monometallism.
The international program, then, is the last trick to
help the English gold thieves. If the United States
pays her debts to England in gold,as she will do, and
must in honor do, it is her duty meanwhile to depreciate gold all that lies in her power,so as to more
cheaply obtain it with which to discharge her debts.
That would be government financing in the interests
of the people of this country. That would be bimetallism.
The movement for the restoration of silver met with
a misfortune in Chicago, and in fact in the whole
northwest, in the untimely death of James W. Scott,
proprietor of the Times-Herald. Mr. Scott was a newspaper man of unusual foresight, correct in his judgment
of men and measures, and, he realized the real significance of the rising tide of monetary reform throughout the country. Nor did he hesitate in putting his
great newspaper in close touch with the sentiment of
the people. When the Illinois Democratic Currency

PROGRESS OF THE CONTROVERSY

51

Convention was called, the Times-Herald heartily
endorsed the movement, and cheerfully lent its energies to the propaganda of bimetallism.
But Mr. Scott was suddenly cut off. As a result
his great newspaper enterprise, which had been
brought to stand squarely for Jeffersonian Democracy, was transferred to the hands of the money
monopoly—to the control of the enemy. H. H.
Kohlsaat, a privilege-class protectionist and single
gold standard monopoly mouth-piece, took charge
and reversed the engines of force in the Times-Herald, turning them against the people. This was a
serious blow to the cause of free silver. I t left the
Democracy of Chicago without a newspaper.
However, on May 28, The Chicago Chronicle appeared in magnificent form and dress, under the
management of two of the ablest journalists in the
United States, viz., Martin J. Eussell and Horatio
W. Seymour. Both had been connected with Democratic journalism in Chicago for many years in the
highest executive positions. Both had won distinction as managing editors of the Chicago Herald. Mr.
Russell had been appointed to the office of Collector
of Customs at the port of Chicago, and Mr. Seymour
had, a few weeks before, when the Herald and Times
were consolidated, retired from the managing editorship of the Herald.
The new paper, The Chronicle, had been heralded
as an advocate of a tariff for revenue only, and "honest money, ,? the latter being understood as gold
monometallism, but in its first issue was found this
rather liberal declaration:

52

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

A firm believer in the old-time Democratic doctrine
of hard and sound money, it will give to the important question of the currency full, free, and fair
discussion, the sole aim of which will be the ascertainment of the truth and the preservation and perpetuation of the public credit. I t will stand through good
and ill report for all that is best in historic Democracy.
How with this salutatory The Chronicle can oppose
bimetallism is difficult to see. Bimetallism is an
"old-time Democratic doctrine" as surely as two and
two are four, and if the paper gives, as it has pledged
itself to do, " t o the important question of the currency, full, free and fair discussion," it will "stand
through good and ill report" for .the restoration of
bimetallism, for the return of the monetary system
of the fathers which is truly that which is "best in
historic Democracy."
But Mr. Russell is an appointee of President Cleveland in an important Federal office, and he may discover that gold monometallism, which never had an
existence there, is the "best in historic Democracy."
If he does, he will make a departure from his convictions that his hosts of warm friends and admirers will
greatly deplore, for Mr. Russell is, at heart, a bimetallism I t looks as if he were elbowing his way to
the single gold standard' propaganda, for in the issue
of The Chronicle referred to, he writes:
I t is just, right, and available to party salvation
that party leaders, not manipulators of a machine,
but men of thought and action, should go before the
people from an administration, national or state,
and frankly and clearly and to the best of their ability present to the people the views of an administra-

PROGRESS OF THE CONTROVERSY

53

tion upon any mooted question. Thus the great minister, Mr. Carlisle, addressing his fellow citizens in
various parts of the country, elucidating and defending the position of the administration upon the currency, performs a noble office. He instructs the
intelligence of his fellow citizens. Safety for a party
and safety for the republic, which is governed for
the people through parties, requires open exposition
of principles, not secret manipulation of party machinery.
One feels like advising the new paper, if it desires
to stick close to the people, to raise the historical
Democratic flag of bimetallism, which will be in line
with "old-time Democratic doctrine."

CHAPTER V.
BENEFITS OF THE CONVENTION.

I T was plain long before the Illinois Currency Convention assembled that the outcome of the conference would be the crystallization of the current
arguments in support of bimetallism, and the nationalization of the silver movement. Both these objects
were well worth struggling to accomplish.
In the first place the agitation for the restoration
of silver had grown so rapidly and in a soil so fruitful that abnormal development was to be expected,
and it was desirable that the forces should get together and harmonize. They had drilled in companies long enough, and were ripe for regimental
training. Of course this naturally pointed out the
necessity for a still wider consolidation, and, when
it became evident that a national movement would
culminate from the state convention, the expectations of its promoters began to be realized.
In nothing, perhaps, could the state convention
serve a more effective purpose than that of crystallizing or perfecting the arguments in support of the
restoration,of the historic bimetallic monetary system of the country. As was to be expected, much
of the literature of the controversy lacked wisdom.
This was true on both sides. The forces of silver
54

BENEFITS OF THE CONVENTION

55

were most unfortunate in placing the demand for
free coinage before those for remonetization. This
was an oversight that was duly taken advantage of
by the supporters of the single gold standard.
I t was most difficult in the earlier stages of the
controversy to get the average advocate of free silver
to distinguish between free and unrestricted coinage, and historic bimetallism. As a result the resolutions passed at the county conventions in Illinois,
at which delegates were elected to the Springfield
Conference, were for the greater part confused and,
in a measure, misleading. As an instance of this
the Cook County convention resolutions, passed May
4, after a very clear and peculiarly instructive preamble, concluded in this language:
Resolved, by the Democracy of Cook County, That
we demand the immediate restoration of the free and
unlimited coinage of gold and silver at the present
legal ratio of 16 to 1, as it existed prior to 1873, without waiting for the aid or consent of any other nation,
such gold and silver coin to be full legal tender for
all debts public and private.
This is not exactly what the convention meant, but
it was in keeping with the resolutions previously and
subsequently passed all over the state. The people
were demanding something more than the u i m m e diate restoration of the free and unlimited coinage
of gold and silver at the present legal ratio of 16 to
1, as it existed prior to 1873, "although this language
can easily be construed to mean that something. I t
would have been better, however, to have stated it
more clearly.
As stated, all the Democratic managers did not

56

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

fully comprehend the difference between the remonetization of silver, and free coinage.
I am bound to say that W. H. Harvey, author of
"Coin's Financial School," is responsible for this
confusion. Mr. Harvey has given to the world not
only a unique, but forcibly instructive little volume,
the teachings of which, in the abstract, are sound
and wholesome, but the main premises and conclusion of the production are false.
His false premises are that the silver dollar of the
fathers was the unit of value of the monetary system existing in the United States from 1792 to 3873.
His false conclusion is that "we might get along
with gold as the unit, if silver enjoyed the same right
gold did prior to 1873."—Coin, page 17. According
to Coin, gold enjoyed only free coinage and was not
a unit of value, previous to 1873. I t is folly to suppose that we can succeed with free and unrestricted
coinage of silver under gold monometallism, or under the single gold standard.
Under the old monetary system, which the people
demand shall be restored, we had:
1. The dollar as the unit.
2. The silver dollar as a unit of value.
3. The gold dollar as a unit of value.
4. First the legal ratio of 15 ounces of silver to
one of gold, and after 1834, the legal ratio of 16 ounces
of silver to one of gold.
This gave us the double standard, bimetallic monetary system. The silver dollar was not measured
by the gold unit of value, nor was the gold dollar
measured by the silver unit of value. The country

BENEFITS OF THE CONVENTION

57

had a double standard. All contention to the contrary is a libel on history.
What the fathers had, we, the present generation,
demand. I t will not do to give us free and unrestricted coinage of silver at the legal ratio of 16 to 1,
and with it to give us the gold dollar as the unit of
value. That would be to give us gold monometallism,
and free silver, a system that would work immeasurable disaster.
We want to abolish gold monometallism, or the
single gold standard. We do not ask that the gold
unit of value be wiped out, but the true bimetallist
demands that the silver unit of value be restored.
Then a silver dollar will stand upon its own bottom. I t will not be measured by the gold yardstick. I t will be an imperial, honest, self-existing,
self-supporting, popular, 100-cent dollar, in this and
every other country on earth, just as it was previous
to 1873.
The Cook County resolutions should have read:
Resolved, by the Democracy of Cook County, That
we demand the immediate restoration of the double
standard bimetallic monetary system existing in
the United States previous to 1873, with silver and
gold dollars alike the units of value, and with it,
the restoration of the free and unlimited coinage
of silver and gold at the legal ratio of 16 to 1,
without waiting for the aid or consent of any other
nation, such silver and gold coin to be full legal tender for all debts public and private.
But as stated, this was the real meaning of all
resolutions passed in Illinois previous to the State
Currency Convention, though that meaning was
unfortunately hidden, or obscured. The state confer-

58

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

ence was needed to lift the movement out of confusion, and to p]ace it upon high, clear-cut grounds, so
that its objects could not be misunderstood by the
people, or misrepresented by its enemies.
The convention was also needed to give the movement official organic character, and to endow it with
the fatherhood of Democracy. I t could scarcely be
otherwise than that the Illinois Currency Convention would prove the nucleus of a great national
movement and a national convention to promote the
restoration of the bimetallism of the fathers.
Even before the convention assembled there was
much discussion as to what steps the body should
take towards nationalizing the movement and securing a national convention of the Democracy to take
suitable action in view of the campaign of 1896.
But the convention took decisive steps towards carrying the campaign beyond the borders of the state.
The necessity of this was strongly urged by Governor
Altgeld in his address, and, among other things the
convention,
"Resolved, That we request the Democratic national committee to call a Democratic national convention to consider the money question not later than
August, 1895. If the said national committee refuses
to call such a convention, then we invite the Democratic state committees of the other states to take
concurrent action with the Democratic state committee of this state in calling such convention."

CHAPTER VI.
ANTE-CONVENTION

INCIDENTS.

THE Illinois Democratic Currency Convention convened, according to call, on Wednesday, June 5, at
12 o'clock noon. Delegates and spectators began to
arrive at Springfield, the state capital, by noon of
the previous day, and early in the evening of Tuesday
the streets and hotels of the city were crowded.
No call for a state convention in Illinois, when
candidates were not to be nominated, was ever more
heartily responded to. Each of the 102 counties of
the state was represented by its full quota of delegates,
and when the 1,067 representatives of the Democracy
of the state took their seats in general assembly
hall in the state house, the audience was one of the
finest ever witnessed in that chamber.
There was a large attendance of spectators, among
whom were many prominent Democratic politicians,
and from the opening to the closing hours of the
convention, the galleries and lobbies of the chamber
were packed by eager and enthusiastic advocates of
the restoration of silver.
It was manifest from the start that the convention
would be a magnificent success, both as to numbers,
and the high personal character of the delegates.
The constantly arriving delegations from the various
59

60

ILLINOIS CUEEENOY CONVENTION

points of the state demonstrated that the gathering
was grandly representative of the Democracy of the
state. I t was not the voice of a faction. The marshaling hosts comprised the rank and file of the Democratic party, the bone and sinew of the producing
classes of the population.
The time-honored leaders of the party were in their
places, with here and there an exception due to the
unfortunate influence of President Cleveland. Senator Palmer held aloof, but when the capital had been
filled with his old-time friends and supporters, he
must have distinctly heard the voice of the people,
for he had but little to say. Palmer probably felt
that his mistake in opposing the convention was due
to Cleveland's attitude and unwholesome influence
over him, and, if he did not, everybody else did, and
the old man at once became an object of kindly expression, rather than hostile criticism.
The first business on the program was the meeting
of the state central committee, which took place on
Tuesday evening, June 4. This was really the first
gun of the convention, and its report was heard all
over the country, when that body almost unanimously
requested the convention to choose delegates to attend
a national Democratic monetary conference. In addition to this, resolutions upholding the previous
action of the state committee, in calling the convention, were also adopted.
The entire interest of the night was centered in the
action of the committee. Delegates filled the Leland
hotel lobby, and patiently awaited the news of the

ANTE-CONVENTION INCIDENTS

61

committee's action. I t was nearly 11 o'clock when
adjournment was taken. The result was shown in
the resolution. The first set adopted, touching on
the question of a national conference, is as follows:
Resolved, That it is the sense of this committee
that no effort should be spared to secure unanimity of
Democratic sentiment throughout the nation in the
matter of monetary legislation, and to this end, that
it is advisable the delgates should be selected at the
coming Democratic convention to attend any national
Democratic convention which may hereafter be called
to solidify Democratic sentiment on this issue.
Resolved, further, That the district committeemen
at the several district meetings to-morrow be instructed to request their respective delegations to select
delegates as aforesaid and to further select members
of a committee to select four delegates at large to
said convention, all subject to rejection or ratification by to-morrow's convention.
Resolved, further, That the names of said delegates and of the committeemen to select delegates at
large shall not be reported to the convention until
after that body shall have taken action favorable to
the proposed national Democratic convention.
The second set adopted follows:
Whereas, I t has been alleged that the action of
the Democratic state committee of Illinois, in calling
the state convention June 5, was irregular or illegal,
therefore be it,
Resolved, That the call for the meeting of the
committee was regular and according to party precedent and the custom of the committee; that a quorum of the committee was present either in person
or by regular proxy and that these proxies were according to the rules of the committee fully authorized
to cast the vote of their principals; that the resolution for calling the convention was presented in due

62

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

form, discussed thoroughly and received the vote of
seventeen of the twenty-two members present, and
that the members of the committee now present do
hereby confirm the action of the committee in calling
said convention.
The first resolutions were adopted by a vote of 24
to 4, and the latter unanimously.
There were present in person: W. H. Hinrichsen,
chairman; Theodore Nelson, secretary; Thomas
Gahan, S. B. Chase, W. S. Forman, Joseph P.
Mahoney, Adams A. Goodrich, Thomas Byrne,
William Loeffler, M. C. Conlon, Charles P. Williams, Dennis Hogan, Daniel Heenan, George E.
Brennan, W. B. Brinton, E. F. Binns, J. B. Ricks,
R. R. Fuller, Walter Watson, J. D. Baker and Reed
Green. Those represented by proxy were: John P.
Leiendecker, by John J. Coughlin; John P. Hopkins,
by Alex J. Jones; W. O. Wright, by M. F. Dunlap;
Frank J. Quinn, by John Warner; S. S. Hallam, by
A. W. Wells; J. W. Potter, by William McEniry, and
R. E. Spangler, by Leo Hornstein. Absent and not
represented: Ben. T. Cable and Rudolph Brand,
making twenty-two present in person, seven by proxy
and two absent.
The committee agreed on the following as the temporary officers for the convention:
Chairman, Judge Monroe C. Crawford of Union
county; secretary, Arthur C. Bentley of Pike county;
assistant secretaries, William J. Cochran, Cook
county; G. M. McDowell, Vermilion; John D.
Breckinridge, Fulton; Robert I. Hunt, Macon; William Stoffel, McHenry, and H. T. Eberleyn, Green;
sergeant at arms, T. J. Sparks, McDonough county;
official reporter, Chas, R. Tuttle ? of Chicago,

ANTE-CONVENTION INCIDENTS

63

By Tuesday evening the opposition had dwindled to
a conspicuous few, and had decided upon a program
of inaction. The flooding tide for the remonetization of silver was sweeping all before it. Opposition was useless. I t served only to strengthen the
earnestness of the advocates of free coinage, so that
the opponents of the convention went under cover.
Conspicuous among these were Senator John M.
Palmer; Washington Hesing, Postmaster of Chicago;
ex-Judge William A. Vincent, president of the Waubansee club of Chicago; ex-Judge Adams A. Goodrich,
president of the Jeffersonian club of Chicago, and J.
H. Hopkins, secretary of the Waubansee club. These
gentlemen held a conference late Tuesday evening
and decided that opposition or obstruction of any
kind would tend only to more fully demonstrate the
unanimity of the Democracy in favor of free coinage,
and therefore it was agreed that nothing in the way
of an opposing force should make its appearance.
Their last effort was an attempt to prevent a movement for a national Democratic monetary convention,
but on this point the rank and file of the Democratic
party were peculiarly enthusiastic, and there was no
such thing as stopping the tide in that direction.
A notable feature of the convention was the u S i l ver Special" train over the Illinois Central railroad
from Chicago, carrying the Cook county delegation
escorted by the Democracy marching club. The demonstration was one of the most successful in the history of the club, and reflects much credit upon Capt.
Jas. H. Farrell, chief marshal of the club, upon its

64

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

president, John S. Cooper, its secretary, Robert E.
Burke, and upon all the officers of the organization.
The train bearing the County Democracy, First
Regiment band, County Democratic Marching club,
and about 300 of the 346 delegates left the Twelfth

CAPT. JAS. H. FARRELL,

Chief Marshal Cook County Democracy.
street station at 10:35. The run through to the city
limits was made without stopping. At the various

ANf S-CONVENTION INCIDENTS

65

suburban stations crowds of people were gathered to
watch the train pass.
The train, composed of ten first-class coaches and
two baggage cars for the commissary department,
wag decorated throughout with flags, bunting, and
streamers. Two cars set apart for the marching club
bore elaborate decorations. The locomotive was also
gaily bedecked, and every time a change of engines
was made the new locomotive was decorated. Next
to the engine was the first commissary car, loaded
with eatables and liquid refreshments. The ten
coaches containing the delegates followed, and on
the rear was another and the main commissary car.
In the last coach the officials of the delegation and
the more prominent delegates were seated. Among
them were: Chairman Thomas Gahan, Secretary
Robinson E. Burke, ex-Senator John F. O'Malley,
ex-Building Commissioner James McAndrews, Leon
Hornstein, Aldermen Coughlin, Mulcahy, Schlake,
Brennan, and Deist; William Legner, J. H. Hopkins,
one of the anti-silver minority; ex-Judge Frank
Scales, ex-Aldermen Gosselin, Loeffler, and O'Brien;
Frank B. Gdrman, Election Commissioner P. H.Keenan, C. A. Williams, B. J. Maguire, L. C. Legner,
John O'Brien, Jerry Flynn, Frank Agnew, J. H. McAusland, John Conroy, W. J. McAllister, Justice J.
K. Prindiville, Justice M. A. LaBuy, John Fitzsimmons, and a number of others.
The first stop was made at Kankakee at 12:50
o'clock, and at this point the train was met by a
party of the prominent free silver advocates of Kankakee. The band, marching club and delegates left

66

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

the coaches and marched through the principal
streets of the town. Twenty minutes were spent at
Kankakee and at 1:10 the train left to make the next
stop at Gilman. At both of these places crowds of
Democrats thronged the depots and the Chicago
party was loudly cheered. Sixteen delegates were
added to the party at Gilman. At Gibson three delegates, W. B. Holmes, J. E. Ewing and L. E. Gill,
were taken aboard, but the delegates did not leave
the train.
At Clinton the most auspicious demonstration was
made. The Chicago delegates were received by 100
Democrats, led by Fred Ball and Dr. Meyer with a
band, and a procession was formed which marched
through the principal streets of the town headed by
the First Regiment band. A parting serenade, "Auld
Lang Syne," was played as the train pulled out of
Clinton at 5:05 o'clock.
The best of feeling prevailed on board the train
and the crowd was as orderly as any ever brought to
Springfield on a similar excursion. There were 550
persons on the train on its arrival here. Nineteen of
every twenty announced themselves in favor of the
free coinage of silver. A chorus, similar to the college yell, was arranged, and, led by Alderman John
Coughlin, the delegates gave it frequently. The yell
was:
Rah! Rah! Rah! Rah! Rah!
Sixteen to one!
The "silver special" arrived at the state capital at
6:50 P. M. and was sidetracked. The delegates formed
in procession to serenade Governor Altgeld. They

ANTE-CONVENTION INCIDENTS

67

were not in the least tired by the seven hours' trip.
Several hundred people cheered the train as it drew
into the depot. Adjutant General Alfred Orendorff,
Colonel Thomas Wilson, J. W. Yantis, and Theodore
Nelson were present as a local reception committee,
and the Fourth Eegiment band of Springfield played
*a triumphant march as greetings were exchanged.
Captain Farrell marshaled the club and delegates
for a procession to the governor's mansion.
The streets were lined with spectators, who cheered
the Cook county men to the echo as they passed.
Governor Altgeld and several members of his official
household stepped on the porch as the procession
came up. Captain Farrell called for three cheers
for his excellency and the governor bowed in response to the salute.
When the cheering ceased the governor briefly expressed his thanks for the honor. I t was especially
significant, he said, because of the importance of
the coming campaign, one of the most momentous
in the history of the Democratic party in the West.
As he had watched the procession approaching he
was convinced from the splendid appearance of its
constituents that there was no place for hypocrisy or
mugwumpism in the ranks. (Cheers.) In the coming campaign every interest that had become great
and powerful by the aid of corrupt and class legislation would try to strangle every effort put forth in
behalf of the masses. But if Democracy would be
arrayed on their side the bulk of the honest, toiling
people would succeed. He warned them of the arts
of their enemies and urged them to reject any over-^

68

ILLINOIS OUKRENCY CONVENTION

tures for alliance with those now working to stamp
cut the great movement for currency reform.
"Stand shoulder to shoulder," concluded the governor amid loud cheering, "and fight this battle for
the restoration of silver to its proper place among
the money of the world; fight it out fairly and fear^
lessly. Let there be no alliance and no compromise,
and we must surely win." (Cheers.)
The bands and the club marched merrily through
the streets, serenading the people in one or two public buildings and finally separating at 8 o'clock in
front of the St. Nicholas hotel.
Most of the delegations from the otlier portions of
the state had now arrived, and the capital was
crowded with the advocates of the restoration of silver.

CHAPTER VII.
CHAIRMAN HINRICHSEN's SPEECH.

T H E convention was called to order at 12 o'clock,
noon, in the hall of the House of Representatives,
by Hon. William H. Hinrichsen, the secretary of
state, and chairman of the Democratic state central
committee. The hall was crowded. All the delegates were in their seats, and thousands of anxious
spectators were standing in the lobbies and aisles.
The chamber was tastefully decorated with flags
and bunting and the scene was one of the most inspiring that was ever presented at the capital. On
calling the body to order Mr. Hinrichsen was cheered
by the vast assemblage in the most enthusiastic
manner for several minutes. This long continued
and hearty applause was in approval of his political
heroism in the departure taken by the Democratic
party in favor of the remonetization of silver, and he
regarded it as such.
Rev. F. W. Taylor, rector of St.Paul's Cathedral,
Springfield, then offered prayer as follows :
Almighty and everlasting God, our Heavenly
Father, who art the giver of all wisdom, guide, direct
and bless, we pray Thee, the people of this commonwealth and their representatives here assembled.
Grant unto us and to this whole nation peace and
prosperity based upon a faithful adhesion to those
69

70

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

principles of honesty and integrity, of truth and justice, which conform to the unchangeable standard.
Thy divine righteousness grant that our national
honor may be preserved inviolate in all our public
obligations and that our private conduct may be governed by the supreme ruler of divine love, to do unto

HON. W. H. HINRICHSEN,

Chairman Illinois Democratic State Central Committee.
others as we would they should do unto us, through
Jesus Christ our Lord, amen.
Mr. Hinrichsen spoke as follows:

CHAIRMAN HINRICHSEN's SPEECH

71

Gentlemen: Before stating the object of this convention it is proper that I should give briefly the
reasons of the state central committee for calling
you together,
When the present committee was organized, last
January, it found the Democratic party of the state
in a deplorable condition. At the November election thousands of its members had voted the Republican ticket, thousands had voted the Populist ticket,
while others sulked and refused to vote any ticket.
In fact, with the exception of a few old bourbons
and us officeholders, there seemed to be little left of
a party which had carried the state by over 20,000
plurality two years before.
The situation demanded the most energetic action
on the part of the state committee and an investigation for the causes of the demoralization was at once
set on foot. I t was found that the most general cause
of complaint was that Congress had failed to establish a permanent currency system for our country,
and that even in her attempts to do so our representatives had not reflected the real sentiment of their
constituents. The President and each member of
Congress had interpreted the currency plank of the
platform of 1892 to suit himself, and it was evident
that most of them had attempted to carry out the
wishes of a minority rather than a majority of the
party. (Applause.)
The currency question was found to be the most
common subject of discussion among the people and
it was easy to see that it would be the great issue in
the next campaign. Silver clubs were being formed
all over the country, mass conventions of silver Democrats were being called in the counties and the
organization of the national silver party in Washington threatened to take from us the last forlorn remnant of our demoralized party. (Applause.)
The situation was a grave one. The President and
other Democrats in high places seemed to be deter-

72

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

mined on a line of policy to which the rank and file
of the party were opposed. The administration could
not or would not believe that it was not in accord
with the people in its financial policy, and the committee, in planning a campaign of education, found
that one side or the other side of this great financial
question must be taken. I t had no right to make a
platform or to outline a policy; so in its trouble it
determined upon the Democratic plan of asking the
people for instruction, and this convention was
called. (Loud applause.)
The question has been asked: Why was this convention called so early? I t is easily answered, for
there were two good reasons—one to forestall the
action of the national silver party which was preparing to launch a boom which would have carried away
many good Democrats in this and other states; the
other was to open up the question for discussion
long enough before the meeting of the national convention in 1896 to prevent a hopeless split in the
party. I t was remembered that just previous to the
convention of 1888, when the Democratic party was
divided on the tariff question much as it is on the
money question to-day, President Cleveland issued
his famous message committing the party to tariff
reform, and the shortness of the time between the
issuing of the message and the election prevented the
thorough discussion of the message and so brought on
Democratic defeat.
This was one of the mistakes
of President Cleveland that the committee did not
care to imitate. (Applause.) I t has been asserted
that a state convention has no right to discuss and
pass upon a national issue and that consequently
this convention should not have been called. Such
a suggestion is absurd. A national convention is
made up of delegates from the different states and
the party in each state has a right to express itself
at any and all times upon any and all questions and
to instruct its delegates to national conventions as

CHAIRMAN HINRICHSEN's SPEECH

73

to the policy it desires carried out. (Applause.)
While the action of the convention cannot bind the
action of the delegates to the national convention
of 1896,yet its action can and will serve as a basis
for a campaign of education to be carried on by the

THEODORE NELSON,

Secretary Illinois Democratic State Central Committee.
state committee to the end that the party be united
on one common object. (Applause.)
The committee has been severely criticised for call-

74

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

ing this convention. The worst motives have been
suggested, the vilest epithets used, and men calling
themselves Democrats have not hesitated to say
through the public press that the action of the committee was irregular, illegal, traitorous and destructive.
The committee has had little to say in reply to
these attacks, and has avoided any personalities that
might drive any good Democrat out of the party, but
I feel it my duty at this time and place to make a
denial of these charges. The action of the committee
was strictly regular and according to party precedent. I think I have shown clearly that it was
necessary for the good of the party, and that it is approved by the party is shown by the hearty response
it has met with from the people. (Applause.)
Now, I believe a man may be a good Democrat and
be in favor of any form of currency whatsoever until
the party platform has been built. He may be a
goldbug and be a good Democrat; he may be a bimetallist and be a good Democrat; he may be a
greenbacker and be a good Democrat, but the man
who says and believes that the state committee has
no right to call on the people for instructions or who
says and believes that this convention has no right
to assemble and discuss any question has not one
drop of Democratic blood in his veins, and has no
right or place in the Democratic party. (Applause.)
This convention was not called for the purpose of
reading any man out of the party, nor has the committee or any member concerned in the call given
utterance to any expression that would indicate any
such intention. On the contrary, every effort has
been made to prevent anything like a rupture in the
Democratic ranks. (Applause.)
At the same time the committee has resisted the
attempts of a few would-be bosses to control the
masses, either by means of public patronage or by
threats of leaving the party, and now that they have

CHAIRMAN H I N R I C H S E N ' S SPEECH

75

so evidently failed to accomplish their purpose and
desire to leave us we can only bid them good-bye
and wish them better luck in bossing the opposition.
(Applause.)
Gentlemen, you have responded to the call of the
committee in coming here to-day, and it is my hope
that your further action will not only mark out a
line of policy for the committee to follow, but will
serve to unite the Democratic party on one common
object and enable us to again write ourselves the majority party in the state and nation. (Cheers.)

CHAPTER VIII.
THE TEMPORARY ORGANIZATION.

AT the conclusion of his address, Chairman Hinrichsen read the list of temporary officers as approved
by the state central committee, and introduced Hon.
Monroe C. Crawford of Union county, as temporary
chairman of the convention. Mr. Crawford was received with cheers. He said:
Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen of the Convention:
I have no fitting words to express to you to-day the
honor that I feel has been conferred upon me by
being called upon to preside as the temporary chairman of this Democratic convention. (Cheers and applause.) Gentlemen of the convention, I want to
make a little bargain with you now, and then we
will see how we will get along. You see this gavel
that has been placed in my hands as your Temporary
Chairman. The bargain is this: that if you will obey
the sound of this gavel in my hand I will agree that
I will not inflict upon you a speech to-day. (Applause. ) Gentlemen of the convention, I presume
you are here for business. I understand that this
Democratic convention is assembled here for a great
and important business, and you want to be about
that business and at once. This is a high honor that
I feel to-day in looking into the faces of more than
a thousand Democrats of the State of Illinois, who
are assembled for the purpose of giving expression of
Democratic sentiment. Let me say one word to you,
76

THE TEMPORARY ORGANIZATION

77

gentlemen, in the beginning. The eyes of the people
of every city, every town, village, and hamlet in this
State of Illinois are turned towards Springfield today and every ear is listening for the sound that shall
come from this convention. Let that sound be no
uncertain one. (Loud cheers and tremendous applause. ) What you say, gentlemen of the convention, say in such words and such language that it

HON MONROE C. CRAWFORD.

will not require a lawyer to interpret it. (Continued
cheering and applause.) If you mean to say you
want the free and unlimited coinage of gold and silver, say so. (Applause and cheering.) Now I am

78

ILLINOIS CUKRENCY CONVENTION

ready for business. Are you, and what is your
further wish, gentlemen? (Loud and continued applause. )
According to custom the delegations from the various congressional districts had met during the forenoon at their respective designated headquarters,
and had selected each two delegates to the national
Democratic monetary convention (to be called), and
one representative on the following committees:
1—Credentials.
2—Rules.
3—Permanent organization.
4—Resolutions.
5—To select four delegates at large to the national
convention.
Judge Kramer of Wayne county moved that the
various congressional districts be called by number
and that the chairmen of the district delegations
name the committeemen and delegates that had been
selected. The motion passed by unanimous vote.
Following are the convention committees:
Resolutions—First District, P. H. Keenan, Chicago; Second, C. Porter Johnson, Chicago; Third, J.
P. Miller, Chicago; Fourth, Joseph Mahoney, Chicago; Fifth, R. C. Sullivan, Chicago; Sixth, Richard
Michaels,Chicago; Seventh, J.W.Lanehart, Chicago;
Eighth, D. J. Hogan, Geneva; Ninth, J. S. Tichnor, Rockford; Tenth, L. B. Deforest, North Henderson; Eleventh, M. T. Moloney,* Ottawa; Twelfth,
George E, Brennan, Braidwood; Thirteenth^ P, Q,

THE TEMPORARY ORGANIZATION

79

Sloan, Tuscola; Fourteenth, N. E. Worthington,
Peoria; Fifteenth, J. Bailey, Macomb; Sixteenth,
W. P. Callon, Jacksonville; Seventeenth, T. T. Beach,
Lincoln; Eighteenth, Edward Lane, Hillsboro; Nineteenth, G, W. Fithian, Newton; Twentieth, J. R.
Williams, Carmi; Twenty-first, W. A. J. Sparks,
Carlyle; Twenty-second, W. B. Choisser, Harrisburg.
To select four delegates at large to a Democratic
national monetary conference: First, Alex J. Jones;
second, Robert Mulcahy; third, Michael Kenna;
fourth, William Loeffler; fifth, M. C. Conlon; sixth,
WilliamH. Lyman; seventh, Fred F. Eldred; eighth,
Thomas Horan; ninth, Colonel Feezer; tenth, Sol
Frolich; eleventh, Alex Vaughey; twelfth, A. R.
Orr; thirteenth, W. E. Krebs; fourteenth, A. L.
Champion; fifteenth, A. W. Wells; sixteenth, O. P.
Thompson; seventeenth, H. W. Clendennin; eighteenth, William M. Farmer; nineteenth, A. G. Reavill; twentieth, W. H. Green; twenty-first, Thomas
J. Cahill; twenty-second, Reed Green.
Permanent organization—-First, William McAllister; second, M. J. Tierney; third, Stephen D. May;
fourth, John Powers; fifth, Charles R. Tuttle; sixth,
John McGillen; seventh, Michael Ryan; eighth,
Chester Bartlett; ninth, Hiram Brooks; tenth, Winfield Scott; eleventh, John Davidson; twelfth, Edwin Beard; thirteenth, T. J. Cannon; fourteenth,
Charles Foshender; fifteenth, George Edmunds; sixteenth, Robert H. Davis; seventeenth, Langley Whitley; eighteenth, Alfred Allen; nineteenth, H. B.
Lee; twentieth, S. M. Wright; twenty-first, Edward
Abend, twenty-second, William S. Morris.
Credentials—First, T. A. Foley; second, E. J.
Williams; third, W. J. Carmody; fourth, A. J. Sabath; fifth, D. Considine; sixth, R. E. Burke; seventh, L. C. Legner; eighth, J. D. Donovan; ninth,
J. W. Bowman; tenth, L. Bunbar; eleventh, S. M.
Knox; twelfth, A. L. White; thirteenth, E. L. Gill;
fourteenth, E. Dyson; sixteenth, J. Adams; eight-

80

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVEMTIOM

eenth, C. Spurgeon; nineteenth, G. N. Parker;
twentieth, J. R. McCauley; twenty-first, T. E. Merr i t t ; twenty-second, W. H. Warder.
Rules—First, C. C. Rolfe; second, G. A. Weimer;
third, P. J. Wall; fourth, F. Scales; fifth, O. P.
Bennett; sixth, W. E. Schlake; seventh, B. W. Delaney; eighth, C. Reardon; ninth, J. S. Eddelstein;
tenth, R. M. Johnson; eleventh,
; twelfth,
C. F. Smith; thirteenth, A. J. Barr; fourteenth, J.
W. Pitman; fifteenth, G. S. Campbell; sixteenth,
T. J. Selby; seventeenth, E. J. Roberts; eighteenth,
E. A. Silver; nineteenth, J . J . Lockhart; twentieth,
H. P. Bozarth; twenty-first, A. L. Brands; twentysecond, G. W. Hill.
Following are the delegates by districts elected to
the national Democratic monetary convention, to be
called:
First—Thomas Gahan and Frank J. Gaulter.
Second—F. H. Kern and Thomas Byrne.
Third—John J. Coughlin and William O'Brien.
Fourth—Thomas G. Gallagher and James McAndrews.
Fifth—John Claney and John J. Brennan.
Sixth—H. C. Bartling and Frank Agnew.
Seventh—D. G. Moore and J. W. Lanehart,
Eighth—James Branen of Sycamore and Philip
Freiler of Elgin.
Ninth—M. H. Cleary of Galena and Charles Nieman of Freeport.
Tenth—Charles K. Ladd of Kewanee and M. J.
Daugherty of Galesburg.
Eleventh—D. Heenan of Streator and C. S. Brydia
of Fairbury.
Twelfth—J. W. Downey of Joliet and G. M. M>
Dowell of Danville.

THE TEMPORARY ORGANIZATION

81

Thirteenth—W. H. Purcell of Champaign and
David Felmley of Normal.
Fourteenth—Charles Fosbender of Lacon and Lute
C. Breeden of Lewiston.
Fifteenth—C. S. Hearne of Quincy and U. P. Kennedy of Browning.
Sixteenth—H. T. Rainey of Carrollton and Sylvester Allen of Bluffs.
Seventeenth—W. E. Nelson of Decatur and T. W.
McNeeley of Petersburg.
Eighteenth—Rufus Hull of Sullivan and W. H.
Dowdy of Greenville.
Nineteenth—George M. Lecron of Effingham and
J. W. Graham of Marshall. •
Twentieth—W. S. Cantrell of Benton and J. R.
Creighton of Fairfield.
Twenty-first—N. B. Morrison of Odin and E. C.
Pace of Ashley.
Twenty-second-—H. N. Detrich of Anna and F. M.
Youngblood of Carbondale.
Delegates at large—John P. Hopkins of Chicago,
W. H. Hinrichsen of Jacksonville, George W. Fithian of Newton, and Lewis B. Parsons of Flora.
Alternates—John Warner of Peoria, John Wasson
of Knox, Alfred Orendorff of Sangamon, and L. 0.
Whitnell of Johnson.
By resolution of the convention Henry G. Miller
of Chicago, and Andrew J. Hunter of Paris were
added to the committee on resolutions.
The convention then took a recess until 2 o'clock.

CHAPTER IX.
M'CONNELL'S GREAT SPEECH.
DURING the recess the several committees performed the work assigned to them, and at 2:15
o'clock the convention reassembled. The crowd was
even greater than that of the morning session.
Every seat on the floor and in the galleries was filled
and the aisles were packed, The personnel of the
crowd was practically the same. Chairman Crawford called the convention to order, and the reports
of the committee on credentials, rules and permanent organization were adopted without discussion.
There were no contests and the sitting delegates
were declared the delegates of the convention.
The committee on permanent organization reported
the name of ex-Judge S. P. McConnell of Chicago for
permanent chairman, and recommended that all other
temporary officers of the convention be made the
permanent officers thereof. The report was adopted.
The announcement of the name of Judge Samuel P.
McConnell of Chicago as permanent chairman was
greeted with prolonged cheers. The Cook county
delegation arose as one man. Hats were thrown in
the air and umbrellas and canes were waved while
the delegates cheered with all the power of their
lungs. Judge Worthington of Peoria, Judge Stello

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M'OONNELL'S GREAT SPEECH

83

of Hamilton county and Free P. Morris of Watseka
escorted Judge McConnell to the platform, where he
was received with prolonged cheers. After the applause had subsided, Chairman McConnell thanked
the convention and proceeded to read his address.

E X - J U D G E S. P . M ' C O N N E L L .

He was interrupted at frequent intervals with applause and cheers and at the conclusion was cheered
for several minutes, The enthusiasm of the delgates

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

from the smaller cities and towns and rural districts of
the state was marked. I t far overshadowed that of the
Chicago delegation. The cheering always was started
among the ruralists and there it lasted longer than
in other parts of the hall. The Chicago delegation
sat well in front, to the left of the speaker's stand.
Ex-Judge McConnell, after appropriately thanking
the convention for the honor conferred upon him,
spoke as follows:
This convention has a most peculiar and most important significance. Heretofore managers of political parties have so arranged that party policies
should be declared only at the time candidates were
chosen and only a short time before the gathering of
the franchises of the people. The result has been,
often, that our conventions have put forth a mere
assertion of general principles or on live issues expressed themselves in meaningless compromises. Colorless candidates have been presented to the people,
or candidates unsympathetic with the real purpose
of the party.
This convention marks a departure, and is intended
not only to allow a free discussion before the next
political engagement, but to define our party position with distinctness and definiteness, so that no
voter shall fail to understand us, and no candidate
—if chosen to office—have a chance or excuse to defeat our commands.
This is a government of the people, and this convention of the people—more than any other ever
held before in this broad land—should say what we
mean and what we want. I applaud the courage and
discretion of the state committee in convening this
conference. There are critics who say that the party
should not be called upon so early to take a position

M'CONNELL'S GREAT SPEECH

85

on the currency question; their counsel is that of
cowardice and dishonesty. We shall take no position
we are ashamed of—no position we cannot defend
—no position that will not bear the illumination of
reason and the trial of discussion.
We are here particularly to confer and express ourselves upon the monetary system of our country and
determine how we can accomplish what we have
vainly resolved was wise and proper and necessary
in our party conventions for many years.
PARTY IS FOR SOUND MONEY.

The Democratic party has always been an advocate
of hard money and is so still. The Democratic party
has always been an advocate of the double standard
and, I believe, is so now. Ever since the discovery
that our monetary system had been changed (and,
gentlemen, think how strange that such a thing were
done, and done so quietly it had to be discovered, in
a nation where the people are supposed to rule)—I
was saying that ever since our monetary system was
overthrown the Democratic party has been demanding its restoration. So long, however, has our
demand been unheeded—even by men chosen by ourselves—that now, when we make the same demand
again, there are those calling themselves Democrats
and, adding pharisaically to their ordinary name the
word "honest," so forgetful of their country and the
party's history as to claim we are seeking to introduce an innovation and to drag down a system approved by a long course of practice and of time.
They ignore the plain fact that they are the innovators and that they are seeking to fasten upon the
people a system established in silence and in derogation of the people's rights. They are to make the
defense—not we. They are called upon to explain
why they pretend to be Democrats in opposition to
the traditional policy of the Democratic party and

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

in defiance of its repeated declarations. We have
been so long despitefully used that the strange situation now exists that these heretics call on us to show
why the financial system, stolen from us in the nighttime, should ever be recognized again.
CITES GOOD A U T H O R I T Y .

Gentlemen, is the Democratic party proposing an
innovation when it asks for the remonetization of
silver? Let us recur a moment to what has been said
upon this subject. Said Alexander Hamilton: "On
the whole, it seems most advisable not to attach the
unit exclusively to either of the metals, because this
cannot be done effectually without destroying the
office and character of one of them as money and
reducing it to the situation of mere merchandise."
Said Thomas Jefferson, writing to Mr. Hamilton
after the examination of his report: " I concur with
you in thinking that the unit must stand upon both
metals."
U
I am certainly of the opinion," said Mr. Webster, " t h a t gold and silver, at rates fixed by Congress,
constitute the legal standard of value in this country, and that neither Congress nor any state has authority to establish any other standard or to displace
the standard."
Said Mr. Blaine: "No power was conferred on
Congress to declare that either metal should not be
money. Congress has, therefore, in my judgment,
no more power to demonetize silver than to demonetize gold; no more power to demonetize either than
to demonetize both."
Even the Hon. John Sherman said some years
ago, apparently with reluctance: "The uncertainty
of the relation between the two metals is one of the
chief arguments of the monometallic system. But
other arguments showing the dangerous effect upon
the industries by dropping one of the precious metals

M'CONNELL'S GREAT SPEECH

87

from the standard of value outweigh, in my mind,
all theoretical objections to the bimetallic system."
Do they say that we are innovators in proposing
the coinage of silver and gold at the ratio of 16 to 1?
We answer that we kept our mints open to the coinage of both metals at that ratio from 1792 to 1873.
We answer that for two hundred years prior to and
including the year 1873 the commercial value of silver and gold in the world was never more than 16.
25 to 1, and never less than 14.54 to 1.
SAYS T H E Y A R E

IGNORANT.

Notwithstanding this history these forgetful heretics say to us and cry out to the whole country that
the remonetization of silver would bring with it a
train of calamities. Now, we must treat these gentlemen soberly and patiently. Some of them are ignorant—and need education; some are merely selfish
—and we must try to awaken their patriotism; some
of them are dishonest—-and we must expose their
pretenses; some of them, I grant, are honest monometallists, and do not therefore belong to our party
and cannot get into the other, unless that party
shifts its ground and changes its policy.
We can also answer these heretics and say that
neither our gold nor our silver nor our wheat leaves us
unless we get what they are worth in the market. If
gold is worth more to foreigners than to us, why not
let them have it? Certainly no one can claim that
we are going to lose our gold by conquest or that it
will go away of its own motion. If it goes it will be
replaced by something we need more than gold.
They also try to frighten us by saying that the
Europeans will buy silver bullion at 70 cents per
ounce and bring it over to our mints and have it
coined into dollars. They won't be able to buy silver at that price they suppose they could; if the Eu-

88

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

ropeans buy bullion and have it coined into dollars
what will they do with them? They don't owe us
anything, therefore they can't pay debts with them.
If they use them, they must use them to buy our
produce. Well, we shall be glad to sell to them—
and particularly glad to do so if the thing happens
that the monometallists predict, that remonetization
will be followed by an undue rise in prices. After
the remonetization of silver we can look without
alarm upon the departure of our gold. If it goes to
Europe, it will go there because it will buy more
there than anything else will. If we increase the
supply of money in Europe the inevitable consequence will be to raise the price of all commodities
—not only of those produced in Europe, but those
which we supply.
In the meantime we shall have an abundance of
good money at home. Probably the first effect of
the re-establishment of silver will be a check upon
the importations from Europe. For a little while
our Republican friends will be consoled to find an
effect produced by currency legislation which they
have always claimed as one of the blessings of a protective tariff. But granting that at first we don't
buy so much from Europeans, yet as we are still
Europe's most convenient and largest source of supply she must buy of us. This state of affairs will
start our factories, give our labor employment and
will enhance prices for our products, not only here
but in Europe, because of the larger supply of money.
These prophets say again, as if predicting a calamity, that our securities will be sent back to us by the
Europeans. Well, if they give them to us we can
bear the affliction. Even if they sell them to us
cheap, some of our rich men can take advantage of
the market. I think we can be certain that they
will not try—and really could not if they did—to
make us take them unless we want them.
At the very beginning of ^this contest let us make

M'CONNELL'S GREAT SPEECH

89

up our minds that we won't be frightened by nursery
tales and that we won't give up our fight because
they call us names. Let us bear in mind, in view of
the direful predictions of the monometallists, that
we haven't much gold at present and that what little we have we bought with 4 per cent gold interestbearing bonds—and that even what little we have
we keep through the courtesy of Baron Rothschild
and Mr. Morgan. Remember all the time we are not
only depressing trade, but straining our financial
resources, to perpetuate a financial system which we
don't believe in, and which we never knowingly established. We are trying to pretend that we have
plenty of gold to redeem all our obligations and yet
we know—that with any concerted demand upon the
treasury we would be immediately bankrupt. That
is true, too, of any nation pretending to a gold standard system. We are demanding the restoration of
silver as redemption money in order that our system
may be more honest and less pretentious. The monometallist gains nothing in the argument when he
says that with silver restored gold would sell at a
premium, when, as a matter of fact now, we couldn't
get enough gold at any price to pay our treasury
notes in that metal; and when, as a matter of fact,
the government has had no gold in the treasury
which it did not obtain at a high price.
DEMAND FOR GOLD WILL BE LESS.

But, gentlemen, why will gold be worth more after
the remonetization of silver? Can any one say that
because a great nation of seventy millions of people
decide to coin silver into money, and all they get of
it, the result will be to make gold more valuable?
If corn by any invention could be made to serve all
the purposes of wheat the tendency certainly would
be to make corn dearer or wheat cheaper. We produce one-third of all the silver which now reaches
the markets of the world. If we keep it all and make

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

money of it, certainly silver will be worth more—
and just as surely gold worth less—in every market
of the world. The demand for gold will be less.
The demand for silver will be just the same in Europe and the East, while the supply will be reduced
one-third because we have ceased to export.
Even on the theory of the gold-standard men, we
either have now too little or too much of redemption
money. If we are to continue to play the bluff game
of pretending to have what we have not, and what
we could not get if we tried, all we need to do is to
make a little more pretense and sell part of our gold
metal for finger-rings and dinner-services. We must
come to one thing or the other to be consistent—
either more or less of primary money. Our financial
system to-day is only worse than the wooden guns
and stuffed clothes employed sometimes in war to
deceive an enemy, because our pretenses as to what
we are able to do are so childish they can mislead
no one.
As a nation we stand all the time on the edge of
panic and bankruptcy, and are spared from it only
because those who could bring us to that condition
at present see no good result to themselves in the
very easy achievement.
A very large number of very honest and intelligent
men, sincerely in favor of the free coinage of both
gold and silver, seem to think that we cannot sustain our monetary system without the aid of other
nations, and have been more or less patiently waiting
for some international agreement upon the matter of ratios. With the greatest respect to these gentlemen, I entirely disagree with them. I think it is
a matter of no consequence whether other nations
agree with us or not. We shall sell neither our silver nor our gold dollars to these other nations. We
never have. When we pass the national boundaries
our money—whether silver or gold—is treated like
our wheat or our corn, for what it is worth. Neither

M'CONNELL'S GREAT SPEECH

91

our gold nor our silver dollars are, and never were,
legal tender beyond our own territorial limits. Money
is a domestic servant merely.
NEED

NO

OUTSIDE H E L P .

International agreement is by no means necessary.
The Paris conference of 1878 resolved that the selec-*
tion for use of one or the other of the metals, or oi
both simultaneously, should be governed by the special position of each state or group of slates. The
great financiers composing that conference evidently
did not reach the conclusion which some of our
American bimetallists have. They evidently realized
what we ought to understand—that a nation like
ours, the richest in the world, producing one-third
of all the world produces, can regulate its own financial system, and do so without universal consent.
I t is quite apparent, anyway, that if we want other
nations to remonetize silver we can compel them to
do so more easily than we can persuade them. We
are not crippling ourselves when we remonetize silver. We are arresting the evils produced by a scanty
supply of the medium of exchange; we are checking
the downward tendency of prices; we are giving enterprise encouragement, youth a chance, the debtor
hope and bestowing value and use upon one of our
largest products.
Other nations will not leave us alone to enjoy the
advantages of a double standard, for we shall, in the
language of the great Hamilton, present to the world
u
a comparison of the benefits of a full with the evils
of a scanty circulation." Even England has not
been easy or content with her gold standard, for her
great prime minister, Disraeli, said: "Our gold
standard is not the cause of our commercial prosperity, but the consequence of it. I t served our purpose as long as other nations chose to take or give us
silver at a steady gold price; but from the moment

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

our policy was imitated in Germany in 1873, by discarding silver, this country began suffering a loss
which cannot be estimated. Nor will the country
which imitated us with the fruit of its war with
France with success be benefited by it. I t will prove
to be an incredible misfortune to its people."
ENGLAND NEEDS A CHANGE.

In fulfillment of the great minister's prediction
England severely feels the torture of the single gold
standard, and Germany—burdened with distress—
is seeking to return to the equal use of silver and
gold.
I say again that an international agreement is
not necessary. France for seventy years had her
mints open to the free coinage of silver and of gold
at the ratio of 15^ to 1. When she closed her mints
to silver in 1874 she had 900,000,000 of gold and
700,000,000 of silver in circulation. The population
of France was then only 35,000,000, and its area oneseventh that of the United States. During the time
that France coined both silver and gold at the ratio
of 15^ to 1 the production of silver to gold in periods
fluctuated from 5 to 1—even from 50 to 1. Even
under such strained and extraordinary conditions the
free access to the French mints kept the two metals
in the world at the value of their currency impression ; or, in other words, their bullion and coin value
were the same. The period of the greatest fluctuation of the two metals was from 1803 to 1850,
inclusive. In that period there was produced fortyeight times more silver than of gold and yet the
fluctuation of the market price of the two metals inthat period was infinitesimal; that is to say, the ratio varied only from 15.49 to 1 to 15.61 to 1.
And again in the period from 1851 to 1874, when
the relative production was an average of 6 to 1, the
relative market value was never more than 16.97 to
1 and never less than 15.30 to 1.

M'CONNELL'S GREAT SPEECH

93

Another fact which ought to go to quiet the alarm
of those who predict the flooding of the mints with
silver under a system of free coinage is t h a t from
1803 to 1870 there was offered for coinage in France
two hundred millions more of gold than of silver.
Even in the period when the output was 48 to 1 there
was offered for coinage only seventy-seven millions
more of silver than of gold. We have, too, an advantage that France never had. All the silver and
gold she coined was brought to her mints from other
countries. We are the greatest producers of both
metals.
WOULD CHEAPEN GOLD.

Let me say again to the bimetallists who wait upon
an international agreement that a money-using
and a debtor nation like ours can, more safely than
another, establish bimetallism without the initial
consent of other countries. If our legislation in favor
of the remonetization of silver does not result in
making silver worth one-sixteenth of gold then England and the other nations of Europe will find it to
their advantage to help us make silver more valuable. If they don't they suffer more than we do. We
cheapen gold by coining silver. They can make
the silver which we offer them more valuable by
coining it also. In other words, they would be more
interested than we in giving to silver the debt-paying power our laws give to it.
Until human wisdom has devised some other
financial system than that now recognized by the
entire world, gold and silver will continue to be
used as money. And so long as we are to use metals
as a representative of value and as an aid to exchange
we cannot afford to dispense with either silver or
gold. We cannot afford to allow all value to be represented in either metal, nor rely upon one or the
other as the sole medium of exchange. The quan-<

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

tity of either is so limited that the demand for the
one exclusively preferred would tend constantly to
appreciate it, working not only injustice to the
debtor, but also by its apparent reduction of prices
a constant check to enterprise and commerce.
Little is gained in the argument if we concede to
the gold monometallist that falling prices benefit
all alike,unless we also concede that hope is no factor in initiating enterprises, encouraging industry
and exciting commerce. No matter if the fact be
that a bushel of wheat will buy as much of a commodity as the year before, if the fact be that it will
not yield to the purchaser as much in the money of
the land. The farmer will measure his gains solely
in the nominal price he obtains, and will not patiently
resort to market quotations to determine the question of his prosperity. What is true of the farmer is
just as true of the laborer and every other producer
—feeling he has less, he buys less. Falling prices,
therefore, affecting all business operations, bring on
a kind of progressive paralysis.
STATES THE SITUATION.

I t is the government approval of a certain commodity for money and its declaration that it shall
be a legal tender that give to any metal any value
beyond its intrinsic worth for use in the arts or other
ways. This is not a fiat value, but a value dependent upon the demand, for it is almost purely conjectural what value gold would have if robbed of its
law value; we may be certain that it would sell immediately at a great reduction.
Now, what is the situation with which we have to
deal? We find that through our own legislation and
that of other great nations, the money value of silver has been taken away from it, and all the money
value which heretofore for centuries—and they are
centuries of progress—had been given to gold and
silver is now given, to gold alone, What Has l)§m

M'CONNELL'S GKEAT SPEECH

95

the necessary result? Just what any one familiar
with the simplest rule of political economy could
have predicted—a depreciation of silver and a
greater demand for gold. The greater demand
for gold rapidly enhanced its value and real estate
and all its products, labor and all its products,
measured in gold, showed a decline in prices. And
plainly, if the world grows in numbers or business
increases,the demand for gold—the accepted and conventional representative of value and great medium
of exchange—will continue to grow in value, and
on the other side there will be an apparent reduction in prices. J do not say that from year to year
this increased value will be discernible, because for
a time it may be checked by an unusual output of
gold or apparently modified by a scarcity of or a
speculation in commodities. In the course of years,
however, it must inevitably result that gold will continue to appreciate to the advantage of the creditor
and money-holding class. I t is the very system
which will, if it has not already, fatten and fasten
plutocracy on the world. Already less than 3 per
cent of our population own more than half the wealth
of our country.
James G. Blaine said in the Senate in 1876: " I t
would not be difficult to show that in the nations
where both gold and silver have been fully recognized
and most widely diffused the steadiest and most
continued prosperity has been enjoyed—that true
form of prosperity which reaches all classes, but
which begins with the day laborer, whose toil lays
the foundation of the whole superstructure of wealth.
An exclusive gold nation like England may show the
most massive fortunes in the ruling class, but it
shows also the most helpless poverty in the humbler
walks of life. Do our opponents say that gold has
not advanced in value? I can quote against them
Blaine, Sherman, Carlisle and nearly every man who
has occupied a prominent position in this country.

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According to Sauerbeck's reliable statistics the value
of gold at the beginning of this year, as measured in
commodities, had increased 6 6 | per cent over the
period between 1867 and 1877. If gold has not risen
in value and decreased the price of everything else,
what do the demonetizers mean when they say to the
laboring man that the purchasing power of the
dollar is greater now than ever before? Don't they
know that they are exposing themselves to the charge
of hypocrisy when they deny the appreciation of
gold, and at the same time argue that the dollar
now is more potential than ever? And don't they
know that if the dollar will buy more than heretofore, it is harder to get—that you must give more
labor for it, more produce for it.
ARE NOT CONSISTENT.

And, again, these monometallists say that the demonetization of silver has not had a tendency to
lower prices; but almost in the same breath they
charge that the remonetization of silver will unduly
enhance prices. They deny that the prices of commodities have gone down, and the next moment
explain that the reason for the decline is overproduction. They don't care for consistency; they try to
avoid the necessity of beng consistent by predicting
panic and calling names. We who are in favor of
the remonetization of silver say there is no injustice
—even to the creditor—if the government shall restore to silver its old place in our monetary system.
We grant that it will check the appreciation of gold,
and in time cheapen it, but hold that the creditor
will get as much in value as he lent and become a
happy participant in the prosperity of the people.
Even if it were to work an injustice to the creditor
we must remember the debtor and the toiling masses
of mankind. Even if it works an injustice to the
creditor we must reflect that he is not alone to be

M'CONNELL'S GREAT SPEECH

97

considered. Our poor men and our young men want
a chance. Posterity, for which we are really living,
must not be saddled with a system worse than that
devised by any tyrant monarch of the past. A system which enriches the money-owner at the expense
of the producer offers a premium to sloth, lays a burden on toil and checks useful enterprise of every
kind.
Gentlemen, a financial system devised by Hamilton, Jefferson and Washington, under which we had
prospered as a people and grown great as a nation,
was suddenly overthrown by the machinations of a
millionaire senator—without any appeal to the people.
Jefferson enjoined us to often return to a consideration of first principles. And therefore it seems
to me that the great party of which he was the
founder very properly leads in the great work of restoring to the people a financial system which met
all their needs and which was as much a badge and
a guarantee of their independence as immunity from
the stamp law or the tea tax.
MARK OF CIVILIZATION

The remonetization of silver is a return to a system
under which the world developed from barbarism
into civilization. Through all the centuries of progress, and almost keeping pace with it, there have
been added large stocks of the precious metals.
"With their aid the modes of barter were discontinued
and commerce became free, humane and beneficent.
Nations grew closer to each other and comforts began to spread themselves over the face of the whole
world. I don't want to say—-for I don't believe it—
that a conspiracy was formed to make those who had
wealth richer than they were, but just as if such
were the fact, the capitalists of the world became
eager to restrict the circulating medium of exchange.

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

And this great movement, iniquitous in its results,
was very appropriately initiated in England, the
great creditor nation and the most selfish nation of
the world. I t was not there, nor in France, n or in
Germany, nor here, that the demonetization of silver was demanded by the people. It was not among
those nations nor in ours that this monometallist
legislation was proposed and effectuated to relieve any
condition of business distress. Here and elsewhere
the great change was the result of capitalistic advice, and not the result of any movement on the part
of the people. And among us it was done so quietly
that even great seuators who had voted for the bill
were unconscious of the great wrong which had been
done. Said the venerable Judge Thurman: " I cannot say what took place in the House, but I know
when the bill was pending in the Senate we thought
it was a bill to reform the mint, regulate coinage
and fix up one thing and another. And there was
not a single man in the Senate, unless a member of
the committee from which the bill came, who had
the slightest idea that it was even a squint toward
demonetization."
Even if it were true that there would follow some
disturbances in business—even if we had to submit
to some temporary inconvenience and loss—still the
achievement at which we aim is so fraught with importance to ourselves, our children and theirs that
we should be glad to make any personal sacrifice.
Great results often cost life and blood and fortune,
and they are cheerfully given by the truly patriotic.
A people never struggled for a more important end
than the re-establishment of our monetary system,
and yet we can sacrifice much for the cause and still
be richer in the end. We are to wage this fight
against every enemy of the people—against wrealth,
monopoly and greed. We are asserting a great principle of government—the right to govern ourselves.
We find it necessary to speak now more plainly than

M'CONNELL'S GREAT SPEECH

99

heretofore and to be more careful in the choice of
our leaders. The men we chose to represent us put
a personal construction on our declarations and our
laws and, pretending to be honest, betrayed us to
the gold speculators of Wall and Lombard Streets.
The time has come to rebuke those who distrust
the wisdom of the people and accept the selfish wisdom of the money-changer and the bondholder. The
time has come now for us to be definite in demand
—and resolute in exacting obedience from our official
servants. We must say—and say it with the voice
of command—that we demand the remonetization of
silver at the ratio established by law. The system
we want restored has been approved by long experience, has been sanctioned by our progress, is justified
by our situation and is necessary to our national independence and prosperity. We must rid ourselves
of the veto power of New York and London. Let the
people command and our official servants must obey.

CHAPTER X.
BRYAN'S ABLE ADDRESS
EX-CONGRESSMAN WILLIAM J.

BRYAN, of

Lincoln,

Nebraska, who has become famous throughout the
nation for his fearless, able and eloquent advocacy
of the restoration of silver as primary money, being
introduced by a happy motion and brief speech by
Representative Alex J. Jones, of Chicago, advanced to
the front of the platform, and was greeted with wild
cheering. He spoke as follows, and was most enthusiastically cheered throughout his whole speech, so
much so that he was compelled to request his hearers to desist:
This convention has been regularly called by the
party organization in order that the Democracy of
Illinois may declare the position of the party in this
state on the money question. The word u Democracy" means "the rule of the people." No man is
a Democrat who denies the right of the people to
govern themselves, and no one is worthy of the name
which our party bears unless he has faith in the intelligence and patriotism of the people. The word
"people" does not mean a few of the people, but all
of the people, high and low, rich and poor. The
Democratic party was organized by Thomas Jefferson, who gathered the common people together and
led them to victory under the motto: "Equal rights
to all and special privileges to none." Andrew Jack100

BRYAN'S ABLE ADDRESS

101

son was the next great champion of the common
people, and became the idol of the common people
because he had the courage to grapple with the monster monopoly of his day—the national bank. Thomas
Benton said of Jackson that he had saved the nation by overthrowing the bank as Cicero saved Rome
by defeating the conspiracy of Cataline. We are
confronted with a conspiracy greater than that
attacked by Jackson, a conspiracy which Secretary
Carlisle once described as international in extent,
and destined in its consummation to produce more
misery than "war, pestilence and famine."
The
conspiracy has been in progress for twenty years,
but never until this year did the parties to it boldly
proclaim their purpose.
THE ISSUE OF 1896.

In 1896 the people of the United States will be
called upon to decide whether the influence of this
nation shall be cast on the side of bimetallism or in
favor of a univseral gold standard. All admit that
the question is the greatest economic question which
has come before the people of the United States during the present generation, if not, in fact, during the
present century. This question cannot be settled by
the flat of bank presidents, or money loaners, or federal officials. I t will not be finally settled until the
great common people of the United States sit in
judgment upon it and apply to it those principles
of justice by which alone public questions can be
measured. If, as all admit, the money question is
now the question of supreme importance, it must
follow that the people will trust that party with its
settlement which fearlessly espouses the truth. The
Democratic party must take its position upon this
question and by the correctness of that position will
rise or fall. No coward, whether an individual or
a party, can long retain the confidence of the people.
Not only is it necessary for the Democratic party to

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take a position, but the sooner it defines its position
the greater will be its opportunities to win success
in 1896. We need not disguise the fact that our
party is divided upon this question. There are those
among as who would fasten upon us the English
system of finance, just as there were those among
our Revolutionary fathers who sought to continue
the political supremacy of Great Britain. These gentlemen, having suspended the coinage of silver and
established the gold standard, are urging us not to
disturb party harmony by demanding a restoration
of "the gold and silver coinage of the constitution,"
just as the Tories cried u Peace, peace," when Patrick Henry and his compatriots sought a restoration
of the rights of the colonists. But there is no peace.
There can be no compromise upon this question;
there can be no political fellowship between the advocate of a single gold standard and the friend of
bimetallism. If the gold standard, universally
adopted, is the best standard, then we do not want
either independent bimetallism or international bimetallism. If, on the other hand, the world's commerce requires the use of both gold and silver as
standard money of equal privilege, then a single
standard is not to be considered at all. If the single
gold standard will furnish enough of primary money,
then the double standard would furnish too much
and would be an unmitigated evil; if gold and silver
together do not furnish more standard money than
we need, then the attempt to use gold alone as standard money is a crime against society. If the Democratic advocates of a gold standard believe that is
best for the country, they owe it to the Democratic
party to make an honest and manly effort to save
the party from the advocacy of bimetallism, but instead of doing this the leading representatives of the
gold standard in Illinois urged their followers to
stay away from the primaries and take no part in
this convention. If the advocates of a gold stand-

BRYAN'SABLE ADDRESS

103

ard avoided the contest because they believed themselves in the minority, they confessed the right of
the bimetallists to control the policy of the party, or,
if they deny the right of the majority to direct the
policy of the party, they abandon the doctrines of
the party and repudiate the principles of free government. Shakespeare says that it is conscience
that makes cowards, and it is possible that the advocates of a gold standard have refused to submit
their cause to the rank and file of the party because
they are conscious that the financial policy which
they propose is hostile to the interests of the masses.
In 1878 Mr. Carlisle, then a member of Congress,
declared that there was a difference between the
"idle holders of idle capital" and " t h e struggling
masses who produced the wealth and pay the taxes
of the country." Senator Sherman said in 1869 that
u
t h e capitalist out of debt" was exempt from the
distress and disaster attendant upon a contraction
of the currency; Mr. Blaine said in 1878 that the destruction of silver money would bring an unfair advantage to those whose investments yielded a fixed
return in money. When the "idle holders of idle
capital," "the capitalists out of debt" and the "holders of fixed investments" organize to destroy silver as
a standard money they may expect to find arrayed
against them "the struggling masses."
THE PRESIDENT CRITICISED.

I t is to be regretted that the first Democratic president since the war should become the trusted instrument in the hands of concentrated wealth, the
official head of the "communism of pelf." When he
was found he was as modest as Saul, and as conspicuous among his fellows for his good conduct, but
since he has sought counsel of the "familiar spirits"
of Wall Street he has tried to take the political life
of every David whom the people trusted. Grover

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Cleveland is not the Democratic party—Democracy
is greater than any man. I t will exalt him who
rightly interprets its truths, but it will cast him
down who seeks to wear its livery and yet serves
plutocracy. Silver must be restored to its ancient
place and the United States must do its part in the
work of restoration.
We are told that the gold standard has been
adopted and that even if its adoption worked an injury we should not correct one wrong by committing
another. While gold has been adopted as the standard, its work of destruction is not yet completed.
As nation after nation discards silver, the struggle
of gold becomes more bitter and the end is not in
sight. Even if all nations adopted the gold standard at once and thus caused immediate and universal
bankruptcy, we would not reach a stable basis, because the annual supply of gold would not keep pace
with the need for money. There is no end to the
appreciation of money which a universal gold
standard will cause, and we are compelled to choose between a return to the double standard and a continuation of financial distress for an indefinite period
and to an unlimited extent. If the restoration of
silver is imperative, the means are important. If it
is restored at all it must be restored at the present
legal ratio of 16 to 1. A change in the ratio secured
by increasing the size of the silver dollar would not
only contract the currency, it would cause a loss in
the recoinage of silver dollars into lighter silver dollars, and this loss would fall either upon the government or upon the holders of silver dollars and silver
certificates. If the ratio were changed by international agreement to 1 to 24, for instance, it would
cause a decrease of one-third of the silver money, or
one-sixth of the entire metallic money of the world.
Such a contraction in the volume of money would
decrease the market value of the property of the
world many billions of dollars and increase enor-

BRYAN'S ABLE ADDRESS

105

mously the burden of debt. Why bring such injury
to the debtor class and to society and such advantage to the capitalistic class without first attempting
the restoration of silver at the present ratio. We
believe the apparent fall in the gold value of silver
bullion has been due to legislation which on the one
hand cut off the demand for silver and on the other
increased the demand for gold. Bimetallism is
founded upon scientific principles and recognized
natural laws. Agreement can increase the price of
a commodity of limited production by increasing the
demand for the commodity. The production of gold
and silver is limited, and any nation which is large
enough to offer a demand unlimited as compared
with the supply, can fix the bullion price at the mint
price. The reason why bimetallism has been difficult
in the past was because of different legal ratios existing in different countries. If we should attempt
free coinage at 15 to 1 we should invite the coined
silver of other countries to come here in exchange for
gold; but when we offer free coinage at 16 to 1, our
gold will not leave because it cannot find a more favorable ratio where there is any quantity of silver
to exchange. If a change in the ratio is desirable,
we cannot intelligently choose a new ratio unless we
have put gold and silver upon an equal footing. I t
is absurd to measure silver by gold when we open the
mints to gold and close them to silver. This country
must act alone, because it cannot afford to submit
the interests of American citizens to the government
control of foreign nations, and because other nations
are not similarly situated and therefore cannot be
relied on to cooperate with us. We did not ask the
consent of other nations when we demonetized silver,
and we should not ask their consent when we restore
it. Illinois is the imperial state of the West, and the
Democracy of this state, by meeting in this convention, earned that right to lead the fight of 1896. The
platform adopted by this convention will be in sub-

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

stance the Democratic platform of 1896. If we are
right, as we believe we are, they that are with us
are all right. Truth is right and will prevail.

CHAPTER XL
ANDREW J. HUNTER'S SPEECH.

At the conclusion of Mr. Bryan's speech pandemonium reigned for nearly five minutes. Delegates
arose from their seats and cheered lustily. Hats,
canes, and umbrellas were thrown into the air. There
were cries of "Hesing" and " H u n t e r , " and after the
commotion had subsided Andrew J. Hunter of Paris
came forward and was received with cheers. As he
progressed with his speech the display of enthusiasm
brought out by Congressman Bryan was continued
with renewed vigor. At the conclusion of his address he was again applauded, and there were more
cries for "Hesing," "Altgeld " "Ladd " and "Merr i t t . " Mr. Hunter said:
We assemble here to-day in obedience to the will
of the Democratic party of this state to reaffirm and
emphasize the ever living principles of true Democracy. This convention, representing almost every
honorable vocation in business, now seeks to carry
out all those great principles that will add to the
welfare of all the people. We are not here to gratify any spirit of resentment, or to arraign any person for the independent right of opinion. We are
here because of the efforts of Mr. Cleveland to force
the Democratic party to accept as final the law of
1873 on the money question. Those who have been
heretofore recognized as Democrats and do not wish
107

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

to stand with us in carrying out the provisions of
the Chicago platform must find a location for themselves. We are not here to fix their status or to assign to them any political position. Those who have
inflicted deep and dangerous wounds on the Democratic party must be regarded as enemies and treated

HON. ANDREW J. HUNTER.

as such, whether they call themselves Democrats or
Eepublicans.
We are here to declare against the enemies of true

ANDREW J. HUNTER'S SPEECH

109

Democracy without reference to political titles. We
are here to-day by the will of the people to renew
our ancient faith and avow our allegiance to those
principles of good government handed down to us
by our fathers. We have no new duty imposed upon
us and we assume none. The landmarks of the past
are our mentor. We have no leadership to obey, or
highway to travel outside and independent of the
voice of the people. We are here for Democracy and
the whole country; not as trimmers nor truncheon
flourishers, nor for any man or place. We are here
to meet the issues forced upon the country by the
venal legislation of the Republican party and the
effort of the President to perpetuate the financial system inaugurated by Thaddeus Stevens and John
Sherman in 1873.
The Republican party have by every conceivable
trick since that time sought to fasten upon the country the single gold standard. We have resisted its
consummation with all the power at our command
and made the best fight we could to prevent it. And
now, in the midst of this struggle, at the very moment of our ascendency to power, when we were fully
ready to strike down this law of 1873, and re-enact
a law for the free coinage of silver and carry out our
platform and pledges to the people, Mr. Cleveland,
to the surprise of every Democrat in the United
States, abandons his party and platform and goes
over to the enemy and joins hands with John Sherman, Chandler, Cullom and Reed, to continue in
force the laws of 1873, demonetizing silver. The
party became violently incensed, more so than
at any time in their history, refused to go to
the polls and permitted the elections to go by default. Curses of Cleveland, both loud and long,
could be heard from the old and active Democrats
from one end of the country to the other. Mr.
Cleveland, believing it to be part of his executive
duty, presumed to force a new creed upon the Pern-

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

ocratic party of the gold standard alone. In doing
so he has drawn the line distinctly between the gold
barons upon the one hand and the Democratic party
upon the other. There is no longer any doubt where
the Democrat advocate of gold alone stands. Their
status is definitely fixed by the Republican law of
1873. Secretary Carlisle, in his speech at Memphis,
used the same argument, made the same deductions,
and urged the same conclusions that John Sherman
did to his Republican friends at Zanesville. Both
these men appealed to the people to defeat the free
coinage of silver and perpetuate the law of 1873,
which law maintains gold alone as the standard of
value.
Upon this money question I am unable to
see any difference between Sherman and Carlisle,
Cleveland and Cullom, and Brice and Allison. They
have joined hands to fight the Democratic party for
the restoration of silver. These gentlemen charge us
with being crazy upon the silver question. If we are
crazy we are in good company, for every Democrat,
from Jefferson to Cleveland, has been for the free
coinage of silver; so if we are crazy, all of our Democratic ancestors were crazy. In this new alignment
of the people upon the money question I have but
little doubt that Mr. Cleveland and all those Democrats who choose to follow him will have a ticket of
their own in 1896 and will insist that they are the
Democratic party; that we are renegades and that
we have left them.
SAYS CLEVELAND IS DARING.

The daring move of Mr. Cleveland to carry the
Democratic party away from the platform that he
accepted as a candidate and upon which he was
elected has but one parallel in the long history of
Democratic Presidents. Strict adherence to principle
has been and is the corner-stone upon which all true
Democrats stand, In 1857, many of us well remem-

ANDREW J. HUNTER'S SPEECH

111

ber, and we are not strangers to those in high places
who sought to force new doctrines and new creeds
upon the Democratic party, Mr. Buchanan, during
his administration, attempted to use the power of
his high office to force the Democratic party, at the
time of organizing the states of Kansas and Nebraska,
to carry out his views upon the slavery question
instead of the declared principles of the party. History has recorded the result. The party was rent in
twain, two national tickets were placed in the field,
and notwithstanding we had half a million majority
of the popular vote, Mr. Lincoln was elected President of the United States. We had two tickets in
Illinois. The regular Democratic ticket received 121,
609 and the Danite ticket of the administration received 5,071 votes. Mr. Buchanan controlled all his
appointees in this state and they worked faithfully
for his ticket, but his ticket was really repudiated by
the Democratic party. I am glad to know that Mr.
Cleveland cannot control one-half his appointees in
this state. They are not the kind of Democrats that
can be marshaled into line with John Sherman, William McKinley, and Shelby M. Cullom under any
kind of intimidation. Democrats know their duty
and propose to stand by their convictions. We all
regret that we cannot stand with the administration
on this money question. We honor Mr. Cleveland
for his great ability and power in leading the Democratic party in striking down unequal taxation, the
force bill, and introducing strict economy in every
branch of the service. I regard Mr. Cleveland also
one of the greatest men that this country has ever
produced, but his differences with the Democratic
party and his principles upon this money question
are so wide and deep that he must be considered an
open and avowed enemy of the Democratic party.
With us principles are paramount to the conviction
or policy of any one man, however exalted that man
may be. In 1792 the Democratic party originated and

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

enacted the laws governing our first mint and the
free coinage of gold and silver. That statute was
faithfully observed and thoroughly tested by eightyone years of experience. Silver was made the coworker, side by side, with gold, and the history of
our country fully attests its ability to meet every demand upon it as money, in peace as well as in war.
Contentment and satisfaction obtained in all our
business exchanges, also in the commerce and trade
of the whole country, as well as sustaining our credit
abroad. No demand was ever made by the people
for a change from gold and silver to gold alone from
the beginning of our government to this hour. Gold
and silver, being the money of the constitution, were
the bed rock of hope in ail our business. This happy
condition would obtain to-day had our Republican
legislators permitted the money laws made by the
Democratic party to remain on the statute books.
But they yielded to the demands of corporate wealth,
avarice and greed, demonetized silver, and made gold
alone the only measure of value. This scheme appreciated gold and depreciated silver, increasing the securities of the creditor class at the expense of the
debtor class. Millions were thus gained by the creditor class without the investment of an additional
dollar. This generation of people have seen and felt
the effects of this partial legislation more than all
its predecessors.
LABOR DOES NOT RECEIVE ITS DUES.

Labor being the first factor in human welfare, having produced more wealth than ever before, has received a smaller per cent of its rewards. The price
of labor has been reduced, demoralization and suffering have been increased, the price of farm products
has steadily declined, and the power of the few to
control the wealth of the country has been greatly
augmented, so that the government itself has become

ANDREW J. HUNTER'S SPEECH

113

the mere toy of capital. They can empty the treasury
of its gold at pleasure; the Secretary of the Treasury is completely within their power; at their com-,
mand he is compelled to go to their banking-houses
in Wall Street and consult them when it becomes
necessary to procure gold to run the government.
They force the government to issue bonds and fix the
rate of interest. We are completely within their
power under this Republican law, as construed by
this administration, that is, to pay nothing but gold
upon our obligations. And what is so mortifying to
every real Democrat in the United States is that,
after thirty years of constant effort and fidelity to
principle, when we thought that we had secured a
Democratic administration by which we could repeal
these Republican laws,we were mistaken. We have
Mr. Cleveland now using all of his power to force the
party which elected him to recognize the Republican
doctrine of gold alone as the measure of value and
continue the law of 1873 demonetizing silver. With
few exceptions the Democratic party believes that
Mr. Cleveland is solely and individually responsible
for the demoralization in the party and the terrible
defeats of 1893 and 1894.
Long experience has taught us the bitter lesson
that the farther we go away from Democratic principles in the administration of this government the
deeper we become involved in trouble. Upon this
silver question the issues are clearly made up not
only between the Democratic party and the Republican party, but with all those calling themselves
Democrats who stand for gold alone. The administration has drawn the line so that no man can be
deceived, the voter can take his choice. He can follow the principles laid down by Jefferson, Jackson,
Douglas, and Hendricks, the great leaders of the
Democratic party, for the double standard of gold
and silver, or he can follow the authors of the law
destroying silver, Thaddeus Stevens and Mi\ Hooper

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

of Massachusetts, or John Sherman, Senator Cullom
and President Cleveland for gold alone. There are
a few Democrats hesitating as to the course they will
pursue in this contest. We would be glad to have
them stand with us for the re-establishment of silver
and raise it to the place it occupied before the hand
of Republican legislation was laid upon it; but if
they think it is good Democracy to vote for and keep
Republican laws in force and follow Mr. Cleveland
instead of the Democratic party, this convention has
no purpose or intention in dictating to you a political
status. All you men who think Mr. Cleveland can
lead you into a higher and purer Democracy than
the conventions of the party, it is your duty to follow him. But I fear that you may be deceived. There
cannot be two Democratic parties. If the Chicago
platform is the doctrine and creed of the Democratic
party, Mr. Cleveland's new departure and crusade
against silver and for gold alone as the measure of
value is not Democratic, and, upon the other hand,
if Mr. Cleveland's proscription of silver and his refusal to pay it out upon the debts of the government
is Democracy, then our traditions, principles and
platform that we have adhered to for more than a
hundred years are not Democratic. If Mr. Cleveland
wants to start a new and different Democratic party,
let him call a convention of his own and lay down
his platform. Then we will be able to see where he
stands and how many voters stand upon his platform. He can christen his new party according to
his own tastes and go before the country. I am reminded that the first section of the new platform of
this new party will be to stand by the laws of 1878
until we can get an international agreement, or, in
other words, have England fix our financial system
for us, but in the meantime retain the Republican
legislation of 1873 for the gold standard.

ANDREW J. HUNTER'S SPEECH

115

INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS.

I appeal to this convention and ask you the question: Did this government at any time secure any
benefits under any international agreement when we
met for the purpose of making one common money
for the nation? We would be glad to have such a
millennium come What sensible man can expect
such a consummation? The people of this country
would be delighted to know how an international
agreement could be executed and carried out so that
it would benefit us. I have no doubt some of these
gold prophets could tell us. Such an agreement
would not be a law that would bind any nation or
individual. The different nations would have to call
their law-making powers together. Then the question
of confirmation would have to be settled. Who has
the courage to believe that they would so legislate
as to give the United States any advantage of them?
All this dramatic talk about international agreement
with foreign nations to secure some financial advantage to our own country is empty declamation, and
only kept before the people as one of the schemes of
deception for the sole purpose of procrastination.
Who has any faith in the English people or in the
creditor class? England has never been a very warm
friend to the United States since the days of George
Washington. Who can say that they will ever agree
to bimetallism or any fair ratio that would enable
the debtors of the United States to discharge their
obligations to them according to the contract, in
coin, using silver as well as gold. They have by
maintaining the law of 1873 almost doubled their
credits against the debtors of this country, and however strange it may seem to you we find Mr. Cleveland, Mr. Carlisle, the Eepublican party, and the
English government all combined to maintain the
gold standard. They claim that they are the friends
of silver at the same time they stand inflexibly by the

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

law of 1873, which destroys silver. Mr. Cleveland
and some of his appointees tell us that this government of ours can do nothing to relieve this country
from gold monometallism without the affirmative
action of the financiers of the English government. In any contingency we are to have no relief
from the debauched condition of our finances unless
England in her magnanimity and love for this country
accords it to us. Our own administration asks us to
confess that we are wholly impotent to furnish relief
to our own people. What degeneracy do we behold!
I ask you Democrats here to-day, was that the spirit
and courage exhibited by our ancestors when they
organized this splendid scheme of government of
ours? Did they bow down to English dictation and
English cupidity and ask them to furnish for this
country a ready-made financial system? In 1792,
when our fathers established the first mint in the
United States and fixed by law the rules of coinage
of both gold and silver and the unit of value, did
our fathers then, when they had less than 3,000,000
of people, have the puerile excuse that is set up to-day
by the present administration that we must consult England and other nations before we can establish a financial system for ourselves? Had our
fathers, in the beginning of this government, such
counselors as Cleveland, Carlisle, Sherman and McKinley, before they would have dared to establish
laws for the free coinage of gold and silver they would
have sent out for Lord Cornwallis, General Burgoyne
and George III. and asked their cooperation and
consent. Why not have the governor of the Bank
of England write out our financial policy or go into
partnership with the English government in the administration of our financial affairs? Or we might
surrender all our constitutional rights as a people
and let the boards of trade and the Eastern bankers
form a trust with the English government and run
the government on the joint stock plan.

ANDREW J. HUNTER'S SPEECH

117

No American citizen can read this proposed surrender of our financial system by Mr. Cleveland and
his henchmen to the dictation of Great Britain without the deepest regret and humiliation. Here with
70,000,000 of free people we do not dare to do that
which 8,000,000 did heroically and well. These old
heroes had declared and established their independence and proposed to run this government themselves.
They were not hunting about for monarchies, dynasties and despotisms to help them run this free and
independent government of ours. These special
champions of the gold standard and the advocates of
the law of 1873 demonetizing silver are all self-appointed prophets. They imagine they are able to
divine the future and tell the people what is to be.
In the days of Christ, prophets of this kind were
taken outside the city and stoned to death. But
now they are made cabinet ministers and high officials of the government. They assume to be able to
tell us to a perfect demonstration what effect the
free coinage of silver will have on all future generations. They seem to have no doubt of having this
heaven-born ability. They prophesy that to givesilver an equal chance at the mint with gold will
drive all the gold out of the country. That the
United States is not strong enough to sustain such
financial policy as the people demand.
CARLISLE TAKEN TO TASK.

Secretary Carlisle, one of the itinerant prophets
of this administration, says in his prophecy at Memphis that it is impossible for our government to
adopt and sustain the free coinage of silver without
the aid of foreign governments and that it will establish monometallism. Mr. Cleveland claims that it
will fill the country with a dishonest money (forgetting, if a prophet forgets anything, that dishonest
money is a product of dishonest law). Notwith-

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

standing eighty-one years of experience to the contrary, he is for the continuance in force of the
dishonest law of 1873, which made silver a dishonest
dollar. Sherman prophesies that it would destroy
the present rate of interest of exchange; Morton
prophesies that it would ruin the farmer by giving
him a debased currency for his products; McKinley
prophesies that it would disturb existing prices and
create doubt in the minds of the people. These gentlemen, not caring to give us facts and reliable data,
go on with their prophecies. Mr. Carlisle makes
the startling announcement in speaking for the administration that we cannot have the free coinage of
silver in this country unless Great Britain consents.
I would say to Mr. Carlisle that we had the free
coinage of silver for more than eighty years without
the consent of England. That, under Democratic
laws, every silver dollar for that time was at par and
was an honest dollar, and I want to say further, in
reply to this lame and impotent argument, that we
had more need for international agreement at the
beginning than we have to-day. We have forty times
more power to-day under our flag to sustain our own
financial system than we had in the beginning.
This gold scheme is a part and parcel of the old doctrine of protection.
Mr. Chairman, the Democratic party stands to-day
where it always stood on this money question, firmly
for the coinage of both gold and silver on a perfect
equality, insisting that it is the only money of ultimate redemption. These great truths were handed
down to us as principles and incorporated into our
platforms, and no man can be a good Democrat without standing upon the platform of his party. These
air-walkers that go tramping around without any
platform to place their feet upon remind me of those
people spoken of by the Savior that are tossed about
by every wind of doctrine. No man of any honor
will contend that we can carry out the Chicago plat-

ANDREW J. HUNTER'S SPEECH

119

form while the law of 1873 remains in force. The
Chicago platform was a plain, concise and forcible
exposition of the principles of the Democratic party
upon this money question. Let me read:
QUOTES THE CHICAGO PLATFORM.

"We denounce the Republican legislation known
as the Sherman act of 1890 as a cowardly makeshift
fraught with possibilities of danger in the future,
which should make all of its supporters as well as
its author anxious for its speedy repeal. We hold
to the use of both gold and silver as the standard
money of the country and to the coinage of both
gold and silver without discriminating against either
metal or charge for mintage, but the dollar unit of
coinage of both metals must be of equal intrinsic
and exchangeable value or be adjusted through international agreement or by such safeguards of legislation as shall insure the maintenance of the parity of
the two metals and the equal power of every dollar
at all times in the markets and in the payment of
debts; and we demand that all paper currency shall
be kept at par with and redeemable in such coin.
We insist on this policy as especially necessary for
the protection of the farmers and laboring classes,
the first and most defenseless victims of unstable
money and a fluctuating currency."
How can we hold to the use of silver if we go with
Mr. Cleveland and sustain the law of 1,873, which
demonetizes silver? How can we make silver a
standard money of the country if we sustain a law
that destroys it? I should be glad to know how Mr.
Cleveland and his followers can be for the coinage
of both gold and silver when the law of 1873 forbids
silver coinage. At the same time they insist that
present conditions must not be disturbed. The
platform goes further and says that there shall be no
discrimination against either metal or charge for

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mintage. The law of 1873 does discriminate against
silver and prevents the mintage of it. How can the
unit of coinage of both be equal and of the same
exchangeable value when gold is made money by law
and silver is made a commodity? Is the declaration
of the constitution which gives Congress the power
to coin money and regulate its value a mere platitude, a meaningless phrase? Has Congress exercised
its constitutional power? Is there power somewhere
to overrule Congress and make void its decrees? Does
the constitutional monetary standard consist of both
gold and silver, and if so, is there any power anywhere to change or alter it? Shall we have a money
of both gold and silver with the government currency
redeemable in or interchangeable with either coin,
or shall we have only gold coin and a corporation
currency redeemable only in gold coin? Is it the
humiliating duty of the United States to conform
her financial legislation to suit the wishes and interests of England or any other foreign power? Mr.
Cleveland is for the single gold standard and bank
currency. I am in favor of both gold and silver and
a paper currency furnished exclusively by the government redeemable in either gold or silver coin. I
think the time to talk about the equality, parity and
ratio is when the law of 1873 is repealed. And such
legislation had, there will be no discrimination by
law. This is what the Democratic party contends
for and will continue to contend for until it secures
that result. No man in his right mind believes that
we can secure from Great Britain any agreement
that would be mutual.
This is no ordinary contest. We not only have
the Eepublican party arrayed in line to oppose all
our efforts to restore silver, the subsidized press and
the English government, but have the administration, with all of its power and machinery, confronting us. Mr. Carlisle, in his Bowling Green speech,
states the intent and purpose of the administration:

ANDREW J. HUNTER'S SPEECH

121

44
If this free coinage wave is to overwhelm the
country, I can assure you that it shall be postponed
for at least three years. If this Congress should pass
a free coinage bill, of which there is no probability,
it could not be put into effect while this administration is in power. You have first to elect a Congress that would pass a free coinage bill, and then
elect a President who would sign i t . "

SAYS IT is CLEVELAND'S THREAT.

This threatening language sounds the gauge of
battle to us and leaves no doubt as to the position
of Mr. Cleveland. The man that we placed in power
by Democratic votes, through his Secretary of the
Treasury, breathes out his defiance and tells us that
if we dare pass a free coinage bill we will have to
elect a President that would sign it. Mr. Cleveland,
no doubt, thinks by sending out his secretary to pronounce his threat that he will by that means intimidate the Democratic party. What answer to this
have you people of Illinois to-day? Shall we cower
at the feet of arrogant power or shall we stand for
those great principles handed down to us by our
fathers? Mr. Cleveland having been aroused by his
failure to secure a majority of the Democratic members in the last Congress to carry out his gold policy,
and having had to rely upon the Republican members and a few gold Democrats for the support of
his peculiar financial legislation, he now, with his
appointees, hopes to coerce the Democratic party
and make them stand in line with the Republican
party and his followers for the single gold standard.
He knows that upon this question he has the Republican party at his back and the syndicate which
controls the money of the country. With this triple
alliance he expects to destroy the old Democratic
party and upon its ruins erect a party of his own,
demonetize silver, and establish the gold standard

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

alone. He expects the Democracy of the country
to accept as true his and Mr. Carlisle's version that
the money of the constitution established by our
fathers is dishonest. No Democrat can accept the
terms of party fealty tendered to him by this administration on the money question. I t is not Democratic; it is not honest politics. The voice and
command of the people is Democracy, and when the
people speak they are for gold and silver as the standard money, and when the boards of trade, loan
agents, and this administration speak they are for
gold alone. Gentlemen of the convention, I plead
to you to stand by Democratic principles, Democratic precedence, and Democratic traditions. We
cannot hope to succeed by temporizing with expedients and following new departures. Men do change,
principles never. Let us raise high the standard of
every line and tenet of the party. Turn neither to
the right nor to the left, but face the enemy from
whatever quarter they may come.

CHAPTER XII.
GOVERNOR ALTGELD's SPEECH.
ARTHUR JAMES of Cook county moved that a committee be appointed to wait upon Governor Altgeld
and request him to address the convention. The
motion carried unanimously. Governor Altgeld appeared amid prolonged cheering. His remarks were
freely applauded and tended to increase the enthusiasm of the delegates. There was even greater interest evinced in his speech than in those that preceded it, and as he progressed the enthusiasm increased. His allusions to " t h e man in the white
house" were cheered, but when he spoke with sarcasm of that man as the u friend of the workingman"
there was a storm of hisses for Cleveland. At the
conclusion of the governor's speech there was the
usual round of applause, with the addition of three
cheers for Governor Altgeld.
Governor Altgeld spoke as follows:

Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the convention:
There are so many Democrats here to-day who have
discussed the principles of Democracy for so long a
time and have maintained the principles of Democracy in sunshine and storm that I felt the time of
this convention belonged to you and that it was the
business of your servants in the capitol to keep quiet.
But I know of no greater honor than to be asked
123

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to appear before a convention of Democrats such as
I see before me, and I thank you for the consideration you have shown me.
Now, gentlemen, why are you here? This is a busy

/&*•

-' -try***

GOVERNOR JOHN P. ALTGELD.

time of the year. Why have you left your farm,
your shop, your store, and come to the capital?
THE WHY OF IT.

There is no election approaching; there are no offi-

GOVERNOR ALTGELD's SPEECH

125

ces to get; there is no political campaign immediately before you in the sense in which we understand
it. Why, then, have you assembled here?
I t is because you have felt that the time has come
when we must again make a declaration of principles. (Applause.) You felt that the time has come
when the Democratic party must again stand for
Democracy, and no longer for plutocracy. (Applause.) Just look over our great and glorious country. For years nature has yielded her harvest. Our
people are sober and industrious. They are as energetic and representative as ever. Their brains are as
active and their fingers are as skillful. And what
do we see? Paralysis! Industries dead. Farmers
in trouble. Mechanics idle. Business men in trouble
and laborers begging bread. You have inquired as
to the cause of this anomalous condition. You have
asked why this is so. And you have found that for
some reason there was a complete break-down of the
American market, a complete destruction of the purchasing power of the great producing and toiling
masses of this country. You have asked what caused
this.
DONE BY SHYLOCKS.

You dug down a little further and you found that
a number of years ago nearly one-half of the money
of the world was stricken down, not by any law of
commerce, not by any law of business, but by the
arbitrary arm of the government wielded and directed
by the Shylocks and the plutocrats of the country.
I t is a basic principle that when you increase the
volume of money in the world you increase the selling price of commodities and products of the world.
(A voice: "That is so.") The converse holds good
also. When you reduce the volume of money in the
world, then, instantly, of necessity, the selling price
of commodities and of products has to go down.
Now what followed this arbitrary act?

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

Mind you, the fixed charges were left, the mortgages were not reduced, the interest was not reduced,
taxes were not reduced, and the one hundred and one
fixed charges were not reduced. Consequently our
great producing classes found that when they had
paid their fixed charges they had nothing left. Prior
to that time they could pay their, interest, pay their
taxes, pay their fixed charges and have a surplus,
and with that surplus they purchased the one hundred and one things that go to make up the comforts
of a modern family. What did that do? That gave
business to the merchants, business to the railroads,
business to the manufacturer. Now, by virtue of
this pernicious legislation, there was found a condition of things in which it took everything that the
producing classes could raise to pay the fixed charges,
and it left them nothing with which to buy what
they formerly did buy.
And what was the result?
BUSINESS PROSPERITY COLLAPSED.

The merchant could not sell. The railroad had
little to carry. The manufacturer had to shut down.
And what followed? The laborers in these factories
were without work and very soon without bread.
Their purchasing power was taken away and there
was a complete paralysis around the circle. You
found that out. You saw it years ago, and you commenced agitating for a change of those conditions.
And what remedies were offered to you? What remedies have the self-appointed doctors given you in
the last few years. The patient had been bled until
it could not stand up. I t was leaning up against
the fence and these great financial doctors came
along, felt his pulse, looked at his face and said:
"Well, the right thing to do is to take a little
more blood out of h i m . " (Laughter and applause.)
They have been doing that and as they proceeded
the patient kept getting a little weaker and weaker

GOVERNOR ALTGELD's SPEECH

127

until finally you concluded that that line of treatment had been followed long enough and you demanded a change.
Now, how are we to get back to the condition that
we formerly occupied?
RESTORE PURCHASING POWER.

Why, we must restore that purchasing power of
the producing masses of our country. (A voice,
" T h a t is right.") Put them back where they stood
when the government with its strong arm interfered,
and this whole machinery of industry will start.
And, until that is done there is no possibility of
a return of general prosperity. (Applause.) I have
been told lately, "Why, times are getting better!
Don't you see that we have got big iron mills hard
at work and they have raised wages 10 per cent?"
u
Well, how many men are they employing?"
"Fifteen hundred men."
" W h a t did they get before they raised the wages
lately?"
"They got $1 a day."
" W h a t do they get now?"
"One dollar and ten cents a day."
" W h a t did they get years ago under the former
condition of affairs?"
"They got $2 and $2.50 a day." (A voice, " T h a t
is right.")
Now, gentlemen, this country is so exhausted that
there must be some business now, there must be
some manufacturing. But it is small, simply to
meet the absolute necessity of the case, and on a
basis of wages that leaves the laborer no purchasing
power
THE EUROPEAN LEVEL.

We are settling down on a basis of wages that is
in harmony with the general fall of the selling price

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

of products, and that is a basis the same as those of
European countries, which make it impossible for
the men who toil to buy anything except the simplest necessities of life.
Now, that is the only way in which we can have a
return of prosperity—to go back to where we stood
years ago before the government interfered. That
is what you are demanding. That is what honesty
and justice demands, and it is right that you should
do it. When the government interfered at that time
it did a great wrong. Not only our government, but
it joined hands with a number of governments of
Europe. They did a great wrong to the debtor class.
They made the debtor give twice as much of his
sweat and toil to pay a debt as he otherwise would
have had to give.
I say it is right for the Democratic party to take
this in hand, because the Democratic party is the
party of the masses, and therefore it devolves upon
it to want that kind of a law. By that act they produced this paralysis of industry clear around the
line, which bore hard upon the masses. The Democratic party, standing for the people, is under obligations to right that wrong. You have no business to
look elsewhere.
REPUBLICANS NO HELP.

The Republican party stands for different principles. They are followers of the doctrine of-Hamilton.
They believe in the doctrine that it is the business of government to help a few rich people and
let those few rich people throw a few bones to the
poor* (Laughter and applause.) That is the theory
of the fundamental principle of the Republican
party.
Now, the Democratic party stands just for the opposite. It stands for the principle that government
is for the equal protection of all; that it has no right
to interfere for the benefit of a few at the expense of
the remainder.

GOVERNOR ALTGELD's SPEECH

129

The trouble with us has been that for several years
now our Democratic leaders seem to have gone over
into the Republican fold and to be trying to take the
job away from the Republicans. (Laughter and applause. ) They have got so far along with it that they
do not even want to permit the Democrats of this
state to have a word to say about it. (Great laughter
and applause.) I have heard of a good many cases
of giving a beggar a horse and he will ride, but this
time the beggar has ridden further than I ever heard
of a beggar riding before. (Laughterand applause.)
MUST BE RIGHTED.

Now you have determined that this wrong must
be righted. You have heard the people talk about
a silver craze—nice gentlemen with fine shirt fronts,
fine clothes and fine gloves on. Men spending the
money that somebody else earned will talk to you
about the silver idiots, about the silver craze and
silver lunatics. Now, gentlemen, I wish it were so.
We would soon get over our craze and our country
would be well again. (Applause.) But the trouble
is that there is in this case a deep-seated wrong and
this outburst of the people and uprising of the Democracy is simply the uprising of an indignant and a
wronged people. They feel that this wrong has been
committed and they have determined that so far as
in them lies they will right it up for you gentlemen.
This is no easy task you are entering upon. This
fight is only beginning; it is not finished.
THREATS TO LEAVE.

I want to congratulate you upon the effect that
this short silver campaign has had upon the Democracy of Illinois. I never saw any body of men enthused so quickly, become electrified so quickly, to
get up and be ready for business and ready for fight
in so short a time as has the Democracy of Illinois

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

in the last six weeks. (Applause.) There were some
gentlemen who you know talked about leaving the
party. Oh, Lord, they could not associate with such
people. But we have not heard of any of them leaving the party yet. I do not believe any of them will,
but I say this to you: If every man of them who
talked of leaving the party would take his bag and
baggage and go into the Republican camp to-day,
and we had a great election in this state to-morrow,
we would poll 40 per cent more votes than we polled
last fall. Why, gentlemen, it is not a matter of making converts; you don't need to make converts; you
don't want to make them. All you want is to get
the benefit of the sentiment that now exists in this
country and you will sweep everything before you.
(Cheers.) You have reached this point. You have
spoken to the Democrats of Illinois. What are you
going to do now? ("We are going to have 16 to 1,"
cried an enthusiastic delegate.) That is good, and
will win, too, rejoined Governor Altgeld, amid
laughter.
HISSES FOR GROVER.

But you cannot legislate. There is another man
in the White House for some time yet. (Yells and
cries of "That's so.") I am told that he is the friend
of the workingman. (Hisses from various parts of
the hall.) He has written some beautiful letters,
and in those letters he has told the workingman
t h a t his dollar will go further than it used to go,
but I notice that neither he nor any other mortal
has told the workingman where he can get that dollar just now. (Laughter and applause.) And I repea to you that the workingman will not get that
dollar until there is again a market that will buy
his products. I ask you what you are going to do.
You cannot relieve the situation except by legislation. You have got to undo the crime that government did. You have got to have a President who

GOVERNOR ALTGELD's SPEECH

131

will be in sympathy with you—a President who will
be willing to stand by the great people of America
and not by the bondholders of Europe. (Cheers.)
You have got to have congressmen who, when they
go to Washington, will remember what their constituents in Illinois and other states want. (Cheers.)
You have got to quit trifling with congressmen who,
when they get to Washington, always look to New
England for their inspiration.
DON'T DISTURB THINGS.

Now, how are you going to accomplish this? I t
is a year before an election will be held, and I notice
that when this agitation began there were gentlemen
opposed to us, and what was their argument?
u
Oh, for the Lord's sake, don't disturb things."
Between the lines you could read this: "We are
the people who represent the bondholders, the bankers and the very rich and the corporations, and we
have got things in as nice a shape as we want them,
and for God's sake don't disturb things; don't split
the Democratic p a r t y . "
What aid that mean? That meant keep things
quiet; don't get up any agitation; don't get anybody aroused. If a man feels in his heart there has
been a deep wrong, smooth it over, and next spring
we will elect delegates from the various states to the
Democratic national convention that will do just
what they did before. (Laughter and applause.)
THEY WILL STRADDLE.

They will straddle everything under the sun and
they will put upon their platform a man for President who will not know that there is a country west
of the Allegheny mountains. (Cheers.) Well, }rou
don't see fit for some reason to heed the advice of
those men and you have gone on. You have held a
convention and I see you are very much alive. Now
what do they say?

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ILLINOIS CTRRENCY CONVENTION

"Oh, stop now; don't carry it any further; you
may split the Democratic party."
Have you ever stopped to notice how big a splinter
would be split off? (Laughter.) Let us consider
that a moment. You have the Democracy of this
state somewhat aroused to their rights. They don't
demand anything that is unjust. They don't seek
legislation that will do injustice to capital. They
believe in protecting all the great interests of this
country, but they say that in the future they must
have justice done.
CHANGE IN MISSOURI.

T heard the other day that in our neighboring state,
Missouri, the Democrats were very much aroused.
They were determined to have a Democratic silver
convention. I am told that nearly sixty counties
held meetings and demanded that the state committee should call a convention. Finally a committee
went to St. Louis. When they came to the town
they stood eight in favor of a convention and seven
against. When they got into town they were taken
possession of by some gentlemen, who, for some unknown reason, called themselves honest money people, and those honest money people took these committeemen to the horse races, and then they went off
and wined and dined them, and when they got
through wining and dining, this committee stood
ten against the convention and five for it. (Applause.) That is an illustration of what you may
expect if you keep quiet now and be real nice and behave yourselves and travel in the refined society of
the gold standard people. (Applause.)
REPEAT PAST FOLLIES.

But suppose we let that go. Suppose we move
along the line of those people who have opposed the
very step you have taken. I t is simply & question

GOVERNOR ALTGELD's SPEECH

133

of being driven out of this position into that and so
on. Suppose you act upon their suggestions and let
everything be quiet again. What kind of delegation
would come from the state of Missouri to the national convention next year? Would it be a delegation to represent the state of Missouri or the bondholders of the East? Mind you, there will be some
gentlemen next year who will want to be candidates
for the presidency, and they will have barrels of considerable size to roll over into this Mississippi valley.
Take the other states and we find a similar condition of affairs, and we will simply have a national
convention which will only repeat the follies of the
past. We will have a platform that stands for nothing and we will have a candidate for president whom
the Democrats of the state will not support, and the
party will be nearer wiped out, body, boots and
breeches, than ever before in this country. (Cheers.)
ONE WAY TO HEAD OFF.

There is only one way to head this off. I t is to
get back of those people who are not willing to let
the Democrats express their conviction on this subject. Get back of them; keep this agitation up.
Call for a convention to meet late this fall. Notify
the Democrats of all states of the Union to send representatives to it. Say to them that if the state committees or machinery is not willing to let them
come, then let the Democrats of each county send
delegates to this convention and in that way keep up
the interest. Keep the people awake, keep them
moving, and then when next spring comes you will
find that no man from New York or Massachusetts,
no man from the East or anywhere else who does not
stand for the honest convictions of the Democrats,
can succeed in capturing the convention. (Cheers.)
FIGHT ONLY BEGINNING.

I repeat to you, gentlemen, that this fight is only

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

beginning. The powers that are against you are powers t h a t never stop—they are everywhere, they are
omnipresent. You will find consolidated wealth,
you will find every man whose wealth controls him
against you. You will find the fashionable drawing
rooms against you, the great daily papers against you.
The bankers mostly will be against you. You will
find every man who makes a living off other people
against you. Look at the crowd of men who have
been fighting you—those honest money league fellows. Have you seen a man among them who goes
to his home at night wet with the sweat of honest
toil? (Grie3 of u N o ! Nol") All are corporation
officers, corporation lawyers, hangers-on to capital,
hangers-on to rich men—people, all of them, which
is not necessarily against them, who make a living
in such a way and eat bread that honest toil bought.
That is all right enough, but the mere fact that
they are fortunate who wear better clothes and occupy better positions, fortunate not to toil in the
factory or on the farm, is no reason why they should
not be willing to let the great masses of this country
say what they want to say and try to get justice.
DEAF EAR FOR THEM.

Gentlemen, the great danger you will have to confront is the danger of division. The subtle and seductive influences of the people who are against you
will wedge you in here and will split you a little there
until you hesitate. They will talk glibly enough a,nd
urge you to remember that you are Democrats. Such
taik is not in your interest; it is the talk of the other
side. You have the people with you and they know
it. All you need to do is to hold fast and stand firmly
together. Let it be understood that the men who
are not with you are against you. Let it be understood that it is not a matter of getting offices; that
there is something greater and nobler for men to do

GOVERNOR ALTGELD'S SPEECH

135

in the world than to get offices; that it is a question
of principle with you, a question of legislation for
the great masses of the people. Stand shoulder to
shoulder and there is not a power in America that
can withstand your onward tread. (Loud cheers.)

CHAPTEE XIII.
MR. MICHAELIS' ADDKESS.
AMONG the concluding speeches of the great convention was the address read of Richard Michaelis,
editor of the Chicago Freie Presse. In introducing him
the chairman said:
" I t has been said the Germans are not with us,
not any of them, and I take great pleasure in controverting that statement by introducing Kichard
Michaelis as a representative of the Germans." Mr.
Michaelis addressed the convention as follows:

Although at present not in my usual good health
I have consented to become for the first time in my
life a delegate to a Democratic convention, because
I consider it a high duty, as well as a great honor, to
follow the call of your glorious leaders.
Governor Altgeld, Mayor Hopkins, Judge McConnell, and Secretary of State Hinrichsen have been
attacked by the organs of the dishonest money league
for calling this convention, but these great leaders
deserve unqualified praise for their manly action
The Democratic national platform of 1892 demands bimetallism in unequivocal terms, but President Cleveland, Senator Palmer, and other prominent Democrats have repudiated the platform on
which they were elected and have abused their influence to restrict the coinage of silver.
136

MR. M I C H A E L I S ' ADDRESS

187

Their efforts had the purpose as well as the effect
to enhance the value of gold, to make the primary
money scarce and dearer, and we have therefore the
right to call the organization advocating such a financial policy the dishonest money league, because the
partially successful attempt to demonetize silver and
thus to decrease the amount of standard money appears as a dishonest effort to force debtors to repay
loans in an artificially enhanced money and to coerce
the producing classes to pay to money lenders a higher
rate of interest. The disastrous consequences of this
policy, carried on by financial powers since 1878,
are perceivable in the shrinkage of values of nearly
all commodities and in the stagnation of business.
PLAIN DUTY TO RALLY.

I t became, therefore, the plain duty of every advocate of a fair and honest financial policy to rally
in the interest of the people, and the leaders of the
Democracy of Illinois did the right thing in calling
this convention and in giving the voters a chance to
express their purpose on this subject. Only such
men can object against a popular expression on the
money question who desire to place their own pleasure above the will of the people or to misrepresent
the latter.
I am an old bimetallist. I consider the restitution
of silver to its old rights as the most important task.
I believe that the Democratic party alone can and
will remonetize silver, and therefore I am a member
of this convention.
This splendid gathering is a proof that the voters
of Illinois and the people at large cannot be deceived
by the false arguments of the dishonest money league.
We all know that gold and silver have been standard money as long as humanity has a history until
in and since 1873 the free coinage of silver has been
prohibited in about a dozen of nations. We all know

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

that only two so-called arguments have been offered
in defense of the demonetization of silver, viz.: (1)
that an overproduction had caused a silver flood,
and (2) that it had become impossible to maintain a
ratio between gold and silver.
OVERPRODUCTION OF GOLD.

But the report of the director of the mint of the
United States of April 20, 1895, shows t h a t during
the last 100 years the production of gold on earth
exceeded the production of silver about $500,000,000.
We had, therefore, not an overproduction of silver,
but rather an overproduction of gold. And another
official document of the United States destroys the
other false argument of the dishonest money league.
Page 50 of the United States statistical abstract of
1882 shows that from 1687 until 1873 the ratio of
value of unminted gold to unminted silver differed
never more than 12 per cent—a fluctuation that cannot seriously influence the value of the money pieces
coined in both metals at the rate of 1 to 16.
Now let me tell you of my experience with bimetallism among the Germans. Some years ago I visited
Germany. Every newspaper that came into my
hands advocated the gold standard. When I searched
for bimetallists I found a small band of men carrying on a campaign of education with pamphlets and
with a weekly paper. The campaign was successful.
Some weeks ago the reichstag passed a resolution
asking the imperial government to call a mint conference, and the chancellor, Prince Hohenlohe, declared he would do so. During the last fortnight the
house of lords, as well as the lower house of the Prussian parliament, passed resolutions asking that the
mint conference should be called for the stated purpose of re-enacting bimetallism. That is the result
of a campaign of education among the Germans.
The reason for this almost miraculous-appearing

ME. MICHAELIS' ADDRESS

189

result is the fact that bimetallism demands only what
is honest financial policy. And therefore I predict
here to-day that victory will also perch on our banners in this great country if we all do our duty.
General McClernand of Springfield also addressed
the convention, advocating the remonetization of silver, but was cut rather short by the announcement
that the committee on resolutions was ready to report. He was enthusiastically cheered.

CHAPTER XIV.
THE PLATFORM.
EX-CONGRESSMAN GEORGE W. FITHIAN, Chairman of

the Committee on Resolutions, was announced by
the chairman as ready to report a platform for the
convention. The announcement was welcomed with
cheers. Mr. Fithian read the following:
Whereas, Silver and gold have been the principal
money metals of the world for thousands of years,
and silver money is recognized and used as honest
money between individuals and between nations,
notwithstanding the varying ratios between silver
and gold; and
Whereas, The demonetization of silver has deprived
the people of the free use and benefits of an invaluable and original money metal and has increased debts
and added to the burdens of the people by lowering
the value of labor and labor products; and
Whereas, The Constitution of the United States
prohibits any State from using anything but gold and
silver coin as the legal tender for the payment of
debts, thereby recognizing that coin composed of
silver or of gold is honest money and fit to be used
as a legal tender; therefore, be it
Resolved, By the Democrats of Illinois in convention assembled, that we are in favor of the use of
both gold and silver as the standard money of the
United States, and demand the free and unlimited
coinage of both metals at the ratio of 16 to 1 without waiting for the action of any other nation, and
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THE PLATFORM

141

such coin shall be legal tender for all debts, both
public and private, and that all contracts hereafter
executed for the payment of money, whether in gold,
silver, or coin, may be discharged by any money
which is by law legal tender.
Resolved, That we hereby indorse the action of the
Democratic State Central committee in calling this
convention, and we instruct the committee to carry
out the will of this convention as expressed in its
platform by inaugurating and carrying on a campaign of education in this State, and to thoroughly
organize the Democracy of the State on the lines as
laid down in the platform of this convention.
Resolved, That the Democratic members of Congress and members of the Senate from this State be
and they are hereby instructed to use all honorable
means to carry out the principle above enunciated.
. Resolved, That we request the Democratic National Committee to call a Democratic national convention to consider the money question not later
than August, 1895; then if the committee referred to
refuses to call such a convention that we invite the
Democratic State committees of other States to take
concurrent action with the Democratic State committee of this state in calling such convention.
The resolutions were adopted unanimously. The
committee had gone beyond the limits of its legitimate work, and presented resolutions endorsing the
able, honest and economical administration of Governor Altgeld. To this was added, by Representative
Alex. J. Jones, a resolution endorsing the good administration of Attorney-General M. T. Moloney.
Both would have passed unanimously, but it was
thought by some of the delegates that these endorsements would weaken the force of the platform adopted
on the monetary question, with which alone the

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

convention was called to deal. Chairman Hinrichsen of the state central committee was of this opinion, and, acting promptly at a most critical moment,
he advanced to the front of the platform and said:
I just want to ask this as a personal privilege of
the convention. I suppose I must be said to as fairly
represent the state administration as any one in the
hall. I certainly know the feelings of Governor Altgeld and the other State officers on this question. I
am sure there is not a member of this state administration that expected or desired that this convention
would indorse him or indorse the administration as
a whole. The convention was not called for that
purpose. It would seem to me, gentlemen,if this resolution were adopted, it would be an error. I am
opposed to indorsing any individual or any administration. (Cries, "That is right.") We came here to
get expression of the people on this money question.
And I will ask of this convention the privilege to
withdraw those resolutions indorsing the administration of the governor and other State officers. I will
ask the unanimous consent of this convention to
have those withdrawn.
Unanimous consent was given and the resolutions
were withdrawn. The resolutions indorsing the governor, and withdrawn, are as follows:
We indorse the wise, economical and honest management of our State institutions by Governor John
P. Altgeld. We indorse his course in vetoing the
several monopoly bills which have been passed by
the present legislature, and we believe the doctrine
laid down in his veto message on house bill 618, in
which he declares, " I t is the business of the government to protect all interests alike and if any interest
is to receive special attention it would be the weaker
and not the more powerful," to be sound Democratic
doctrine.

THE PLATFORM

148

The further passage in that veto in which he states,
"To pass these bills under existing conditions without any limitation would be to fasten a collar on
the future and to levy tribute on generations yet to
come, and all this simply to further enrich a few
private individuals," we believe to be absolute truth.
We indorse his bold, manly course in these matters,
and renew our confidence in him as oar highest executive.
The resolution indorsing Attorney-General Moloney, and withdrawn, is as follows:
Resolved further, That this convention indorses
the honesty and courage of action of Attorney-General Moloney in the unceasing warfare which he has
waged upon the trusts and combinations in this state,
which has stood in striking contrast with the administrations of all his Republican predecessors.
I t should not for a moment be understood that the
objections to the resolutions indorsing the governor
and the attorney-general arose from enemies of those
efficient officials and staunch Democrats. On the
contrary, the opposition came from their best friends.
Mr. Bell of McGovern county,who moved that the
resolutions indorsing the governor's administration
be stricken out, said:
I move that so much of the resolution reported
by that state committee as indorses the action of
Governor Altgeld in any respect be stricken from the
report. Let me say that none of you more cordially
admire and respect the governor of this great state
than I. If this great convention is to sound the note
throughout the length and breadth of this land that
shall give to the Democracy of this nation a battlecry that shall lead us on to victory hereafter, we
should stand singly and alone upon the one money
question.

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

Ex-Representative Merritt of Marion county, who
spoke briefly on the question, said:
As I understand this convention, it was called for
the purpose of expressing our ideas by resolution on
the silver question. (Cries of ''right.") I am for
the indorsement of the veto of the three bills which
were vetoed by the governor. But, sir, our people
did not understand that we were coming here for the
purpose of indorsing by resolution any man. We
came here to hold a convention on the question
which is to-day the greatest question in America and
Europe, the silver question.

CHAPTER XV.
GOVERNOR STONE'S LETTER.

AN interesting feature of the convention proceedings was a letter read from Governor Stone of Missouri, in support of bimetallism. Governor Altgeld
had invited that distinguished gentleman to attend
the convention, and his reply which follows, was
read by Secretary Bentley:
DEAR GOVERNOR: I have your esteemed favor of
recent date inviting me to attend the silver convention at Springfield on the 5th prox. and to become
your guest. Some three years ago the main edifice
of our state university was destroyed by fire, and
since then we have been busily engaged, not only in
building the main structure but also in a number of
department buildings. This great work is now completed and it so happens that June 4 is the day set
apart for dedicating the buildings to the uses for
which they have been constructed.
In the programme of exercises I have a part, and
as the occasion is one of the highest interest to all
our people, my failure to attend would be regarded
with displeasure. It would be impracticable for me
to now withdraw from personal participation in the
ceremonies arranged for it. I suppose I could not
possibly spend the 4th at Columbia and then reach
Springfield in time for the 5th. From the very beginning I have felt the keenest interest in the Illinois convention. I t is the state of all others to take
the lead in this great battle of the people against
plutocracy.
1«

146

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION
MOMENTOUS STRUGGLE.

The struggle upon which we are entering is to be
the most momentous and important event, involving
more to the American people than any which has
occurred since the close of our civil war. The demand for the restoration of silver coinage comes
from the common people. The people who ask this
boon are the industrial masses of the country. Those
who toil in the field and shop constitute the force
behind the movement. I do not say that all who
belong to that class favor the free coinage of silver,
but I do assert without fear of sincere or intelligent
contradiction that the demand for silver coinage is
supported by those who labor for a livelihood, who
are personally engaged in some field of industrial
employment. I t is the demand of the common people. I believe a large majority of the American citizens are on that side of the question. I t would be
strange, indeed, if they were not. Every consideration of interest and patriotism; every consideration
affecting their personal happiness, the public welfare
and the national honor; love of country and the instinct of self-preservation, all alike must make millions who by honest toil support their families and
the government the special champions of this great
cause.
HOSTS OF PLUTOCRACY.

On the other hand we find in gorgeous battle array
the glittering host of plutocracy. I do not say, for
it is not true, that every man who flashes his sword
under the standard of gold is a plutocrat or that all
such are indifferent to the honor or well-being of the
country. But I do say that the aggregate and concentrated wealth of the country, the moneyed aristocracy
(and, unhappily, we have such a class), dominates,
directs and controls the forces arrayed against
those who are fighting the battle of bimetallism. I

GOVERNOR STONE'S LETTER

147

do not believe that the ascendency of that influence
is calculated to promote the happiness of the people
or the well-being of the country, for I have observed
no evidences of reform in the character and disposition of the money changers since Christ scourged
them from the temple. But the power of money is
enormous. I t exercises a stupendous influence. I t
is vigilant, alert, resourceful and unscrupulous. I t
can attract the brightest and the most influential
men to its force. It can control the great metropolitan class, which is the most powerful political influence in the republic. I t can dupe, contaminate
and debauch the very sources of power—the people
themselves. Money is king—a heartless, sordid, brutish king.
PEOPLE REVOLT AT IT.

The people revolt at its suppressive and debasing
rule, but subjugation is as probable as victory. The
opposition is compact, confident and aggressive.
There will be no dissension in its ranks. Every
effort will be made to excite discord and dissension
among us. Treason will blossom in our midst and
trusted leaders will be benefited. Our greatest danger will be in the lack of cohesion and cooperation.
The battle to be fought will be a struggle of giants,
and it involves more of weal or woe, present and future, to the American people than any struggle which
they have engaged in for a generation. In this tremendous combat it is fortunate that the great state
of Illinois, on whose bosom sleep the ashes of Lincoln
and Douglas, the great champions of the common people, shall take the lead. The note of cheer your gallant Democracy will send forth on the 5th of June
will stir the hearts of our people with hope and courage and the fervor of patriotism. You deserve to be
most heartily congratulated.
Thanking your excellency for your courtesy arid
kindness, I have the honor to subscribe myself, your
most obedient servant,
WILLIAM J. STONE,

CHAPTEE XVI.
SUMMING I T U P .

THE convention, having done the work assigned to
it by the Democracy of the state, adjourned sine die,
about 5 o'clock on Wednesday evening, amid cheers
which seemed to foreshadow victory. The great task
had been executed in a sober, earnest and businesslike manner. I t had been accomplished, too, by a
convention grandly representative of the Democracy
of the state. Its enemies could not designate it by
depreciating epithets of any kind. The personnel of
the assemblage was above reproach. The delegates
were all Democrats, staunch and recognized workers
of the party, fully representative of the rank and
file, so to speak, of the Democratic party of Illinois.
This was not denied.
There were no missing counties at the roll call.
There was no break in the column. There was no
bolt from the call. The complete voice of the party
was heard. The party, therefore, stood committed
to the movement for the restoration of silver as fundamental money. Its declarations for the remonetization of the lost metal had been regularly made.
The Democratic party ot Illinois was for the free
and unlimited coinage of silver at the ratio of 16
to 1.
But the more practical politicians went out of the
148

SUMMING IT UP

149

convention under the impression that the campaign
had only been begun, that the great struggle of the
masses against the classes had but been inaugurated.
They saw before them a hard and long battle to be
fought. They did not underrate the strength of the
enemy, either. They looked towards the White
House at Washington with misgivings. They realized
that the president, with his all-powerful arm of patronage, and the prestige of his high executive position, would be able to hold the voice of the people in
check, by strangling many of their old-time leaders.
They saw in Mr. Ceveland a man of great determination and vast power, thoroughly committed to the
cause of the money class, and they must have felt
unequal, in many respects, to the task before them.
They saw, too, that the wealth of the country, and
its holders, was for the most part arrayed against the
cause of the people, and they must have felt impatient and outraged under the continued misrepresentations of their enemies.
Nor did they probably overlook the important and
deplorable fact that their cause was without a daily
newspaper advocate in Chicago, the great politica]
center of the Northwest. Thus, with much odds
against them, the founders of the silver restoration
campaign could only turn to the people, and, appealing to the rectitude of their purpose, the sound Democracy of their platform, and the selfishness and
dishonesty of their enemies, bid them muster for
battle in a struggle for the rights of humanity.
The few single gold standard Democrats (I use the

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

word u Democrats" out of courtesy) who had hung
sullenly on the outskirts of the convention, powerless to fight back the flood of popular will, now
seized their pens, or plied their ready tongues in interviews in feeble attempts to belittle or misrepresent the gathering. Postmaster Hesing of Chicago,
whom Cleveland had foolishly credited, instead of

HON. WASHINGTON HESING,

Postmaster of Chicago.
Altgeld, with carrying the German vote for the Democratic party in 1892, was the first to speak. He
made a frantic effort to vindicate his title to the

SUMMING IT UP

151

President's confidence by misrepresenting the convention in the following editorial which he telegraphed to his paper, the Staats Zeitung:
The action of the convention to-day marks a distinctively new era in the political history of this
country. For the first time, I believe, a regularly
called convention has decided to go outside of the
beaten track and has asked the national committee to
call a convention for the consideration of a specific
subject, for the laying down of a new declaration
of principles. One cannot but admire the boldness of the managers of the Democratic party, however one may denounce the principle involved. I t
means, in my opinion, a willingness to abandon the
old principles of Democracy and to start out on an
entirely new and hitherto untried political course.
I t means the founding of a free silver party under
the auspices of Democratic authority.
The feeling after the adjournment of the convention among the conservative men of the party was
anything but comfortable, for it was felt that the
party managers in their desperation had gone so far
as to absolutely burn behind them all bridges. The
non-office-holding and non-ofiice-seeking members of
the party must look to the national committee for
relief. I t is generally believed that the national
committee will ignore the request of this convention
to call a national convention. The result then will
be, and I believe that is what the free silver combination in Illinois intends, to call a conference by
states to consider the silver question and to launch
at such a conference a new party.
As I have intimated in my former dispatches,
there appears to be a perfect understanding between
the advocates of free silver in both parties to further
this movement, and I believe that the free silverites,
who have hitherto been called the Populists or who
belong to the school of Sibley or Weaver, will all

152

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

come together at this national conference and there
proclaim the doctrine of the new political party.
DEMOCRATS IN GREAT PERIL.

This movement will undoubtedly lead to the readjustment of parties. I t is the first step looking in
the direction of drawing positively the lines between
the advocates of honest money and the friends of free
silver. Should, on the other hand, the national
Democratic committee act upon the suggestion of
the convention held to-day, and call a national convention to consider the financial question prior to
Aug. J, 1895, it will mean practically a declaration
on the part of the national committee in favor of
free coinage, and will, in my opinion, from that moment drive out of the Democratic ranks every friend
of honest money. The same conditions would prevail
in electing delegates to a state convention.
The
honest money advocates could not reasonably expect
a fair show, and would, therefore, decline to be
bound by the action of such convention. It is preposterous to think that the Democrats of this state
would feel themselves bound by a convention called
nearly twelve months in advance of the national
convention, and in which they did not have any
voice. The singular fact exists that the delegates'
to such a convention were elected this morning prior
to the time that the state convention had voted to
request the national committee to call a convention.
When this state convention was called and had its
meeting to-day, and until the resolutions requesting
the national committee to call a national convention
were read, nobody ever dreamed that delegates were
to be elected to a national convention. This being the
fact, it is very evident that the great mass of voters
in the Democratic party in this state will not be represented in such a convention, because they took no
part in the election of such delegates.

SUMMING I T U P

153

ACTION WAS NOT F A I R .

Snap judgment of the worst kind was taken. The
will of the people has been thwarted. The convention was called under false pretenses. Delegates
elected are not representative, and true Democratic
principles have been thrown to the wind to foster
selfish ends, to subserve personal interests. The
people have not in the least been taken into the
confidence of the leaders. To what extent the rank
and file of the Democratic party, as well as the oldtime leaders, will stand such usurpation of power
time alone will tell.
The dictatorial spirit manifested immediately prior
to the convention was very much less in evidence
when the convention met. The speeches in the main
were temperate, and, barring the almost positive declaration on the part of Mr. Hinrichsen that he who
did not believe in free coinage ought not to remain any
longer with the party, were well received. Forced
withdrawal of the resolutions commending the administration of Governor AH geld was very significant. The temper of the convention when those
resolutions were read was immediately evident, and
forced itself to such an extent upon the managers
of the convention that they were withdrawn without
any debate. As a Democratic convention,the gathering to-day cannot be called a success. As a free silver
convention it certainly was.
Every person who attended the convention, and
every one who reads these pages, which present an
official and truthful account of the proceedings of
the gathering, will fully concur in the statement
that the above article, from the pen of Mr. Hesing,
is as replete with misstatements as it can well be
made. But it is in keeping with the general expressions from gold monometallists towards the advo-

154

ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

cates of the restoration of the double standard monetary system.
Any statement that the convention was not made
up of representative Democrats, and was not fully
representative of the Democracy of the state,is manifestly false. Aside from the magnificent turnout
from Chicago there were from the lower and middle
sections of the state, such delegates as Fisise Downing, Congressman-elect from the sixteenth district;
Judge Kane of Hillsboro, W. H. Neece of Macomb,
ex-Congressman J. M. Riggs of Winchester, A. J.
Sparks and Judge Worthington of Peoria, Owen
Scott of Bloomington, John Barr of Decatur, Thomas
Merritt of Salem, Judge Cummings of Fulton,
General L. B. Parsons of Clay county, A. W. Wells
of Quincy, Congressman Ed Lane of Hillsboro, J. S.
Tricknor of Rockford, Major L. B. Deforrest of
Henderson county, Attorney-General M. T. Moloney,
W. K. Murphy of Cairo, J. N. Perrin of Belleville,
Cam Hearn of Quincy, J. S. Bailey of Macomb, Jacob
Chance of Mount Vernon, W. S. Cantrell, J. W.
Yantis, and E. D. C. Pace of Ashley. Nearly every
Democratic member of the Senate and the house was
present as spectators or delegates.
There were others besides Mr. Hesing, calling
themselves Democrats, who by interviews freely published the following day set the seal of their disapproval upon the convention. Among these were
Senator John M. Palmer of Springfield, ex-Judge
Adams A. Goodrich, and ex-Judge W A. Vincent of
Chicago.
But the public saw only the command of President

SUMMING I T U P

155

Cleveland in all this, and beyond regretting that
the White House was no longer in sympathy with
the common people of the nation, no attention was
paid to it, except by the gold standard press.

CHAPTER X V I I
THE ISSUE DEFINED.

THE Illinois Currency Convention has served the
excellent purpose of clearly defining the issue before
the people, and stamping it officially as a Democratic
principle. There is no dodging either side of the
question.
The issue is not merely the free coinage of silver
at the ratio of 16 to 1. I t includes that, but goes
much further. What, then, is the issue? I t is this:
THE
RESTORATION
OF THE DOUBLE STANDARD MONETARY SYSTEM AS
IT EXISTED PREVIOUS TO
1873.
This will give to the country silver as primary
money. I t will restore the standard silver dollar to
its place as a unit of value in fundamental money.
This does not mean the free coinage of silver, the
value of such coins to be, thereupon and thereafter,
determined by the single gold standard. I t does not
mean a 50-cent dollar; it does not mean an unsafe
currency; it does not mean unsound money; but it
does mean safe and sound money.
I t does not mean the abolition of gold money, but
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THE ISSUE DEFINED

157

it does mean the discontinuance of gold monometallism, or the single gold standard. I t does not
mean silver monometallism, but it does mean the
restoration of the silver dollar to a coordinate position with the.gold dollar. It does not mean that the
gold dollar shall be measured by the silver dollar,
nor that the silver dollar shall be measured by the
gold dollar,but it does mean that the two shall stand
side by side, equal, as the respective'units of value
of primary money, coordinate in power, linked together in the bonds of equality, and common brotherhood. I t means that they shall reign equally in
the realm of fundamental or value-giving money,
just as they did from 1792 to 1873.
All this means the bimetallism of the fathers, for
the restoration of which we, the Democrats of 1895,
propose to make the last half decade of the nineteenth century glorious by a struggle full of patriotic
heroism.
The issue, as defined above, which will restore a
parity between the legal and commercial values of
gold and silver money, and between all primary
money and commodities, will also give back to the
nation,
THE
F R E E AND
UNRESTRICTED COINAGE
OF BOTH SILVER AND GOLD, AT
THE RATIO OF 16 ozs. OF
SILVER TO ONE oz.
OF GOLD.
And this feature of bimetallism is aj truly in bar-

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

mony with historic Democracy as are the two units
of value, or the double standard. We contend for
it all, for the full and complete restoration of the
double standard monetary system of the Democratic
fathers. And we demand this, in the name of the
masses,
NOW,
WITHOUT
WAITING FOR THE
PERMISSION OR AID OF ANY
FOREIGN GOVERNMENT ON THE
EARTH.
Such is the issue. There can" be no twisting its
meaning into silver monometallism, or into any sort
of repudiation of national or individual obligations.
I t will remonetize the silver already coined and open
the way for millions more, until the People's Money
will be fully restored, not only to an existence^ but
to the hands and pockets, and banks of the people
themselves.
I t will place primary money, once more, in circulation among the people. Such is not the case now.
Gold coin is the only primary money in the United
States. How many gold coins has the reader handled, or been permitted to look at within recent years?
Few indeed. These are hid away in the vaults of
the rich, while to-day the people have to content
themselves with subsidiary and token money, and
a very scanty supply of that.
Truly the issue is worth the struggle involved.
But to reach the goal the weik must triumph over

THE ISSUE DEFINED

159

the strong; and yet, withal, it is a battle of the
many against the few. Seventy-five per cent of the
whole population, by birth and all other conditions,
belongs to the majority side of the contest. Less
than twenty-five per cent of the people, in countries
even of the highest civilization, comes into this
world inheriting the means of sustenance. The
other seventy-five per cent must get money by labor
or its products, or perish in life's struggle. The present wide divergence between the value of money and
that of the products of labor, places the great majority of the people in a hopeless condition. Restore
the honest monetary system of the fathers, and with
it will be restored an equality between the value of
money and that of the products of labor, and once
more prosperity will be restored to all the people.
"The Money of the Fathers," is the battle cry.

CHAPTER XVIII.
LOOKING FORWARD.

ONE must look forward to the future of the great
campaign which the Illinois Currency Convention
has inaugurated with mingled aspirations, hopes,
fears and doubts. What will the morrow bring?
The nation is great and strong and able to stand
the strain of a trying contest; but unfortunately
most of that strength is among the enemies of the
masses. .It is in the money power, and that is turned
against the people.
The people, for the most part, are crippled from a
long period of misrule, with the greater portion of
their manly aspirations crushed. They enter the
contest bleeding from wounds which monopoly and
money trusts have inflicted. In the background is
the dark picture of Republican rule, extending over
a quarter of a century producing such monsters as
the "Demonetization of silver," "Commercial slavery to foreign nations," "White wage slavery,"
"English money rule," "The monster life insurance
fraud," "Monopoly despotism," "Franchise robbery," "Poverty of the masses," "Marketless commodities." In the foreground, proud, mighty,
equipped for battle, stands King Gold Monometallism, shining in his costly armor, and surrounded
160

LOOKING FORWARD

161

by almost every great financial, commercial, and industrial interest of the country, enlisted as an army,
and powerless except to obey his commands.
The President of the United States, the ruler of
70,000,000 of souls, is bowing in homage to this god,
and exerting every power in his great office to make
the reign of the despot more complete. The Democratic party of the .nation, in whose name, and by
the suffrages of which that President was elected,
feeling that it has been betrayed, is struggling to be
heard, but its great leader, in the presence of opulence and plutocracy, heeds not the cry. He has
turned his back towards the suffering population
and is betraying them into, the grasp of the Money
King.
The imperial state of Illinois has spoken, and in
trumpet tones has declared that the people must be
heard. But this does not disturb Cleveland's devotion at the shrine of monopoly and wealth. The sovereign Democracy of Illinois calls for a national
uprising of the party to consider the crisis, and, lest
the swelling tide of the people's woes should awaken
his master from his golden dream, the head of the
party, who has also fallen under the power of the
money king, sends throughout the land the following
command in an attempt to hush the complaint of
Democracy:
I do not expect or intend to call a meeting of the
Democratic national committee until next winter,
when it will meet for the purpose of fixing the time
and place for holding the Democratic national convention of 1896, unless I shall be requested to do so
by the requisite number of the Democratic national

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

committee. I do not believe there is any necessity
for a convention at this time. On the contrary, I
am of the opinion that to call one now would be
harmful to the business interests of the country and
prejudicial to the welfare of the Democratic party.
Thus spoke W. F. Harrity, chairman of the Democratic national convention, within twenty-four hours
of the adjournment of the Illinois Convention. Following in his wake, Basil B. Gordon, national Democratic committeeman from Virginia, hastened to
say:
From the best evidence before me, I don't believe
that the Illinois convention fairly represents the sentiment of the Democratic party in that state. Even
if it were so, however, the situation is changing daily
in America and Europe, and the effort to pledge the
party organization eighteen months before the election would be to put us on the defense a year sooner
than our adversaries. I consider it unwise.
Josiah Quincy, of Boston, the Massachusetts national Democratic committeeman, also a worshiper
at the shrine of the gold monopoly,hastened to add:
The proposal for the holding of a Democratic national convention at this time to consider the money
question is not worth serious consideration. The
holding of such a convention would be unprecedented
and wholly uncalled for The platform of the Democratic party must remain the one adopted at Chicago in 1892 until the next national convention, held
in 1896. No occasion exists .for anticipating the
declarations to be made by that convention, whether
as to silver or any other subject.
John Sheridan, national Democratic committeeman, West Virginia, supported the single standard
plea with the following, on the same day:

LOOKING FORWARD

163

I object to calling a Democratic national convention to consider the money question. I oppose the
free and unlimited coinage of silver and believe in
the gold standard. I favor both metals, silver only
as subsidiary until an international agreement can
satisfactorily adjust the ratio between gold and silver.
O. T. Holt, of Texas, national Democratic committeeman, added his voice as follows:
I am opposed to calling the committee together
to consider the financial question, as I think it is
not in the province of the committee to outline any
policy for the party. I t will be time enough when
the convention meets next year to nominate candidates for the party and to define its attitude on the
financial and any other question. I indorse the plank
in the Chicago platform declaring for the coinage of
silver by international agreement as to ratio. I am
not opposed to more silver, but I am decidedly against
the free and unlimited coinage of silver at a ratio of
16 to 1.
Mr. Holt is willing to have more silver under the
single gold standard. Yes, a "gold-bug" will become
even a silver fiatist in order to hold on to gold monometallism. But the tables were to be turned. On
the 7th of June, two days after the Illinois convention, a voice came up from Florida, in thunder tones.
I t was the voice of Samuel Pasco^ national Democratic committeeman of that state. He said:
The Chicago platform pledged the Democratic party
to the use of both gold and silver as standard money
and to the coinage of both without discrimination. I
am in sympathy with the Illinois Democrats in their
effort to carry out this plank. If the ratio cannot
be fixed by an international agreement it should be
done by legislation, as proposed by the platform.

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The obligation is upon us to act and the latter way is
open. The main question is free coinage; the ratio
is a secondary matter. I shall continue to support
any ratio that is regarded safe and just by the majority in Congress. I have not considered the question of a convention.
Thus the line of controversy has been drawn in the
national committee, but it is thought that the distribution of patronage by President Cleveland will
prove powerful enough to prevent the requisite number of national committeemen from signing a call
for even a meeting of the committee until the regular time, next January.
W. F. Sheehan, New York, national Democratic
committeeman, has firmly declared against a national
Democratic monetary convention, a n d H . Cummings,
of Memphis, committeeman of Tennessee, on the 7th,
two days after the Illinois convention, said:
I fail to appreciate the need or advantage of a national convention to consider the silver question. We
can have no national political campaign or election
before the summer and fall of next year, and the
national Democratic organization will do nothing
toward formulating questions or polling the vote
thereon before it is necessary. The face of affairs
may change between now and then, and the axiom
of not crossing bridges before we reach them applies
in politics as well as other matters. The cry for free
coinage of silver at the ratio of 16 to 1, regardless of
all other considerations or what other people may
do, will probably subside during the coming twelve
months, and sober business thought resume its sway
among our people. They may sometimes get wrong,
but they will not remain so.
On the heels of this came the declaration of the

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Third Kentucky Congressional district Democratic
convention on June 7, as follows:
We indorse the declaration of principles of the
national Democratic convention at Chicago in 1892
and the conservative course of the party on financial
questions, which has at length restored confidence in
the business future of our country.
We point with pride to that administration at
whose head is our matchless President, Grover Cleveland, and in whose councils is the great and honored
Kentuckian, John G. Carlisle, who has guided the
government from the abyss of financial ruin to the
threshold of a prosperous future.
Political history on the money question was made
very rapidly during the few days following the Illinois Currency Convention. On the seventh the
executive committee of the Alabama Democratic silver league, composed of M. A. Mason, chairman of
the Democratic committee of Birmingham county;
Oscar Underwood, congressman from the ninth district; Joseph F.Johnson, late candidate for governor;
S W. John, member of the ]egislature, and others issued a call urging the immediate organization
of Democratic silver leagues in every county in the
state. The call reads:
I t is expected that when these leagues are organized a consultation will be had and state convention
called to further the views entertained by Democrats
who believe in free coinage. I t is expected that these
organizations will be so complete in the next thirty
days that further action may, by conference and
joint agreement, be had.
The proposed state convention will be composed

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ILLINOIS CUKRENCY CONVENTION

exclusively of silver Democrats and will not be an
effort to commit the Democratic organization to silver, but its purpose will be to organize and strengthen
the silver forces preparatory to an onslaught upon the
regular Democratic state convention next spring.
The Democracy is already badly divided on the
money question in Alabama, and as the movement
progresses disruption is threatened.
But this was not all. On the seventh, the executive committee of the Democratic Editorial Association met at Indianapolis and arranged a programme
for the midsummer reunion at Lake Maxinkuckee on
the 27th and 28th. The programme was arranged
with a determination of bringing out a full discussion on the currency question, and the association will
be called upon to pass resolutions defining its position. The executive committee is largely made up
of free silver men, and Democrats predict that the
association will declare for the unlimited coinage of
silver. The three principal addresses on the occasion
of the reunion will be by Editor John G. Shanklin
of Evansville, his theme "The Great Issue of 1896;"
Editor Jacob P. Dunn, of Indianapolis, " W h a t Can
and Shall Be Done to Restore Silver to Its Full Monetary Function?" and Editor JohnB. Stoll, of South
Bend, "The Path to Victory."
On the day following the Illinois convention the
free silver Democrats of Iowa to the number of fifty
met at Des Moines to devise ways and means to or-

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167

ganize the free silver forces in that state. Ex-Lieut.
Gov. S. L. Bestow presided. The Illinois Democrats
were held up as models for Iowa. A working committee consisting of a state Chairman and one VicePresident from each Congressional district was
appointed to direct the agitation until the meeting of
the State convention and to send free silver delegates
to the same. The committee is composed of J. J.
Shea, Council Bluffs, President; First District, H.
L. Throop, Mount Pleasant; Second, Hugh O'Hare,
Iowa; Third, John Pier, Dubuque; Fourth, D. G.
Griffith, Elkader; Fifth, W. I. Alexander, Grundy
Center; Sixth, S. B. Evans, Ottumwa; Seventh, W.
H. McHenry, Des Moines; Eighth, P. Q. Stuart,
Clinton; Ninth, E. J. Sidie, Greenfield; Tenth, W.
H. Brackett, Garner; Eleventh, Will Wells, Alton.
The resolutions declared for the free and unlimited
coinage of both gold and silver on terms of equality
at a ratio of 16 to 1. In regard to the movement in
Iowa, the Times-Herald of Chicago on the eighth of
June announced:
The free silver Democrats of Iowa have abandoned
every other party principle in order to give free reign
to their hobby. So far their activity has not been
without result. It now looks as though they would
have an easy matter in running the state convention, but if their present success and enterprise serves
to arouse the sound money men the result may be
different. Private letters from different parts of the
state show that the latter element is awakening to
the situation, and that the silver forces will not have
the easy victory at Marshalltown they now anticipate.
Political feeling never ran higher in Iowa than it

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

does to-day. Especially in the Democratic party are
there indications that the money question may result in a complete breaking up of the old party lines.
At the free silver conference threats were freely made
that the silver men would not vote the Democratic
ticket on any but a silver platform. The sound
money Democrats do not give voice to the contrary
proposition in such blatant terms, but they are
equally determined.
An important question now is, Will the movement
for the restoration of silver be kept within the Democratic party, or will it, under attempts of that party
to strangle it, rise triumphant among the masses as
an independent political organization? The Democratic organizations of the states, as well as that of
the nation, should weigh this proposition with great
care. The silver question will not down. I t would
be as easy to quell the tides of the ocean. I t represents a great throbbing of human want, and must
live and grow and reach a vindication. I t is not a
question any longer as to whether the agitation for
free silver wall live. The point is only as to whether
it will live in the Democratic household, or build a
distinctive home of its own.
I t will not take much now to start the current out
on independent lines. The Democracy of Illinois
has done its duty. The party in this state has opened
wide its doors and welcomed the new issue to the
place of honor at its fireside. What will other states
do? There is much hope for Indiana and Iowa, and
for the South, but how about the other northwestern
states and the East? The West is already with the
people.

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169

An answer to these questions will determine the
chances of the Democratic party in 1896, and settle
the point as to a new political organization. The
people are sovereign. They are greater than any political party, and when the machinery of their party
organizations undertakes to suppress manifestly living issues, there is sure to be a breaking up of party
lines, and a revolt from dishonest party discipline.
Nor can the Republican party ignore the silver
question by repeating the straddling phrases of its
former platforms. In pointing out " t h e only way
to safety" in 1896, for his party, United States Senator Carter, of Montana, and chairman of the national Republican committee, only a few days ago
said:
In the States west of the Mississippi River over
sixty electoral votes, which are materially Republican, will be doubtful until the national convention
meets and adopts its platform, and if that platform
is not satisfactory on the question of bimetallism
the doubt will be resolved against the party.
With the Western votes subtracted from the Republican column, where they properly belong, the
party cannot hope for a majority in the electoral
college for its candidates. I t is not probable that
the vote would be cast for a third party candidates,
and as a consequence the choice would be thrown into
the House of Representatives. In that body the vote
for President would be cast by States, and it does not
require a close analysis to reach the inevitable conclusion that the States in favor of the free and unlimited coinage of silver outnumber the States favorable
to a gold standard.
I t is useless to attempt to evade or conceal the

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

fact that the sentiment of the country at large in
favor of the rehabilitation of silver has become irrepressible. The people of the West are as firmly devoted to honest money as the people of the East can
possibly be. The difference between the contending
elements arises from confused notions as to what
constitutes an honest dollar. The West is constantly
appreciating in purchasing power, whereas the borrower is anxious to maintain the conditions under
which the coin or currency of the country will not
appreciate between the increasing of the indebtedness and the date of the payment.
I t may seem presumptuous in me to criticise, but
I nevertheless feel constrained to suggest that the
so-called money people cannot dispose of this question of bimetallism by the use of the word " c r a n k , "
"inflationist," and other terms of opprobrium. The
people have been in the habit of ruling their country, and they are likely to continue to do so in the
future, and it so happens that the stand taken by
the common people of the United States in favor of
the restoration of silver is ably supported by many
of the most enlightened statesmen of Germany, England, France, and, indeed, by every civilized country
in Christendom.
I predict that Mr. Cleveland is the last President
of the United States who will be permitted to use
the power of that great office in favor of the money
lenders and against the interests of the struggling
masses.
Every friend of the restoration of silver will join
him in the hope that those predictions in the last
paragraph quoted may prove correct.

I t is conspicuously evident that a vast majority of
the Democrats of the United States are favorable to

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171

the restoration of silver as primary money. Probably
three quarters of the voters of the country, irrespective of party, are bimetallists. A small percentage
favor international bimetallism. This, however, is,
for the greater part, a pretext for delaying the question.
Few have taken a stand for any other ratio than
that of 16 to 1. There is not likely to be any division on the question of ratio.
Probably twenty-five per cent of the voters of the
United States are gold monometallists. These include the representatives of the money power, who
take part in politics only as corrupters of the ballot,
and bribers of the people's representatives, with a
view to perpetuating class interests. They are committed to the work of appreciating the value of single
gold standard money, and depreciating the single
gold standard value of all commodities. This propaganda is on the line of making the rich richer, and
the poor poorer. Under it a majority of the people
have already been reduced to a condition of want
and poverty.
Sometimes one is at a loss to determine whether,
after all, there are not more gold monometallists in
the Democratic than in the Republican party. President Cleveland's attitude of repudiation of historic
Democracy is breeding gold monometallism in the
Democratic party with alarming rapidity. This is
the more unfortunate when it is realized that monometallism was never a Democratic doctrine. On
this question Grover Cleveland is not a Democrat.
Abundant proof of this is found in the history of the
party.

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ILLINOIS OUBKENOY CONVENTION

I t is possible, and even already probable, that President Cleveland may carry his adherence to the single gold standard so far as to disrupt the party. The
Republican managers are lying in ambush, so to
speak, ready to take advantage of the situation.
Should the influence of the President and the corrupting tactics of the money power choke off the silver
movement to the extent of straddling the monetary issue in the Democratic platform of 1896, the
Republicans will be sure to declare urqualifiedly
for the restoration of bimetallism at their national
convention. Under these circumstances their party
would carry every state in the Union.
There is a point of view from which, viewing the
situation dispassionately, it looks as if the cause of
the people would be safer in the hands of an independent political movement composed of a fusion of
silver restorationists from all the other political
parties, but the possibility of such a movement depends wholly upon the extent of treason within the
party to historic doctrines of the Democracy.
Should a majority of the national Democratic committee finally attempt to stifle the cause of silver, and
should Cleveland succeed in packing the national
Democratic convention of 1896 with the hirelings of
gold monometallism, the people will undoubtedly
assert their sovereignty and leave the national Democratic party machinery without a following.
There is, therefore, great necessity of much work in
the several states in the way of awakening the rank
and file of the Democracy to the importance of political action before it is too late. Unless the voters

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173

rise to the defense of the cause of true Democracy
the people will be defeated. The money power is
alert. It is experienced in the work of corrupting
leaders. There was never a time in the history of
politics when voters should more carefully watch
their leaders than at present.
Federal office-holders are unsafe guides, whether
at the head of newspapers or as the organizers of socalled "sound money" clubs in their several districts.
They are in the employ of the money monopoly, except here and there, where they place manhood
above office.
The latest program of the so-called "Honest Money' 5 league of Chicago is a demand upon the Democratic postmasters of the state to organize "honest
money" clubs in their towns. Some are refusing to
lend themselves to a work against the people, but
many are bowing in obedience. On Sunday, June 9,
the Chicago Times-Herald announced:
Postmaster Harris, of Joliet, said that the free silver craze was rapidly abating in Will county, notwithstanding the efforts of the Altgeld appointees to
keep it alive. Mr. Harris took home with him the
necessary blanks and will at once organize an auxiliary honest money league in Joliet.
This very clearly sets forth the determination of
the national Democratic administration to use the
entire machinery of government to suppress, if possible, the cause of the people.
What Chicago needs now—what the Democracy
of the Northwest needs in Chicago—is a great Democratic daily newspaper that shall be Democratic in
spirit and voice as well as in name and pretense—a

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

Democratic organ that will voice the cause of silver
restoration in such terms of strength and ability as
will command the respect of the people generally.
The Chronicle fails to fill the bill. I t is merely the
mouth-piece of the Cleveland administration.
In view of all the facts set forth in this chapter
one can easily see that the cause of silver, which at
present is the true cause of Democracy and of the
common people, is beset with many dangers. Its advocates should bestir themselves at once. There is
no time to lose.

CHAPTER XIX.
REPRESENTATIVES OF THE PRESS.
PROBABLY nothing sets forth the importance with
which the convention was regarded by the people of
Illinois more clearly than the interest taken in it by
the newspaper press, not only of the state, but of the
whole country. Even the great journals most bitterly opposed to the remonetization propaganda gave
up whole pages to an account of the proceedings,
portraits and character pictures of the leaders. The
Chicago papers were almost wholly given up to the
convention, and those of St. Louis rivaled Chicago
in almost everything. Even the Eastern newspapers
gave lengthy accounts, and the press all over the
country devoted much space to the event for several
days before and after its occurrence.
The press galleries of the convention were in charge
of Col. Brand Whittock, of Springfield, one of the
most popular young men in the Democratic ranks,
himself an able and well known newspaper man.
He was assisted by Thomas W. Flynn and W. J.
Haurahan. These gentlemen had provided every
comfort and facility which the large newspaper staff
in attendance could desire.
The principal journals were represented at the convention by the following gentlemen, all well known,

175

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ILLINOIS CURRENCY CONVENTION

and recognized as at the head and front of Western
journalism:
The Tribune, Chicago: John Corwin, Mac Glenn
Henry Abels, and Daniel Defore.
Times-Herald, Chicago: Sam M. Burdett, Tom H.
Cannon, H. M. Lowrie, James T. Bate, H. L. Spencer, James Higgms, Ray Brown and Horace Taylor,
The Chronicle, Chicago: John W. Postgate, G.
Russell Leonard, Edward J. Hamilton, Charles
Lederer and H. L. Jones.
Inter Ocean, Chicago: Thomas C. MacMillan,
Frank Gilbert, Kate F. Miller.
Freie Presse, Chicago: W. R. Michaelis.
Evening Post, Chicago: H. D. Fargo.
Evening Journal, Chicago: James Con well.
The Dispatch, Chicago: R. Christopher.
Globe-Democrat, St. Louis: Harry Mitchell.
The Record, Chicago: G. C. Sikes, Mr. Terbush.
Telegram, Springfield, 111.: Mart.Bassett.
Herald, New York City: Geo. E. Anderson.
Bulletin, Bloomington, 111.: James O'Donnell.
Republic, St. Louis: W. S. Snively and D. C. Fitzuiaurice.
News, Springfield, 111.: Wm. Briggs.
Star, Washington, D. C.: N. 0. Messenger.
Journal, Springfield, 111.: John Todd.
Enquirer, Virginia, 111.: H. F. Downing.
Herald, Howard, 111.: W. F. Walsh.
Daily Coin, Chicago: M. J. Sullivan.
Chronicle, St. Louis: Chas. Rogers.
News, Joliet, 111.: H. E. Baldwin.

REPRESENTATIVES OF THE PRESS

177

Associated Press: W. M. Glenn, J. McCann Davis,
Victor M. Harding, Dwight Wilcox and Mr. Rose.
The Age, Chicago: S. P. V. Arnold.
Herald, Roodhouse, 111.: W. F. Thompson.
Journal, Peoria, 111.: A. W. Kellogg. ,
Monitor, Springfield, 111.: Thos. W. S. Kidd.
United Press: Clarence H. Bradley and Timothy
F. Beach.
State Register, Springfield, 111.: Ex-Postmaster
Clendenan and Representative E. L. Merritt.
Scores of newspaper correspondents who could not
be accommodated in the regular press galleries found
places in the great audience.

THE END.