The "Paramount" Issue

In the June issue of the North

American Review Mr. Bryan

published an article, apparently without the sanction of his

party, defining the issues of the campaign.

ant parts of the article follow:

The most import

"THE ISSUE IN THE PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN

"By W. J. Bryan

"The issue presented in the campaign of 1900 is the issue between plutocracy and democracy. All the questions under discussion will, in their last analysis, disclose the conflict between the dollar and the man - a conflict as old as the human race, and one which will continue as long as the human race endures.

Mr. Bryan begins with his argument in favor of free silver by reviewing the demonetization of silver in 1873, and that from that time to the campaign of 1896 the parties of the United States were controlled by the financiers against the wishes of the dominant elements in the parties.

"In 1896, the Democrats refused to be any longer parties to the duplicity, and took an open and unequivocal position in favor of the immediate restoration of bimetallism by the independent action of this country at the present legal ratio. This positive and definite platform was necessary because of the cunningly devised evasions and ambiguities which had been written into the platforms of the two leading parties.

"After the election the administration adopted a double standard method of dealing

ith the .bject. A commission was sent to Duro e to plead for int rational bimetallism, Thile a old standard Secretary of the rodbury was openly at ork in this coultry deferding motice telli... In 100s, the money question occupied by far the greater portion of public attoutioil. Since 1996 the some sordid doctrine that manifested itself in tho old standari las nanifested itself in several new ways, and today three questions contest for pri lacy - the money question, the trust question, and i: perialic.. There are several other questions of scarcely less importance, at the line of decision upon these run practically parallel with the lines which separate the people upon the three greator ones. If a man opposes the gold standard, trusis and i crialis. – all thre9 - the chances are a hundred to one that he is in favor of arbitr tion, the income tax and the election of Uited Status Denators by a direct vote of the people, and is oposed to government by injunction ca the black-list.

"The human mind is comistent, but time is required for the application of fund.....tel principles to all these questions.

"The contest betreen morometallism and bime tallion is a world- ide contest - a contest which must go on until silver is o ce more a moloy motal equal rith old, or until the old standard becomes universal. It takes talles vory narrow view of the subject who considers merely the present volume of money in this country. It is true that we have lar ely increased cur supply of Cold in the last three years (the Lepublicans neither promised nor cpected the increase), but the action of England in placing India upon the gold standard is likely to cause a Crain on the old upply of the United States and of uropean cou. tries

"Those aŭvocates of the old st ndard who know the real purpose and scope of the old stand.id sche e desire to contract the basic money to oc-lf its present volume. Alis would enormously enhance the value of each dollar, represented by money, nots and Londs, and

world enormously oppress the producers of
wealth
The increased production of
gold during the last few years will act as
a parachute to retard the fall in prices,
but there is no assurance that it will be
sufficient to enable us to dispense with
silver as a standard money.

"It is needless to discuss the ratio, since there is no division of sentiment among those who are actually trying to secure bimetallism. There is a positive, earnest and active force behind the present legal ratio of sixteen to one; there is no positive, earnest or active force behind any other ratio. Neither is it any longer necessary to discuss international bimetallism. The contest upon this question must be between those who believe in the gold standard on the one side, and on the other side, those who believe in a financial policy made by the American people by themselves.

The Trust question

"The trust question is more easily understood than the money question. The apreciation of money is slow, while the rise in the price of trust-made articles is sufficiently rapid to attract attention.

"The trust question was in the campaign of 1896, and the menace of the trust was then pointed out, but the raming was unheeded. How the heavy hand of monopoly is laid upon so many that there is a growing protest against a system which permits a few men to control each branch of industry, fix the rates of wages, the price of raw materials and the price of the finished product. Until four years ago, no Republican of prominence defended the trusts; now, the Republican leaders speak of the trusts in guarded terms.