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Show New York, July 3. William J. Bryan, in response to a private telegram urging urg-ing him to drop the silver issue, wrote a letter to the managing editor of the World, which was received on May 2. The World today requested Mr. Bryan's permission to print the following extracts, ex-tracts, because they gave eastern Democrats Dem-ocrats who do not know him a clearer conception of his character than any of his published letters or speeches. Mr. Bryan gave his permission and the World will print the following: "Whenever you see in the papers that I have abandoned silver, or sidetracked side-tracked it, or tried in any way to evade it, you can set it down as false. While men differ as to the relative importance of the money question, the trust question ques-tion and imperialism, I regard all of them as important and have not yet attempted to decide which is the most important. It seems to me that the World ought to be able to see the folly of my taking sides in the dispute. "Why should I discourage those who oppose the gold standard and trusts, merely to gratify those who think the question of imperialism the all-important question? Why should I discourage the anti-imperialists by saying that the trust question is all-important? Why should I. discourage the opponents of trusts and imperialism by saying that the money question is the only question to be considered. Others may emphasize empha-size one question or the other, but I shall emphasize them all. It we are to win in November we must have the i co-operation of all who oppose Republi-I Republi-I can policies, and that co-operation can only be secured ,by making a fight along the Jine. "The people who oppose the gold standard also oppose the trusts and imperialism, im-perialism, and there are nine who. oppose op-pose all three to one who favors the gold standard and yet opposes the trusts and imperialism. Why alienate nine in order to please one? "The men who demand the abandon- j ment of the silver question did. what they could to make the party a gold j standard party, and when they were j outvoted they left the party and did j what they could to defeat the ticket. Now. they want lo drive away the Populists Pop-ulists and Silver Republicans who came to us when the gold Democrats deserted. de-serted. "Whatever influence T may have will be exerted to holding what we have, and getting enough from the outside to defeat the Republicans, anil I do not want it to be a barren victory. I want I the party to accomplish the reforms to which it is pledged I want the Philippines Philip-pines to have a chance to celebrate the Fourth of Jury, and I want every private pri-vate monopoly destroyed, but I also want silver restored at the ratio of 16 to 1. and I want the national banks deprived of the power to issue paper money. "I also want the constitution so amended as to permit an income tax, and the election of senators by the people. peo-ple. In addition to these, I want to see the system known as government by injunction abolished, and arbitration between labor and capital established. "Those who favor free silver favor all these reforms. Those who favor the gold standard favor a few of these reforms, but are against most of them. I am not willing to trade a large number num-ber of people who are right for a small number who are part right. I am not anxious enough for the nomination to purchase it by sacrificing what I believe be-lieve to be right. If my principles are as unpopular as gold Democrats think, why not nominate a gold Democrat? "When you look into the matter you j will find that my strength (if I have any) is not all personal, but is due to l principles I advocate. The only part that is personal is the belief among our people that I am honest and will fulfill every pledge I make. If I gave them any reason to doubt my willingness willing-ness to go down to defeat rather than abandon my convictions, they would turn against me in a moment. "But they shall have no reason to lose faith. "I have written at length and frankly, frank-ly, because if the World supports me, I want it to do so with a full knowledge of what to expect. I would much rather rath-er have the World support my platform than support me. if it cannot do both. "I do not care to hold office unless it enables me to do something to aid these people in their fiht against wealth, and to make peace with monev trust would render all efforts fruitless." ."(.Signed.) V. J. BUYAN." |