LAD#24: Bryan's Cross of Gold Speech

Bryan's cross of gold speech addressed the matter of whether silver should be freely coined at a 16:1 ratio with gold. The speech is opened by Bryan saying that people live and die, but principles are forever and that each day of our lives, we choose which principles to live by. At this time, a group of democrats, called silver democrats, took control of the party and slowly traveled around the country and pushed for the free coinage of silver. The men of the country did not choose to side based on their own personal opinions, but rather the views of their appropriate party. Bryan states that the businessmen of the northeast had too much given to them and they did not think enough about the needs of the common man. He argues that the farmers and miners are just as good as the New England businessmen. He fights for the common man, just like the rest of the country (besides the northeast) because they need the silver to help pay off their debts. He believed that the income tax was good for people and that it was the government's job to be in charge of coining money. A lot of people cared more about the gold issue than the tariff at this time. He urged that we stray away from the gold standard and move towards using both gold and silver.