At a speech in Chicago on Labor Day, Bryan varied from the silver issue to urge regulation of corporations. Mary Bryan had joined her husband in late September; on The Idler, the Bryans were able to eat and sleep in relative comfort. In June 1896, Bryan's old teacher, former senator Trumbull died; on the day of his funeral, Bryan's mother also died, suddenly in Salem. See, In New England, Cleveland had won Connecticut in 1892 while losing the region as a whole by 53,000votes, Bryan won no states and lost New England by over 172,000 votes. Despite his defeat, Bryan's campaign inspired many of his contemporaries. Bryan and many other Democrats believed the economic malaise could be remedied through a return to bimetallism, or free silvera policy they believed would inflate the currency and make it easier for debtors to repay loans. These Truths: A History of the United States. [80] Bryan and Sewall gained their nominations without the ballots of the gold men, most of whom refused to vote. [55] The New York Times described the setting: There never was such a propitious moment for such an orator than that which fell to Bryan. According to Stanley Jones, The period of this tour, in the return from New York to Lincoln, was the high point of the Bryan campaign. A free silver policy would inflate the currency, as the silver in a dollar coin was worth just over half the face value. [18], In 1893, bimetallism had been just one of many proposals by Populists and others. At every stop, he made contacts that he later cultivated. All Rights Reserved. Taken prisoner after his plane was shot down, he suffered five and a half years of torture and confinement before his release in 1973. Although Bryan was successful in winning the non-binding popular vote, Republicans gained a majority in the legislature and elected John Thurston as senator.[11]. It began as a simple courtesy, with a telegram that William Jennings Bryan sent. [139], In most areas, Bryan did better among rural voters than urban. The convention, by voice vote, seated the silver Nebraskans, who arrived in the convention hall a few minutes later, accompanied by a band. The Republican William Howard Taft worked as a judge in Ohio Superior Court and in the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals before accepting a post as the first civilian governor of the Philippines in 1900. He made 27speeches, including seven in Omaha, the last concluding a few minutes before midnight. Bryan's biographer, Paolo Coletta, suggests that Bryan may have played a part in inciting the silver men's departure; he was in close contact with Silver Republicans such as Teller and South Dakota Senator Richard Pettigrew. The coalition of wealthy, middle-class, and urban voters that defeated Bryan kept the Republicans in power for most of the time until 1932. [58] He began: I would be presumptuous, indeed, to present myself against the distinguished gentlemen to whom you have listened if this were a mere measuring of abilities; but this is not a contest between persons. His father, Silas, was a dedicated Jacksonian Democrat and a successful lawyer who served in various local elected positions and passed on his politics to his son. His speech, set as the only one besides Bryan's in favor of silver, portrayed silver as a sectional issue pitting the poorer folk of the South and West against gold-supporting New York and the rest of the Northeast. See. In 1890, he agreed to run for Congress against William James Connell, a Republican, who had won the local congressional seat in 1888. Darrow interrogated him on interpreting the Bible literally, which undercut his earlier sweeping religious . [99], Even before their convention in late July, the Populists faced dissent in their ranks. Bryan believed he could use the coalition-building techniques he had applied in gaining election to Congress, uniting pro-silver forces behind him to gain the Democratic nomination and the presidency. Retrieved May 19, 2012. [120], On September 11, 1896, Bryan departed on a train trip that continued until November 1, two days before the election. [22][23] In the 17months between his departure from Congress and the Democratic National Convention in July 1896, Bryan travelled widely through the South and West, speaking on silver. "[142] By the end of 1896, Bryan had published his account of the campaign, The First Battle. I come to speak to you in defense of a cause as holy as the cause of libertythe cause of humanity.[59]. In 2007, Gore won a Nobel read more, Considered the greatest English-speaking writer in history and known as Englands national poet, William Shakespeare (1564-1616) has had more theatrical works performed than any other playwright. [29], Bryan faced a number of disadvantages in seeking the Democratic nomination: he was little-known among Americans who did not follow politics closely, he had no money to pour into his campaign, he lacked public office, and had incurred the enmity of Cleveland and his administration through his stance on silver and other issues. Subscribe for fascinating stories connecting the past to the present. Bryan went to the Democratic convention in Chicago as an undeclared candidate, whom the press had given only a small chance of becoming the Democratic nominee. Speakers for both parties found eager audiences. Retrieved May 19, 2012. [138] Palmer received less than 1% of the vote, but his vote total in Kentucky was greater than McKinley's margin of victory there. It was not until 10:45am, three-quarters of an hour late, that Chairman White called the convention to order. [146] The election of 1896 marked a transition as the concerns of the rural population became secondary to those of the urban; according to Stanley Jones, "the Democratic Party reacted with less sensitivity than the Republicans to the hopes and fears of the new voters which the new age was producing". [10], In May 1894, Bryan announced he would not seek re-election to the House of Representatives, feeling the incessant need to raise money to campaign in a marginal district was inhibiting his political career. Bryan was present when it was announced that his delegation would not be initially seated; reports state he acted "somewhat surprised" at the outcome. On April 22, 1893, the amount of gold in the Treasury dropped below $100million for the first time since 1879, adding to the unease. The 1908 United States presidential election was the 31st quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 3, 1908. Palmer was a 79-year-old former Union general, Buckner a 73-year-old former Confederate of that rank; the ticket was the oldest in combined age in American history, and Palmer the second-oldest presidential candidate (behind Peter Cooper of the Greenback Party; Bryan was the youngest). Throughout the nation, voters were intensely interested in the campaign, studying the flood of pamphlets. [67], Bryan described the stillness as "really painful"; his anxieties that he might have failed were soon broken by pandemonium. "[109], Bryan set the formal acceptance of his nomination for August 12 at New York's Madison Square Garden; he left Lincoln five days earlier by rail, and spoke 38times along the way, sometimes from the trackside in his nightgown. Looking upon the loud Boies and Bland supporters, Bryan commented, "These people don't know it, but they will be cheering for me just this way tomorrow night. The President's uncompromising stand for gold alienated many in his own party (most southern and western Democrats were pro-silver). At home, he took a short rest, and was visited by Senator Jones to discuss plans for the campaign. Author: William Jennings Bryan Publisher: Haskell House Pub Limited ISBN: Size: 56.95 MB Format: PDF, ePub, Docs View: 4174 Get Book Disclaimer: This site does not store any files on its server.We only index and link to content provided by other sites. The Democrats nominated Arthur Sewall, a wealthy Maine banker and shipbuilder, for vice president. [132] Early Republican polls had shown Bryan ahead in crucial Midwestern states, including McKinley's Ohio. The book, composed of accounts of (fictitious) lectures on the silver issue given by an adolescent named Coin to Chicago audiences, became an immense bestseller. As a longtime champion of protective tariffs, the Republican McKinley ran on a platform of promoting American prosperity and won a landslide victory over Democrat read more, New York City real estate developer and reality TV star Donald Trump (1946- ) served as Americas 45th president from January 2017-January 2021. [108] According to Stanley Jones in his study of the 1896 campaign, "Bryan expected that he alone, carrying to the people the message of free silver, would win the election for his party. The vice presidential squabble, Williams argues, worried voters who feared that instability would follow a Bryan victory, and drove them towards McKinley. Now among the most famous politicians in the country, Bryan would run twice more for president, losing again to McKinley in 1900 and to William Howard Taft in 1908. He spoke some 600 times, to an estimated 5,000,000 listeners. As the presidential election year of 1896 began, things were looking rosy for the Republicans. I will add for the encouragement of those who still believe that money is not necessary to secure a Presidential nomination that my entire expenses while in attendance upon the convention were less than $100. [118] Starved of money, the Democrats had fewer speakers and fewer publications to issue. Elected to the House of Representatives in 1890, when he was just 30 years old, Bryan championed populist causes including the direct election of senators, graduated federal income tax and the free silver movement, which sought to expand the federal money supply by basing U.S. currency on silver as well as gold. However, the business man argument was new, though he had hinted at it in an interview he gave at the Republican convention. [85][86] Some of the Democratic political machines, such as New York's Tammany Hall, decided to ignore the national ticket and concentrate on electing local and congressional candidates. The election of 1896 is seen as the beginning of a new era in American politics, or a "realignment" election. After Bryan helped rally support behind Woodrow Wilson in the 1912 presidential election, Wilson chose the now-elder Democratic statesman as his secretary of state. In anticipation of a presidential campaign, he spent much of 1895 and early 1896 making speeches across the United States; his compelling oratory increased his popularity in his party. I was thinking of finding a book for him for Christmas that could help his research. The Scopes monkey trial in Dayton, Tennessee, played out under the national spotlight, with journalists, religious leaders and onlookers crowding the courtroom. The 1896 campaign, which took place during an economic depression known as the Panic of 1893, was a realigning election that ended the old Third Party System and began the Fourth Party System. Much of the blizzard of paper the Republican campaign was able to pay for concentrated on this area/ By September, this had its effect as silver sentiment began to fade. Why was the 1896 election devastating for Populist movement? [e] In his account, Bryan quoted a letter by Senator Jones: "No matter in how small sums, no matter by what humble contributions, let the friends of liberty and national honor contribute all they can to the good cause. The train bearing The Idler pulled in after a short journey from the last stop, and after he was greeted by local dignitaries, Bryan would give a brief speech addressing silver and the need for the people to retake the government. The Gold Democrats received quiet financial support from Hanna and the Republicans. In March 1898, two years into William McKinley's first term as president, he gave Spainwhich was in the midst of a brutal campaign of repression in . In 1904, Taft took on the role of secretary of war in the administration read more, William Randolph Hearst (1863-1951) launched his career by taking charge of his fathers struggling newspaper the San Francisco Examiner in 1887. Ever since the election of 1800, American presidential contests had, on some level, been a referendum on whether the country should be governed by agrarian interests (rural indebted farmers-the countryside-"main street") or industrial interests (business-the city-"wall street"). [36] Historian James Barnes wrote of Bryan's preparations: The Nebraskan merely understood the political situation better than most of those who might have been his rivals, and he took advantage in a legitimate and thoroughly honorable manner of the existing conditions. [128] For the most part, Bryan ignored the attacks, and made light of them in his account of the 1896 campaign. [f] McKinley even won the urban vote in Nebraska. However, the President ruled this out; his Cabinet members also refused to run. Writers such as Edgar Lee Masters, Hamlin Garland and his fellow Nebraskan, Willa Cather, like Bryan came from the prairies; they wrote of their admiration for him and his first battle. However, many delegates disliked Sewall because of his wealth and ownership of a large business, and believed that nominating someone else would keep Populist issues alive in the campaign. "[145], The consequences of defeat, however, were severe for the Democratic Party. [33] Bryan spoke at her funeral, quoting lines from Second Timothy: "I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. Though he continued to publicly oppose U.S. involvement in World War I after his resignation, Bryan changed course after the nation entered the conflict in 1917 due to extensive popular support for the war effort. "[123] After a brief interval for handshakes, the train would pull out again, to another town down the track.[123]. The left-wing Populist Party (which had hoped to nominate the only silver-supporting candidate) endorsed Bryan for president, but found Sewall unacceptable, substituting Thomas E. Watson of Georgia. William Jennings Bryan. For the last decade of his life, he largely dedicated himself to reforming the nations moral and religious character. On the fifth ballot, other states joined the Bryan bandwagon, making him the Democratic candidate for president.[76][77]. "[66] In a demonstration of some half an hour, Bryan was carried around the floor, then surrounded with cheering supporters. "Silver Dick" Bland was seen as the elder statesman of the silver movement; he had originated the Bland-Allison Act of 1878, while Boies' victories for governor in a normally Republican state made him attractive as a candidate who might compete with McKinley in the crucial Midwest. Chicago banker Charles G. Dawes, a McKinley advisor who had known Bryan when both lived in Lincoln, had predicted to McKinley and his friend and campaign manager, Mark Hanna, that if Bryan had the chance to speak to the convention, he would be its choice. Advocates of free silver (or bimetallism) wanted the government to accept all silver bullion presented to it and to return it, struck into coin, at the historic value ratio between gold and silver of 16 to 1. [35] Bryan was deeply moved when, after the adoption of the platform, Colorado Senator Henry M. Teller led a walkout of silver-supporting Republicans. Men and women threw their hats into the air, not caring where they might come down. Bryan's supporters raised at most $500,000 for the 1896 campaign; McKinley's raised at least $3.5 million. [57][71] According to The Boston Globe, Bryan "had locked himself within the four walls at the Clifton House, down town, and there blushes unseen. The 1896 presidential race is generally considered a realigning election, when there is a major shift in voting patterns, upsetting the political balance. At that time, Nebraska was suffering hard times as many farmers had difficulties making ends meet due to low grain prices, and many Americans were discontented with the existing two major political parties. Stone, chair of the notification committee, essayed a lengthy speech, he was drowned out by the crowd, which wanted to hear "the Boy Orator of the Platte". How could a boy in appearance, one not yet admitted to the convention, without a single state behind him, dare claim the nomination? Secretary of War and Republican Party nominee William Howard Taft defeated three-time Democratic nominee William Jennings Bryan.. Popular incumbent President Theodore Roosevelt honored his promise not to seek a third term, and persuaded his close friend, Taft, to . [129] Republican newspapers and spokesmen claimed that Bryan's campaign was expensively financed by the silver interests. The shortness of the speech did not dismay the crowds, who knew his arguments well: they were there to see and hear William Jennings Bryanone listener told him that he had read every one of his speeches, and had ridden 50 miles (80km) to hear him, "And, by gum, if I wasn't a Republican, I'd vote for you. Many Cleveland supporters decried Bryan as no true Democrat, but a fanatic and socialist, his nomination procured through demagoguery. He was not yet done with campaigning, however; on November 2, he undertook a train journey across Nebraska in support of Democratic congressional candidates. Department of State: Office of the Historian. He knew that hard work could turn the discontent of the people into a revolt against the gold wing of the party, and no group of individuals ever labored more diligently to gain their political ends than did the silver men in the [Democratic Party] between 1893 and 1896. See, Last edited on 24 November 2022, at 01:09, United States presidential nominating convention, William McKinley 1896 presidential campaign, National Archives and Records Administration, Official Proceedings of the 1896 Democratic National Convention, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=William_Jennings_Bryan_1896_presidential_campaign&oldid=1123490165, This page was last edited on 24 November 2022, at 01:09. A large banner outside the Clifton House proclaimed the presence of Nebraska's delegation headquarters, but did not mention Bryan's campaign, which was run from Nebraska's rooms. He won the prize in his junior year, and also secured the affection of Mary Baird, a student at a nearby women's academy. 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