PRKSIDKNTIAI. CANVASS >K 





quarters of the Republican National Committee. 

 Chairman .Jniirs look personal charge of the work, 

 and was assisted by the Hon. Daniel J. Campau. of 

 Michigan, the lion. James Kiehanlson. Mcmlier <( 

 Congress I'rom Tennessee, who was placed in charge 

 of the literary bureau, with K. \V. Barrett, of At- 

 lanta, as assiMant, the lion. Daniel Mel 'onville, of 

 Ohio, in charge of the speakers' bureau, ami Frank 

 II. Ilosf, inl. of Michigan, secretary of the National 

 Committee. 



The Populist National Committee located in 

 rooms adjoining those occupied by the Democratic 

 National Committee, and co-operated with Chair- 

 man Jones constantly, attempting little in the way 

 of separate work. 



The National Democratic party established its 

 headquarters in the Palmer House, and during- the 

 closing weeks of the campaign carried on a vigorous 

 work in the distribution of literature and assign- 

 ment of speakers to various parts of the country. 



A Campaign of Education. From the begin- 

 ning it was apparent that the campaign was to be 

 more thoroughly educational than any ever before 

 known. Even before the opening of headquarters 

 Chairman Hanna had begun to receive appeals for 

 literature that would give people information re- 

 garding the merits of the currency question, and 

 from the day that the headquarters opened there 

 were urgent demands for documents covering even- 

 phase of the issues of the canvass. It was soon 

 found that the voters of the West and South had 

 been for two years quietly and abundantly supplied 

 with documents favoring free and unlimited coin- 

 age of silver at the ratio of 16 to 1 and attributing 

 the low prices of grain and other farm products 

 solely to the demonetization of silver. This distri- 

 bution of documents, which had been carried on 

 by the Bimetallic League and other organizations 

 supported by the adherents of the silver cause, had 

 been very effective in creating a sentiment through- 

 out the South and West in favor of free coinage of 

 silver, and the Republican party thus found itself 

 compelled. to meet in a three months' campaign a 

 sentiment that had been industriously created 

 through an educational campaign of nearly three 

 years by the advocates of silver. Mr. Heath imme- 

 diately surrounded himself with a stall of writers 

 and editors. The lion. Robert P. Porter, of Ohio, 

 late Superintendent of the Census. Dr. Fred H. 

 Wines, of Illinois, and also of the Census Bureau, 

 Mr. Eugene V. Smaller, of Minnesota an experi- 

 enced writer and editor, and Mr. B. W. Snow, late 

 of the Statistical Bureau -of the Department of 

 Agriculture, were employed in the preparation of 

 literature to be distributed both in the form of 

 documents and through such newspapers as were 

 inclined to support the doctrines enunciated in the 

 platform of the Republican party. To Mr. Oscar 

 P. Austin, of Washington. I). C.. an experienced 

 newspaper correspondent, was intrusted the editing 

 of the documents and especially the determination 

 of the accuracy of the statistical and financial 

 statements they contained. The literature issued 

 by the committee both the documents and that 

 prepared for journals was devoted especially to the 

 tariff and currency, and covered not only the his- 

 tory of these subjects with reference to the United 

 States, but incidentally the experience of other na- 

 tions in financial matters. The material prepared 

 for newspaper use was distributed in the form of 

 supplements and plates ready for insertion in the 

 columns of newspapers, and was frequently accom- 

 panied by cartoons, which have become so impor- 

 tant a factor in political contests. This class of 

 matter was distributed by Mr. II. II. Rand, of Wis- 

 consin, who also had charge of the printing con- 

 tracts for the documentary service. The material 



for newspaper use was furnished f r. _re to 



all newspapers that were willing to pul,ii- 



The literature of the Democratic Naii..n.. 

 mittee was confined almost e\eluMvel\ to the cur- 

 rency que.-tion, especially to argument's in fa\ 

 free ami unlimited coinage of silver at the r.v 

 16 to 1. It was distributed through the medium of 

 newspapers in a manner similar to that de-eribcd 

 above, while documents were al-o prepared f.,r At- 

 tribution. The literary work of the Democratic 

 committee was in charge of the Hon. .lame- \>. 

 Richardson, Member of Congre-s from 'lYnn, 



ai>ted by a corps of edit- 



The Populist National Committee distributed lit- 

 tle literature aside from the speeches of its mem- 

 bers of Congress, which were sent out from Wa>h- 

 ington, choosing rather toco-operate with the Demo- 

 crats. 



The National Democratic party, through its Na- 

 tional Committee also prepared and distributed 

 large quantities of literature after entering the field 

 in September. 



One specially notable feature of the literature of 

 the canvass was the large quantity prepared and 

 distributed by private individuals.' Thousands of 

 business men, merchants, manufacturers, grain 

 dealers, railroad officials, building associations, in- 

 surance companies, newspapers, and others, pub- 

 lished at their own expense brief and pointed docu- 

 ments on the currency question, distributing them 

 through their daily correspondence and by other 

 methods. The Protective Tariff League also dis- 

 tributed from its headquarters in New York litera- 

 ture aggregating many million copies, relating es- 

 pecially to the tariff and labor questions. 



Distribution of Literature. The earliest sup- 

 ply of literature distributed was that furnished by 

 the congressional committees of each party, which 

 had opened headquarters in Washington before the 

 national canvass had begun, and had distributed 

 millions of copies of speeches delivered in the House 

 and in the Senate, many of which were prepared 

 with this object in view. These documents were 

 sent through the mails under the frank of members 

 of Congress as " part of the ' Congressional Record,' " 

 that publication being entitled under the law to 

 free transportation in the mails. A large share of 

 the documents thus distributed were sent direct to 

 voters, whose names were furnished by members of 

 Congress or those who were candidates for election 

 to Congress. The number of documents thus sent 

 out from the Washington headquarters of the three 

 parties, added to those distributed by the Silver 

 party and the Bimetallic League and silver organ- 

 izations, aggregated 50.000,000 copies, of which 

 number the Republicans distributed about half. 



The preparation for printing and distributing 

 documents discussing the tariff and currency ques- 

 tions was the first work of the Republican National 

 Committee after it opened its headquarters in Chi- 

 cago. It became evident to the managers of the cam- 

 paign of that party that the demand for information 

 on the currency question was very great and should 

 be met promptly. The same mails that brought 

 appeals for this literature, however, brought articles 

 prepared by students of the financial question 

 from every part of the country, and the pens of 

 the editors employed by the National Committee 

 were busy with the preparation of others. A quan- 

 tity of valuable material for documents and news- 

 paper publications was thus quickly available, 

 and representatives of the great printing h 

 of Chicago and adjacent cities were summoned, 

 the material was placed in their hands, and the 

 presses were soon running day and night. "One 

 million copies " was the usual order for each 

 document placed in the hands of the printer, and 



