Carolina QuotesIf they dare to come out in the open field and defend the gold standard as a good thing, we will fight them to the uttermost. Having behind us the producing masses of this nation and the world, supported by the commercial interests, the laboring interests and the toilers everywhere, we will answer their demand for a gold standard by saying to them: You shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns, you shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold.
William Jennings Bryan Carolinian
Source
No citation is recorded for this quotation.
- form
- speech
- work
- Cross of Gold Speech (1896)
- year
- 1896
no citation recorded
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“If they dare to come out in the open field and defend the go…” William Jennings Bryan. Carolina Quotes, record CQ-B365F9CB38. https://carolinaquotes.com/quote/b365f9cb38
More from William Jennings Bryan
Science is a magnificent force, but it is not a teacher of morals. It can perfect machinery, but it adds no moral restraints to protect society from the misuse of the machine. It can also build gigantic intellectual ships, but it constructs no moral rudders for the control of storm tossed human vessel. It not only fails to supply the spiritual element needed but some of its unproven hypotheses rob the ship of its compass and thus endangers its cargo.
You come to us and tell us that the great cities are in favor of the gold standard; we reply that the great cities rest upon our broad and fertile prairies. Burn down your cities and leave our farms, and your cities will spring up again as if by magic; but destroy our farms and the grass will grow in the streets of every city in the country.
The democrat says that society is built from the bottom and the republican thinks that society is suspended from the top. The democrat says, make the masses prosperous and then all who rest upon them will share in the prosperity, but the republicans say, make the well to do prosperous and their prosperity will leak through on those below.