Many Gold Democrats had returned to the party. The gold standard law, approved March 14, 1900, made it impossible for a President, even if he desired to do so, to place the country's money on an insecure basis without the aid of a Congress friendly in both its branches to such a design. There was, to be sure, effort to make this law appear imperfect; to show that Mr. Bryan, if elected, could, without aid from Congress, debauch the monetary system. But these assertions had little basis or effect. Silver dollars could be legally paid by the Government for a variety of purposes; but outside holders of silver could not get it coined, and the Treasury could not buy more. New issues--imperialism and the trusts--seemed certain to be vote-winners for the Democracy. The cause of anti-imperialism had taken deep hold of the public mind, drawing to its support a host of eminent and respected Republicans. The Democratic platform expressly named this the "paramount issue" of the campaign. The party in power defended its Philippine policy in the manner sketched at the end of the last chapter, ever asserting, of course, that so far as consistent with their welfare and our duties the Filipinos must be accorded the largest possible measure of self-government. In this tone was perceived some sensitiveness to the anti-imperialist cry. Though Republican campaign writers and speakers affected to ignore this issue, some of them denying its existence, imperialism was more and more discussed. After the Spanish War the question whether the United States should, the inhabitants agreeing, keep any of the territory obtained from Spain, divided the Democratic as well as the Republican ranks. So long as expansion meant merely addition to United States territory and population after the time-honored fashion, and this was at first all that anyone meant by expansion, no end of prominent Democrats were expansionists. But for their devotion to the policy of protection and their determination to continue high protection at all costs, the Republicans might have kept in existence this Democratic schism over expansion. According to the Constitution as almost unanimously interpreted (the "insular cases" referred to in the last chapter had not yet been decided), customs duties must be uniform at all United States ports. If Luzon was part of the United States in the usual sense of the words, rates of duty on given articles must be the same at Manila as at New York. If the Philippine Islands and Porto Rico were parts of the United States in the full sense, tariff rates at their ports could not be low unless low in New York, New Orleans, San Francisco, and elsewhere. [Illustration] The Republican National Convention, held in Philadelphia, June 1, 1900.