It can hardly be denied that to reaffirm is, in effect, to reiterate. The difference is only in seeming,—and, possibly, that it gives opportunity for “interpretation” and “construction.” At all events, the Gold Democrats had early gone to work to secure this concession. They had been successful in enlisting in their behalf scores and hundreds of sincere friends of bimetallism in the Democratic party. And when the delegates were gathered at Kansas City it became evident that a large majority of them were favorable to the policy of a general reaffirmation of the Chicago platform without a specific repetition of the demand for free silver at the ratio of sixteen to one. Not only were the most of the delegates inclined to this course, but it was advocated, before the convention met, by a large majority of the influential party leaders. It was, on the part of the leaders, as of most of the delegates, a sincere and honest advocacy, by men whose fealty to the doctrine of bimetallism was undoubted. It was their intent, not to abandon the demand for free silver,—far from it,—for the platform would reaffirm the demand made in 1896,—but to subordinate it in such a way as would do least damage in the fight for the preservation of the Republic. Such was their honest position. But here the trouble arose. The Gold Democrats, by their very insistence, had made “free silver” the only issue, so far as the convention was concerned. There was no difference among Democrats as to any other plank of the platform. This very fact, and the fact that in every newspaper in the country the one question of discussion and of speculation concerning the convention was whether it would “reaffirm” or “reiterate” had brought the old issue so prominently to the fore-ground that not to reiterate would mean practically to abandon the position, while under fire. Had the issue never been raised, had the fight thereon never been precipitated, it is conceivable, even probable, that there had come from no source any objection to the policy of reaffirming the Chicago platform so far as the old issues were concerned, and making specific declarations on the new ones. But the issue had been raised, and the objection came,—came from William J. Bryan, at his home in Lincoln. On July 1, R. L. Metcalfe, a delegate at large from Nebraska, after a long consultation with Mr. Bryan gave out an authorized interview in which he declared that there must be a specific declaration on the money question. This was taken as a statement of Mr. Bryan’s position, and David B. Hill, the leader of the Gold Democrats, at once hastened from Kansas City to Lincoln on a futile mission. He wished to induce Mr. Bryan to recede from his position. It became at once evident that there was to be a contest over the money plank of the platform.