The Silver Rally That Couldn't Afford to Rent the Hall

The free silver meeting that was to have been held last night — or rather that was announced to take place in the Armory — proved to be almost a failure in consequence of insufficient arrangements. There was not money enough to hire the hall, so the crowd, numbering perhaps 100, assembled on the Armory steps and listened to impromptu speeches from Robert H. Lindsay, G. G. Lyon, John Wiley, P. P. Carroll and Henry F. Hesse. Every effort imaginable was made to get Richard Winsor to speak, but he stayed in his corner and would not come out.

Those who came to the meeting came by ones and twos. They would look into the hall and, seeing that it was dark, come out on the steps and ask with a wondering voice who was managing "the movement." Then those who were there before them would reply that they had not been able to find out. Finally Mr. Lindsay took the bull by the horns, so to speak, and said that it was intended to have a meeting in the Armory, if the crowd warranted it, to talk about sending delegates to the silver convention at Salt Lake City, which takes place May 22. He then said that the meeting was a failure because there was no silver organization in the city, and furthermore he believed that in the present state of affairs the expense of sending even one delegate to Salt Lake City made it impracticable.

Before closing he said that he thought the majority of the voters in Seattle were free silver men. Col. Lyon spoke especially about the objects of the Salt Lake convention and concurred with Mr. Lindsay about the advisability of sending a delegate. As a substitute, a telegram could be sent saying that Seattle silverites were with them in spirit. Then P. P. Carroll suggested that Col. Lyon go to the convention and, while he was there, a purse would be made up among the silver men to pay his expenses. The crowd, to a man, was willing to let the colonel go and depend on the subscription to settle his expenses.

John Wiley was brought out from the crowd by John M. Davis, of the Call, and asked for a speech. He said that in the course of his acquaintance with Gov. McGraw he had seen many things in him to admire and few to denounce, and the governor's letter about silver was one of the latter things. He delivered a speech to the effect that the people of Washington were for free silver, and ridiculed international monetary conferences.

Mr. Hesse, the next speaker, said that the People's party was the free silver party, and invited all present to come under the party wing. The meeting appointed John Wiley, Richard Winsor and Robert H. Lindsay as a committee to make arrangements for a meeting at the municipal court room next Wednesday night, when a temporary silver organization will be effected.