Editing Cross of Gold speech (section)

=== Selection of delegates ===

The [[1896 Democratic National Convention]] followed events unique in post-Civil War American history. One after another, state conventions to elect delegates to the national convention in Chicago repudiated an incumbent elected president of their party, who had not declared whether he would be a candidate for renomination.  According to Barnes:

{{quote|The people of the South and the West had for years been convinced of the enormity of the "crime of 1873", and they had long since come to regard silver as the sword that would cut the [[Gordian knot]] of privilege. Consciousness of grievances of years and not of months was reflected in the decisive action of the state Democratic conventions in the spring and early summer of 1896.{{sfn|Barnes|p=374}}}}

Many state conventions elected delegates pledged to support bimetallism in the party platform. [[Bourbon Democrats|Gold Democrats]] were successful in a few states in the Northeast, but had little luck elsewhere. Speakers in some states cursed Cleveland; the [[South Carolina]] convention denounced him. Cleveland issued a statement urging Democratic voters to support gold—the next convention to be held, in Illinois, unanimously supported silver; the keynote speaker prayed for divine forgiveness for Cleveland's 1892 nomination. Gold and silver factions in some states, such as Bryan's Nebraska, sent rival delegations to the convention.{{sfn|Williams|pp=72–74}}