By 1896 , free silver forces were ascendant within the party . Though many Democratic leaders were not as enthusiastic about free silver as Bryan was , most recognized the need to distance the party from the unpopular policies of the Cleveland administration . By the start of the 1896 Democratic National Convention , Congressman Richard P. Bland , a long-time champion of free silver , was widely perceived to be the front-runner for the party 's presidential nomination . Bryan hoped to offer himself as a presidential candidate , but his youth and relative inexperience gave him a lower profile than veteran Democrats like Bland , Governor Horace Boies of Iowa and Vice President Adlai Stevenson . The free silver forces quickly established dominance over the convention and Bryan helped draft a party platform that repudiated Cleveland , attacked the conservative rulings of the Supreme Court and called the gold standard " not only un-American but anti-American . " Conservative Democrats demanded a debate on the party platform and on the third day of the convention each side put forth speakers to debate free silver and the gold standard . Bryan and Senator Benjamin Tillman of South Carolina were chosen as the speakers who would advocate on behalf of free silver , but Tillman 's speech was poorly received by delegates from outside the South due to its sectionalism and references to the Civil War . Charged with delivering the convention 's last speech on the topic of monetary policy , Bryan seized his opportunity to emerge as the nation 's leading Democrat . In his " Cross of Gold " speech , Bryan argued that the debate over monetary policy was part of a broader struggle for democracy , political independence and the welfare of the " common man . " Bryan 's speech was met with rapturous applause and a celebration on the floor of the convention that lasted for over half an hour
1896 Democratic National Convention
1896 Democratic National Convention
William Jennings Bryan