“You shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold.”
In His Image, published in 1922, gathers a lecture series in which Bryan defends a literal Christian faith and attacks the theory of evolution and the materialist worldview he believed it encouraged. The book distills the convictions that would soon put him at the center of the Scopes Trial, and it shows the great orator turning his rhetorical force toward religion and apologetics.
Hearing it in Bryan's own restored voice is uniquely fitting, because Bryan was first and last a speaker — these were arguments built to be heard from a platform, not read silently. The famous Bryan cadence, rolling and emphatic, gives the book back the pulpit energy it was written for.
William Jennings Bryan was an American lawyer, three-time Democratic presidential nominee, U.S. Secretary of State, and the most famous orator of his generation. His 1896 "Cross of Gold" speech catapulted him to the head of the Populist-leaning Democratic Party, and his booming, magnetic delivery made him a fixture of the Chautauqua lecture circuit for decades.
Late in life Bryan became a leading voice of Christian fundamentalism, a campaign that culminated in his role prosecuting the 1925 Scopes "Monkey" Trial. He died just days after that trial ended, in Dayton, Tennessee.
This narration is reconstructed from William Jennings Bryan's real archival recordings. In 1921 Bryan recorded portions of his "Cross of Gold" speech and other material for Gennett Records — audio so significant it was later named to the Library of Congress National Recording Registry. We draw on those genuine recordings to restore his vocal character for this reading. It is a faithful restoration grounded in real audio of Bryan, not a claim that he is speaking live today.
Provenance: Restored from real recordings. We label every voice honestly — restored, narrated, or disputed.
Bryan had a famously deep, resonant, carrying voice — the greatest orator of his day in the era before microphones. His 1921 Gennett recordings, including the "Cross of Gold" speech, preserve that thundering delivery and make a faithful restoration possible.
It is a restoration built from Bryan's genuine archival recordings. We model his real vocal characteristics rather than have him literally read today — the goal is to convey how he actually sounded from the platform.
Yes. Published in 1922, the text is in the public domain in the United States and Canada, which is why we can offer this restored-voice audio edition.
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