The Leavenworth weekly times. [volume] (Leavenworth, Kan.) 1870-1880, 1874-02-19
TAE CHANGERS

| From the New York Tilnes-EdiroriaI.
| Ever since the grangers became powerful
in numbers and influence, the Democrs tic
party has regarded them with intense solici-
tude. 1t was assumed that this order, hav-
| ing objects which could only be attained
through governmental action, necessarily
was political in lis character. To this as
sumption was joined another equally absurd,
for the Democrats imagined that the farmers
were fools. The country had been under
| Republican control for more than q dozen
years, during which the abuses of which the
farmers complain had become prominent,
| and therefore it was said the farmers were
possessed of an implacable hostility to the
| Republican party. The Democracy saw in
the grangers the 'clouj no bigger than a
| mans hand" which was soon to burst upon
the Republican party, and overwhelm il.
The grangers did not know their own busi-
| meas, but the Democracy understood all
about it. and laid down programme which
was arranged wholly in the interest of the
Democracy. 1t was decided that every
granger must hencefOrth act in the interest
| of Democracy. Doubtless the arrangement
would hsve been entirely satisfactory to the
few adbereDts of the moribnnd party if the
erangers had been a party to it, but unhap-
PLY they were not.
This fact appears most conc .usiyely in the
proceedings OF the National Grange, now in
session in st. Louis. We can imagine moth
ing more dIsheartenipg to the Democrats
than the records of this body. We must es-
pecially condole with them upon the report
of the Committee on Resolutions, which was
adopted without dissenting voice. After
having courted this order with the most as
siduous zeal for 80 many months, il must be
hard for the Democrats to zee il run as fol.
lows:
ave smphatically and sincerely assert the
oft repeated truth taught in our organic law,
that the grange, national, state, or subordi-
nate, is not a political or party organization
No grange, if true TO its obligations, can dis
cuss political or religious questions, nor call
poll ical conventions, nor nominate candi-
dates, nor even discuss their merits in the |
meetings."
Yet this ia nothing more than what the |
order has constantly declared, although, |
perhaps, in less authoritative form. No
body but fOrlorn Democrats catching al |
straws have supposed the Changers to be a |
political body seeking to attain their objects |
and formal statement takes from the Demo-
so much comfort.
The declaration Of the purposes of the
gransers, in which this emphatic expression
has prominent place, lie an important and
suggestive document. Admirable in its tone
and temper, it is 60 frank that there can NO
longer be any question "a TO the spirit 0: an
order which now comprises the controlling
class Of many powerful States. We are told
in the mort solemn and public manner that
it ia the purpose of the Grsngers TO develop
a bright and higher manhood among them
selves, and in every way Consistent with q
due regard TO the right, OF others, to increase
their material prosperity. In their own
words their ain is TO secure their mental,
moral, social, and material advancement"
An admirabietone pervades the whole OF
an address which has bsen rendered necessa-
~ by the Misrepresentation TO which the
grangers had been subjected BY the selfish
ness o. bankrupt politicians.
Hereafter the grangers should need no
The Democrats will OF course,
continue to strive to turn the order to their
own advantage, but in the face of these ex.
plicit declarations, they cannot hope to meet
with much success. The erangers will in
the future, even more than they have in the
past, act in politics independently of the
The natural affiliations of the
grea, msjority Of them are with the Repub-
lican party, and it is reasonable to suppose
that they will continue to act with the party
which has always been true to the public
n,ere.ts. They can and will influence their
party to serve them more efficiently than
my other existing organization. Inside
he Republican party they can hope to se-
.ure ali they desire; without it. they cannot
.xpecs anything bat uncertainty at the
ut.