The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1877-09-23
THE OHIO WORKINGMEN.
THEIR PLATFORM, PRINCIPLES AND
CANDIDATES..

CANDIDATES.
The party Daily Gaining strength mt the
Expense of the Older Parties.
IN. Y. Tribune.1
ToJEpo, O., Sept. 14.-The labor
movement has taken a singular shape
here, and has assumed proportions
which alarm both of the old parties.
Indeed, it threatens to control oDe-third
of the total vote of this county, having
grown in single month from the petit
ness of faction TO the dignity, in size
at least, OF O party. Its members call
themselves the Nationals" They are
organized in secret lodges called coun-
Lucas county OF 1900. Now, as there
are only 10000 votes in the county, it
will be seen that this new move
ment, making heavy allowance
for the men It has enrolled who will
probably back-slide into their old poll
tical associations, Ia still formidable
affair. 1t has council In every ward
in Toledo and In every township in the
county, and has pushed it's organiza-
ton into ell the adjoining counties;
The coun0ils are ordinary political
clubs, with the addition OF the element
OF secrecy, which 10 maintained by
about the same methods that used to
be employed Ia the old Know-N Nothing
lodges--grips, passwords and an oath OF
fidelity. The phenomenal rise of the
new party In this section IL partly &C.
counted for by the lack OF discipline
and morale in both the Republican and
Democratic parties. Independent
movements and desertion from one side
to tho other have been common Tor the
last dozen years or more, and local po-.
litics have been both complicated and
corrupt. A city ring has fat
tened on the treasury with one
party in power just the same as with
Che other. In the days when j. M.
Ashley was in Congress, the Republi-
cans were always divided into Ashley
and anti-Ashley men, and these jarring
factions did not cease from troubling
the harmony OF the party when he dis
appeared from the surface OF politics.
Democratic ranks, about q thousand
voters breaking off and supporting o
Greenback candidate for Congress, In
opposition to Frank Hurd, who had
shown hard money proclivities. Thus,
from one cause and another, the regu-
lar party organizations came to lose
their grip on large body OF voters In
Northwestern Ohio, and the political
field was we'll broken up for the plant
luB VI u uSW CkVps WhoeAOk VI WVoup Va
good grain.
The leaders of the new party are not
workingmen In the sense OF coming
from the ranks OF the "horny-handed
sons of toll" They are lawyers, mer-
chants, doctors and manufacturers, as
well as farmers and mechanics-the
same sort Of people in spirit as manage
the old parties. Seeking yesterday for
some of the chiefs Of the Nationals, was
a. Nall les fata AZ N
-four mill here. Evidently he was no
hare Drained agitB1or or muddled theo-
rist. He gave a cs5sr account OF the or
ganization and ptNfMases Of the Nation
ais, In answer to az ing OF questions,
saying: 49,, a ), -, 49,, !, :
the RECOMMENDATION OF silver and the re-.
peal OF the resumption act. Neither OF
The old parties is agreed on these ques-
tions, and we cannot, therefore. depend
upon either OF them to carry out our
not imagine our organization would
grow so rapidly, and we adopted the
element of secrecy rather in self-defense,
believing we would be stronger IL we
kept the politicians from finding out
what we we're doing. We thought that
IL the old party managers knew just who
were joining US, they would work upon
them to win them back. Our sys-
tenn proved o good one. A great
who are still supposed to be faithful
members of the old parties, and who
would rather not have 1t known that
they are Nationals Our Order is
spreading rapidly. We have over 1900
enrolled members in this county; be-
sides, there are many Catholic voters
who will support us. but who will not
20 into our councils on account Of the
opposition Of their church to secret
societies. / think we shall elect our
county ticket, including the two mem
nominate senators In this district, and
have chance Of electing both Of them.
We draw about equally from the old
parties-perhaps little more, here, in
Toledo, from the Republicans.
The Nationals" repudiate the Com
munistic notions put out as platform
by the recent Workingmen's Conven-
ton at Cincinnati, and denounce that
body as fraud. Yesterdays conven-
ton at Columbus was their affair. It
fused with the areenbackers, who had
q moribund ticket in the field, and were
delighted to be swallowed up by more
vigorous organization. Their nominee
for Governor, Seth Johnson. of Miami
county, was accepted to head the new
ticket. He was captain Of volunteers
in the war, and is a highly respectable
citizen, Of wealth and Of some local in
huence. All the names on the ticket
are those of men unknown beyond the
limits of their own counties. I esti-
mate, from present indications, that
this ticket will get 10000 votes in the
State. Nobody can foresee its effect on
the old organizations. Republican and
Democratic politicians profess conf
dence that it is going to hurt the other
party the more. Past experience Of
third parties leads to, the conclusion
that the Republicans have the greater
cause for alarm.