Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1877-07-18
The Democrat and the Union League.

aso-tnae It's controversy with p
Lacquer has been pro6tless under
taking. The time and space occupied in
discussing city affairs with such brain
less, visionary and untruthful opponent
as "a Lacquer" has shown himself to
be, were absolutely thrown away and
wasted, and could have been much
better employed. If the Democrat is
wise it will hereafter close its columns
against such twaddie as that with
which GA Lacquer" has nauseated the
public, and will treat him and his
windy, senseless gable with silent
contempt.
But the Democrat, to be consistent
must do more than this. Having
demonstrated as it has done success
fully, that "the League is a body of
repudiators," led by demagogues who
use the organization as a ladder by
which 10 climb into office, the Demo-
crat will be called upon in due season
to take sides for or against the League
and it's candidates The past has
shown how closely allied the League
and Democratic parties have been, and
renders it probable that the same affil-
iation will exist hereafter. The
League is differed and engineered by
Democrats, and nearly all its members
are of the same political faith. This
being true, the managers Of the Dem
ocratic party have found it convenient
and advantageous to coalesce with the
League, so that it has been difficult to
draw the lines between them or con-
slider them otherwise than as one party.
And for this the Democrat is In no small
degree responsible, it having been all
the while cognizant Of the you tickle
me and I'll tickle YOU policy pursued
by both parties, and not daring to ex-
pose and frown upon their operations.
For three or four years past the League
and Democratic magnates have been
check by jowl, and favored each other
In all possible ways-although it must
be stated that the master spirit has
been the League, that organization
having controlled conventions, dictated
nominations and held the Democratic
nose to the grindstone whenever it
saw fit to do so. The manner In
which Hezekiah Finn secured his
nomination to the Legislature last fall
IS case Ia point, and exemplifes the
domineering on the one hand and the
doclllty on the other, with which the
League triumphed and the Democratic
party succumbed. This valiant organ
OF the Democracy was then as dumb as
an oyster, and lisped not one word
against the bulldozing of Finn and
his friends In their impudent manipu-
latlon of the Democ cratic caucuses:
though it must have known that all
the epithets which it applies to him
and the organization of which he was
then and is now the head, were as ap-
pIleable one year ago as now. To
argue otherwise is to assume that the
Democrat was exceedingly stupid, and
had failed to make discoveries which
were known to every intelligent person
III this community. 1t may have
needed this discussion. however. to
open the eyes of the Democrat to a
full comprehension of the Leagues In
consistency, stupidity and insincerity
Ihe discovery being made, and the
Democrat approaching now, as it never
did before, the faithlessness of the
League and its managers, it can do no
less from this time forward than oppose
their mischievous designs and the men
put forward to execute them. When
the Democrat shall see It's party con-
ventions this fall taken possession of
and run by the League, and lis nomi-
nations bestowed upon those whom it
now assails as ''repudiators, "dema-
gogues, liars, 'incendiaries, com
nunists," "scalawags," "hypocrites !"
&C., &C., We shaft be prompt in asking
1t to cooperate with US in an attempt
to defeat them at the polls. We shall
then see whether that paper can with
stand the party whip and act its honest
convictions; or if it will submit meekly
to the demands Of King Caucus and