Morning journal and courier., 1884-03-04
c5onrnaI xao Gonrier. l.
SINGLE COPIES TWO GENTS.
Tuesday. March 4. 1884.
JEALOUS REFoKmERs.

The Massachusetts Referm club is zeaIous l if not entirely discreet. It has invited the 1 liberal reformsrs of the different States who ! earnestly believe in a thorough civil service reform reduction of the revenue, and s
 cessation of silver coinage, to send delegates to I conference of liberal fsformers, without city next May, to place in nomination, if it be deemed sxpedient, cas didates for Presidsnt and Vice-Presidsnt in full sympathy with the liberal reformers.
 One cause of this demonstration was, it is
 said. dissatisfaction with the action of the
 Independent Republicans in~Brooklyn and
 New York city on the 22d and 23d of Febru-
 ary. Some of the Massachusetts liberal re-
 formers are reported as saying that the New
 York conference only ennneiated the old
 doctrine of 'treform within the party" What
 was needed, it was thought, was 8 demon
 stration on the part of independents who
 had come out from both the big parties. At
 the February dinner of the Massachusetts Reform club, the secretary was authorized
 to correspond with liberal reformers all over
 the Union in regard to the advisahility of
 holding national conference in New York city sometime in May. Shortly after that
 the Brooklyn Republican independents sent
 out call for dinner in Brooklyn on the evening of Washingtons birthday. This,
 the Massachusetts men say, was purely Re- publican demonstration, and of course liber- al and independent Democrats were counted out The New York demonstration, they think, was meant simply to influence the &C., ton of the Republican national convention. In Massachusetts, it was felt by refermsrs that something more was needed. It was thought that demonstration on the part of men who had no use for parties, if parties were going wrong. would be timely.
 This action of the Massachusetts liberal reformsrs will cause much discussion. It will probably be generally admitted by Re- publican newspapers that they have a per- feet right to hold convention, but even the most advanced of the independent newspa- pers will have hesitation about advising them to nominete ticket, for it Is pretty plain that such course would to 8 great extent neutralize their influence. General Francis A. Walker gives the Massachusetts reformers some advice as follows: It appears to me tAhb GA6 OUS1 I44As 6O OS uOQ0 Ab present. IS to await the action of the national Repabli- | can convention. We have very good chance this year to nominate good man, and good chance to nominate very good man. That result would not in my judgment be promoted by prior convention of civil- service and tariff reformers, while the elec- tion of satisfactory candidate nominated by the regular Republican convention would be hindered rather than helped. Since, there fore, such action would neither increase ths l chances of the nomination of good man by the regular Republican convention, nor in- crease the chances of the election of such a candidate if nominated, it. appears to me unwise. am not in favor of aay political action which does not promise to lead to & direct, tangible, political good.
 General Walkers advice seems sound. He l further says that there is now a great deal 1 more than 8 good working and fighting l chance for the nomination of Senator Ed ! munds, and that no Independent can ask for l any better nomination. And he very cor rectly points out that the probability of this result would not be increased by an Inde- pendent convention.