New-York tribune., 1886-07-19
6u0DE ISLAND REPUBLICANS
,,,sE REPORTS AND THE REAL FACTS
PARTY SOUND TO TaE CoRE-oRIGIx AND
ASIMUs OF RECENT YICroNs.

-
81, 81 am sorry to hear that Rhode Island will
-'s,.hlv be a doubtful State in the election next
~ wrote a friend from Washington tins week.
sTbone YOU will fix up the misunderstanding that
-, divides the Republican party there and seno
:. two good, strong Republicans to represent you
:. .ha lower House. 1t would be very dlscourag-
,or us in the West to feel that some OF the gains
'en.ct 'e To make there are in danger of being
..-nI;zed bv the election of two Free Trade
C~.,ocr.ts from Rhode lsland-or even one
- Won will succeed with your prohibitory e4-
D.,;nen, but IL wouldn't help the movement IN
- of constitutional prohibition in other states
:, one Of the first fraits of with you should be the
Sefeat of the Republican party in the Congress
ional election" /.
don't know how widespread the impression 10
tha; we in Rhode Island are " al tore up loii'i-
.allv. that the elimination of the rum influence
from the management of the Republican party anu
,he loss of the money il has contributed for eiec
.,,nrrnoses have doomed US to certain defeat, and
..o+ because rum cannot longer be constitution
slIr or legally sold in Rhode leland and prohioilion
,robibits TO such an extent that the numoer oi
a--osts for drunkenness has been reduced 10 per
a., the democrats are to have everything tuer
oyn way in the future but a letter have Just
,,ived from Republican editor IN Philadelphia
d;scjoses the fact that he is afflicted with the same
sloomv authorizations about Us, and found Oy
ch,t with some of the Republican magnates IN
Roston the other day that even our near nelghoors
had very erroneous ideas of the political situation
here
Vow there isn't word Of truth in any OF thc
reports YOU may have heard about trouble LII 'no
Republican party of Rhode Island 10 DC sure we
have had q good deal of excitement mere the !as'
three months how could 1t ee Otherwise aIleI
snch a, unexpected revolution as constitutions
nrobibition causes But the lines have been dis
tinctly drawn. and none of them runs through the
Republican party-indeed, they extend so far out
side of recent boundaries to take IN great
many voters upon whOm the party has recently had
only a weak hold. while those who are posing as
adissatisfed Republicans" are mostly Democrats
Mncwurps and men Of most eminent respectable
itv WHO haven't considered il proper thing TO
qualify as voters.
The disseminatOr of this widespread misinfor
nation in regard TO Rhode Island politics is he
Jrordeace Journal; and 1t is not strange that read
ers of that newspaper ut a distance. knowing the
commanding position 1t held IN the State for "A
third of a century, under the control OF the late
Senator Anthony and his able Lieutenant. George
W Danielson should be alarmed when they read
on It's editorial page the vituperatiye abuse when
it beaped upon the Republican members OF the
General Assembly few weeks ago; the repeated
assertion that they are set OF tncksters ana
traders who have brought irretrievable disgrace
upon their party and the State; that they cce-
brated the election of a Chief of State Police to
enforce the prchibitory law by a drunken debauch;
that the Ring" propose to nominate two OF these
shameless fellows for Congress. and that they are
certain to be defeated. OF course people living out
side of Rhode Island-very few at least-know
that The PrOrdenc Journal that says all this Is not
The Prorifence journal owned and edited by Senator
Anthony and George w. Danieison, and that Its
utterances carry with them none of the authority
that gave il much weight of old that its present
owners are Mugwumps and outspOken Free Trad
ers the latter being the owners of extensive oOl
len and wOrsted manufactures for which they
would like to import the material free of duty
that Its editor and manager are both unknown in
Rhode Island and have neither the confidence nor
acquaintance of the Republican leaders, and
that so lar from beng authorized 10 speak for the
Republican party of Rhode Island, II is to-day, and
has been for months, engaged i'll a relentless war
fare upon the recognized leaders of the party and
upon the measures TO which it is committed, and
day after day is eutreating somebody to = organ
ize - for the overthrow of the Republican organiza
ton Who that somebody is, nobody seems TO
know. for as yet there has been no response.
Now the members of the General Assembly who
have been the subjects of this violent abuse are
among the most respected citizens of this State.
men against whose characters there never has been
a breath Of suspicion and whose public careers
have been as pure and honorable as their private
lives have been upright for years they have been
the most active and prominent Republicans in the
cities and towns in which they live, and there is
yet to appear the first circumstance to indicate
that their constituents displeased with any
thing they have recently DONE The passage of the
so-called District Court bill" reorganizing the
lower branch of the judiciary of the State. for the
enactment of which The Providence Journal de-
nounces these men as tricksters and traders" "
was dealt with entirely upon its merits. 1t was
first proposed several years ago; in the last Gen
eral Assembly it was carefully and patiently con-
sdered by the Judiciary Committee of the House,
reported, discussed. amended ana passed 1t
reached the Senate late for careful considera-
tOn at the January session and SO was referred TO
Joint special committee with instructions to re-
port Il 70 the next Legislature at its May session
AL tbs happened before anybody dreamed that
constitutional prohibition would be adopted OF the
Office Of Chief OF State Police created. |
Newport during the whole OF the May session of
the General Assembly and | speak from a positive
knowledge when say ii at there was no bargain
OF secret understanding IN regard TO the passage of
that bill, aud that suggestion was made as TO
where any nomination should go in the future IN
return fOr a vote tor H.
General Charles H. Braytol was elected Chief of
state Police because majority OF the members of
the General Assembly knew that be could and
WOuid enforce prohibition If any in the state
could DO lt. and because they determ ned that
IL should never be said that the Republican party
omitted 70 10 anything that was necessary 10 make
prohibition a success in Rhode Island. General
bIaytOn election was surprise TO the people. and
many were at inst dOu btful about the wisdom OF IT,
pput When I was publicly known that General
hiaylon had gwen his word that he would do his
outy ltarlessy, the opposition disappeared and has
siuce been confined TO the small clique whom l
described earlier ii this letter and whom alone,
Ihe fTOr,deRce Journal represents The story
ABOUT dIu ken debauch by which members of the
OeheIai Assembly celebrated the election of Cen
eai Bray ton IS lie made up out of " ole cloth by
a@ Lfor'den@ journal for the purpose of dIscredit-
Hg tlose gentlemen With their constituents. he
YVef"Gt has published the libel twice cditOrIally,
put although II has been cha lenged over and over
eEaA % give unLLes. daIe and n-aDe has