Salt Lake evening Democrat. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1885-1887, 1886-11-27
MUSHROOM PARTIES.


evidence of life and usefulness have their
origin and growth in the necessities OF
the times and the freedom oil thought,
not in written pledge, nor in blind de-
votion to one man.
Henry George demanded, as a con-
dition OF his consent to stand as candi-
date for Mayor Of New York, that the
managers of the movement should trot
around the city and obtain a written
pledge from given number of men that
they would vote for him. Probably of
the men whose names were so obtained,
not more than one in dozen
had ever heard OF Mr.. Georges name,
and not one in hundred-it might be
safe to say thousand-had ever read
the book wherein he elaborates his i'm
practicable theory, that governmental ex-
penses, together with material, educa-
tional and charitable enterprises for the
benefit of the needy and the improvident,
ought to be borne alone by land owners.
Any man who, at the dctation OF an
other, will sacrifice his free agency and
pledge himself in advance to vote for the
dictator, is not worthy to be an American
citizen. Not so have great reforms been
inaugurated. Imagine the sinless Nazar-
inc, sending Peter around with a written
pledge, conditioned that the signers would
vote for him as ruler of the synagogue in
his own native village, provided he would
preach deliverance to the captive and the
, opening Of prison doors to those who
were bound. Or that Luther would not
nail his defiance of the Pope upon the
| church door until he had the written
pledge OF Tom, Dick and Harry, that
| they would stand by him to the last ex-
= tremity.
S There are no "missing links" nor any
| counting of noses in the Ulean-cut evolu-
ton OF a necessary party. Like Topsy's
t beginning, it horned" itself. The natural
e laws of attraction bring men who think
e alike together, and the exigency OF public
e affairs give tone and direction to their
4 united action.
: Radical differences of opinion reaching
r deeper than the surface OF things lie al
r the foundation of the two great parties o.
/ this nation. They relate to vital anC
everything issues as to the very texture
# OF our government, to the scope OF the
powers of the States and OF the nation a
a whole. They range themselves on on,
= side or the other in the discussion of long
a lived governmental policies in their ap
n plication to great questions OF trade, com
u merce, social and educational life.
Into this legitimate province Q
party action, theorists, political ad
= venturers, retailers of half truth
and dealers in sugar-coated lie
~, are continually forcing themselves
" The arena OF political action attract
egotistical vain and ambitious men
Universal suffrage is the fulcrum aroun
" which they jostle each other in thei
=, efforts to plant the insignificant lever
they would have us believe are to NOV
the world. They would make OF tn,
oONtlhllcilI Stdpeeobt, upol MhoIii Y
lay their own sins and the sins OF tn
=. people, and send it away into the vii
3, derness OF speculation. And now come
- Henry George, or George Henry, or Mis-
le Nancy, as the case may be, with writ
% ten oath OF allegiance to the great lane
tax champion, in which the signer prom
ises that he will transfer his free will t
is the keeping OF majority his colleagues
J. that he will do faithful work on an
If committee that he may be appointed
" that he will devote at least four hours o
election day to the duty OF manning tn
=, polls (whatever that may be-; that h
= will be spy on the conduct of othe
pledged members OF the organization
"a that he will attend all meetings OF tn
l. organization unless prevented by sick
q ness, believing that through "our party
n will come the elevation of labor and tn
IT. downfall of the corrupt parties who no,
= rule the country. Amen!
y And so like Wandering Jew this pei
10 ambulatng creator OF parties, on paper
II goes up and down the land on his boot
. less errand.
, These are days of transition it is true
but the race has not yet entered its SEE