The freeman. (Parkersburg, W. Va.) 1886-18??, 1888-02-08
THOSE COUNTER QUESTIONS.
Prot. Reynolds Answers Mr.. Mar
tins Questions in Detail.
A Profitable Discussion.
WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY, !
January Both, 1888. I
ED, FREEMAN,

ED. FREEMAN,
In your issue of Jan. %, Mr..
Martin of Richie G. II. asks me
some questions. l am ready to
give any information l can that
may help a good cause. lam al
ways willing-.too willing perhaps
TO give my opinion in regard to
questions of public interest-How-
ever, l must say, that in this case
I do not see the propriety of pro-
pounding such questions to me d.
rectly. I did not write as a cham
pion of the "Third Party" I have
no mission or commission to ex-
pound it's creed or defend its policy,
NV article cannot be construed
into plea for support for the Third
Party. Still, / will try to answer
the questions as far as they can be
answered, or rather, 80 far as l
know how to answer them.
/. What reason has the Third
Party for antagonizing either of
the old parties in their fight for the
Amendment? 2"
! do not understand that the
Third Party does antagonize either
of the old parties IN the fight for the
amendment.
If there is any truth in what its
friends and organs say, it is ex-
tremely anxious to cooperate with
the old parties in the fight tor the
Amendment. The chief complaint
against the old parties is that they
as parties, will not cooperate in
this fight. The Third Party, hav-
ing no hope of getting the cooper
alton OF the old parties in this fight
for the Amendment, is begging the
friends of the Amendment in the
old parties to cooperate with it
(the Third Party) in the fight for
the Amendment, if in nothing else.
This does not look like antagonism
to me.
But, as a matter of fact, though
the Third Party does not antagon-
ize the old parties in the fight for
the Amendment, it does antag
onize them and it does it, I pre-
sumo, in order to beat them-in
order to live. 1t antagonizes the
old parties for the same reason that
they antagonize each other, for the
same reason that they both antag-
onize it. A party must live and
succeed by antagonizing other par.
ties.
Yankee like, 1 would answer this
question by asking another, viz:
Why should the old parties antag-
onlze the Third Party in the fight
for the Amendment?l And still
another: Why should members of
the old parties antagonize the
Third party by voting against the
Amendment?
2. "Will their denouncing the
old parties add votes tor the
Amendment or strength to the 60
called Third Party ?"
l do not think that the Third
rarity expects to get votes for the
Amendment by denouncing the old
parties. 1t wishes the fight for the
Amendment to be strictly non-par-
tlsan, and desires and expects that
every body shall vote for the
Amendment on it's own merits, not
On account of the parties that advo-
cate 1t, and especially that nobody
WILL vote against the Amendment
on account of any party, or what
any party may say about any other
party.
The old parties denounce each
other continually and vehemently.
presume they expect to gain
strength by it. If not, do not see
why they do it. Now, if denuncia-
ZION Is so popular and potent an in
stfument in the hands of the old
parties in their contests with each
Il other, 1T seems reasonable that it
might also aud some strength to
me Third Party, especially if the
pronunciation is just.
Again, Yankee like, l must ask