Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-11-01
Mr.. MILLS AT HOME.

CoRSICANA, Tex, Oct. 31-"For God s
sake don't let it go up to the north that
you have stood up for the senate bill and
gone back on the Mills bill. Mills fought
prohibition last year, it is true, but this
year he is fighting for your wives and
little children, he is fighting for cheap
clothes, cheap food, cheap fuel and cheap
shelter"
This was the appeal Senator Coke made
two nights ago to the people of Waco.
The senator has come from Washington
as quick as he could, and he is
trying to overcome the Democratic dis
affection with Roger Q. Mills, in whose dis
trict Waco is the chief city. Again he said
IN his speech:
Il hear people say that they will oppose
Mr. Mills on personal grounds, and | tell
you truly this Is nc time for personalities.
If Colonel Mills was my bitterest foe and
he was opposed politically to my own
brother, / would vote for Roger O. Mills.
If you defeat Mills, you defeat tariff re-
form for twelve years, and If you reduce
his maj ority it will be a severe shock to
the movement, for the people of the north
who recognize no other issue than the
tariff will say: See, Mr. Mills own peo-
pie have repudiated him for his tariff
views Stand by Mills, for he is the
Democratic party"
From such appeals as these, made by
United States senator within ten days of
the election, the interference may be drawn
that Mills is in danger of defeat. There is
nc doubt of it. The situation is desperate
The whole power of the party organization
is being eXerted to avert the clamity
Mills must not be defeated" is the text
of the political orators imported into the
district from all parts of the state. Over
the timid the party whip is cracked. Upon
the more dependent the pressure of earnest
persuation is brought to bear. 1t is cam
paign of anything to save Mills, and in a
district which gave him $4,000 majority in
1884, and 800 majority in 1856.
The extent of the revolt is simply be-
yOnd measure. Had the election taken
place a week after Mills came down here
and received his denomination he would
have been badly beaten. Now it is a
question whether threats and persuasion
will bring enough of the disatfected back
into line to hold the district for the free
trade champion. In a presidential year
such appeals as Senator Coke is making
20 a long way in Mills favor, much furth-
er than anything the champion could do
for himself. Ex-senator MaXey has been
doing for two weeks what Coke is now
doing, and Senator Reagan comes into
the district to add his appeal in Mills be-
half.
Here in Mills own county (Navarro)
where he has lived for more than thirty
Years. the feeling Is so strong against him
hat he will do well if he comes out even.
There are two county tickets, One re
jOces in the title of the regular Demo
cratic ticket. On the other every nominee
has been Democrat, and some of them
are men who gave Mr.. Mills his start in
political life and stood by him when he
was unknown to fame This is
known as the peoples ticket The
split can be traced right back
To the political decree Mr.. Mills
has laid down that mo Prohibitionist can
he Democrat" A year ago Mr.. Mills
came from Washington TO throw himself
into the Prohibition campaign in Texas
He made the fight as bitter and as offensive
as he could on the part of the Ants. and
when il was over and Prohibition had fail
ed Mr.. Mills preached what he was pleased
TO call the funeral sermon of the Prohibi-
ton party" In the course of il he said to
his hearers: Now | want YOU Democrats
all 10 understand when you hold your
primaries and conventions next sum
mer, that these men the Prohibition Dem
ocrats) have no voice in them" The de-
cree was carried out by the party organi-
cation in Mr.. Mills own county All
Democrats who had taken any part on the
side of prohibition, when this campaign
came on, found themselves read out of the
party. This shut out many of the best
men in the county, and led to the holding
of another convention and to the nominal
ton of the peoples ticket.
Let it be borne in mind that the
opposition to Mr.. Mills in his own
county is not TO his anti-prohibi-
tion views, but to his offensive
insulting, dictatorial course: to his utter
disregards of the rights of others; TO the
entire loss of confidence in him as public
leader. Conservative men say that fully
two-fifths of the Democrats of the county
Will vote against Mills, and that the only
problem Is the acton OF the 1900 Republi-
can voters, most of whom are black If
the Mills workers can not make large in
roads on the negro vote their leader will
have to sustain the rebuke of the loss of
his own county.