Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1890-11-27
A GRAND VICTORY.

The Peoples Protest Against Spoliation,
BIisrule and Tyranny.
The people have spoken. Little is
wanting to add emphasis to the express
sion of their will. The earthquake voice
of discomfort with the dominant party
was followed by the tidal wave which
swept away that party's majority in the
popular branch of Congress.
The issue of these elections has a sig
niticance which reaches far beyond party
lines. 1t is triumph of popular gov
eminent. It is a new vindication of
Democratic rule, not in the mere parti-
san sense of the term, but in the
broader meaning of Government by
the people and for the people. The peo-
pie have demonstrated again their
capacity to protect themselves from the
selfshness of individual greed and the
madness of party spirit.
Never, perhaps, in our political an
nails has there been surer. swifter or
more striking popular condemnation
of the delinquencies of political
leadership. In spite of the sophis-
tries with which the Republican
leaders sought to befog the issue,
in spite of the countless misstate-
ments by which the Republican press
has tried to mislead the uniformed,
the people knew that the KcKinley bill
was an utterly indefensible measure.
viewed from whatever standpoint they
might select. They preceived clearly
enough that it put up the prices of the
necessaries of lite and added to the
burdens which they had cheerfully
borne when there was need. but which
they wished to lay down when the ne
cessity was past. They saw with q
clearness that no specious fallacies
could obscure that there was no public
reason for these new impositions. They
could not fail to see, and they
did see, that this measure was
but the payment of political deb
which Quay and others had contracted
| and for the payment of which they hai
assumed, without authority. to lay {
| mortgage upon the property of the PEG
| pie of the United States and to put il
| pledge the future earnings of labor
| Against this colossal usurpation, thi!
autocratic assumption. this arrogant
and insupportable tyranny, the freeme1
| of America revolted, and they knew
| how to make that revolt effectual. They
spoke their will in words plain enough
and terms loud enough to exclude al
possibility of mistake.
The new tariff law was provocatio,
enough for a popular uprising. but ther'
was omething more. Behind the gian
| spoliation stalked the sinister specie
of force. The Lodge election bill was
menace to the tranquility of the coun
try, a needless menace, gratuitou
disturbance, an insolent defiance o
public sentiment, born Of political reck
1essness and boundless greed of power
When we say it was defiance of pub
lie sentiment, we speak advisedly, TO
the country wants peace. We have hat
enough of hate, enough of recrimina
ton. enough of strife evoked and fos
tered to smooth some ones path to tn,
honors of place and the emoluments o
Office. The people of the different sec
tons need a rest from strife and dis
turbance. that they may learn to know
one another better, to do justice to tn
sterling qualities that are found anon,
the Inhabitants of every division of thi
| magnificent country, and to join thei
endeavors to build up the waste places
and vie with each other along the path
way of development and progress
is to destiny such as this, it IS t
achievements of this kind, that the vic
tories of the 4th instant unerringl
point; and it is to this spirit that we hal
them as harbingers of hope, as cheer
ing and auspicions omens, not merel
for the Democratic party, but also fo
all the people of the grandest Republi
beneath the heavens.-Louis vile Coul
ier-Journal