Southern standard. (McMinnville, Tenn.) 1879-current, 1890-01-11

Hon. j. P. BUCHANAN, of Ruther-
ford county, President Of the Farm
ers' and Laborers' Union of Tennes-
see, addressed large crowd of peo-
pie at the courthouse here last Satur-
day. Very little public notice of the
appointment had been given. The
Warren County Farmers Alliance
held a meeting here on Friday, and
learning that Mr.. Buchanan would
be here on the following day, adj
journed their meeting over to Satur-
day, as we understand it. Mr.. Buc-
hanan came down on the early train
from Sparta Saturday morning. We
heard only the last part of the speech,
but can heartily endorse the most of
what we heard. He urged the farm
ers to more active participation in
political affairs, condemning mass
county conventions for selection of
candidates for Office or delegates to
state and district conventions. He
recommended primary elections in
preference to the mass convention,
and told the members of the Farm
ers' Alliance that they should all
unite in these primaries, regardless of
party affiliations, to secure the best
men. While Mr.. Buchanan is a
farmer, he is also too we'll schooled
in politics to believe that the Demo-
Gratis are going to permit the Repub-
licans to have any hand in naming
their candidates, or rice rerSd, not
withstanding they may be members
in common of the Alliance, Union, or
other organization. He made some
good points on the machine methods
by which mass conventions are usu-
ally run, and when he said he had
seen the chairman pull paper out Of
his pocket to refresh his memory as tC
whom he had been instructed to APP
point on certain committees, we won
dered if anybody in the crowd re
membered such things in this county
We also wondered if he didn't rathel
get next to the Warren County AL
lance when he told them in sub,
stance that the object of the organiza
lion was not to pass boycott resolutions
and if their highest ambition was t
save a nickel here and nickel there
on purchase of a calico or domes
tic, they were not much account
the order, and wouldn't stick long
He dwelt particularly upon the poin
: that if farmers wish or expect to eX
ert any influence in the control 0
public affairs they must read NOR,
newspapers, more zealOusly stud,
public questions and the science 0
government. He told them that i
was impossible for them to properl.
understand their duties as citizens, o
act intelligently upon political o
economic questions without readin,
newspapers. If the Alliance, Union
etc, will only teach their member
this one truth effectively, they viii
not have existed in vain, and yer!
soon will the agricultural classes be
gin to exert the power which reall.
belongs to them. 1.-THE Alliance vii
create in the minds of all its mem
bers in Warren county genuin
thirst after knowledge, and teacl
them all to fully appreciate the i'm
pOrtance of reading newspapers, W
, will take our chances on getting tn
great bulk of them as regular sub
: scribers to the STANDARD. Mr.. BuC
: hanan is an OutspOken aspirant 70
t the Democratic gubernatorial nomina
} ton. He is farmer we are told, ant
. as President of the Farmers and La
borers' Union we presume he is max
. ing a canvass of the state at the eX
? pense of that organization. Thes
| facts placed together prove that he j
| quite an astute politician as well as
= model farmer. Mighty few politician
5 are slick enough to make a pOlitica
campaign at somebody else's expense