Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1890-12-18
DEMOCRACY

| AND THE NATIONAL ALLIANCE.
Cleveland Leader.
We do not suppose that any man in
any party who is in full possession of
his powers of observation and reasoning
has any idea that the Farmers Alliance
can elect the President in 1892 Ger
tainly no competent observer can enter
tain any such notion. The utmost that
the Alliance can do under circumstances
most favorable to itself would be to car
~ half a dozen States The Repuhli-
cans and the Democrats would carry the
remainder The result as to the Presiden-
tial election would be the same if the AL
lance carried twelve or fifteen States.
Whatever the number, part of these
States would be taken from the Repub-
lican and part from the Democratic col
umn, for the strength of the Alliance is
as great in the South as in the West.
Suppose, for example, that the Alli-
ance carried half dozen States in
the South, and as many in the West;
what would be the result? Simply this,
that no candidate would have MAORI
ty in the Electoral College, and the elect
ion would be thrown into the House of
the Fifty-second Congress, the Congress
ional delegation from each State having
one vote. In that House the Democrats
viii have majority of the Congress
men from thirty States, and the Demo
cratic candidate would be elected by
vote of 80 to IA.
The situation will be better under
stood when it is explained that under
the re-apportionment bill that is likely to
pass, providing for House of $50 men,
bers and increasing the Electoral Col
lege to 444 members, the Democrats will
have 226 votes, three more than a ma
jority, if they carry the States that went
for Cleveland in 1888 and New York
and Indiana besides. But if the Alli-
ance should should carry even one of
the States that voted for Cleveland in
1888 no party will have majority in
the Electoral College and the House
will elect.
Now we see why the Democratic or
gans are booming the Alliance, and why
the Democratic leaders are taking such
an active part in shaping the political
policy of that organization. If the |
Democrats carry all the doubtful States
in I892-New York, Indiana, Connect
cut, New Jersey, and West Virginia |
they can elect their candidate in spite of
the Alliance if the latter does not carry
more than one Southern State. If the
Alliance proves strong enough to carry
three or four Southern States the elect
ion will go to the House, which will
choose the Democratic nominee. If the
Alliance carries four or five Republican
States, without regard to the South, it
may prevent the Republicans from Sc
curing majority in the Electoral Col
lege, even if they carry New York and
Indiana, and throw the election into the
House.
Without the Alliance in the field the
Democrats will have one chance to elect
the President in 1892. With the ALI
ance it will have two-one in the Elect
oral College and one in the House
That is why the Democrats are coddling
the Alliance. Every vote cast for Alli-
ance candidates for President and Vice
President will be vote cast for the
nominees of the Democratic convention.
With them it will be case of "Heads
win, tails you lose," if the Alliance de-
velOps political strength.
But in the knowledge of. these facts
lies probably good defense from the
threatened danger. When the Republi
can members of the Alliance see, as they
will, that voting for the Alliance candi-
dates, if they are nominated, is simply
voting to allow the Democratic House
Of the Fifty second Congress to elect the
Democratic candidate for President, they
will vote the Republican, ticket. They
might prefer to elect an Alliance candi-
date, but they will not vote to elect the
Democratic candidate. AS the choice
must be between a Republican and a
Democrat, they will choose the former.