The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1890-11-20
THE BALANCE OF POWER.
The Farmers Alliance in Politics to Stay.

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THE BALANCE OF POWER.
The Farmers Alliance in Politics to Stay.
/ WASHINGTON, Nov. 9.-No feature of
the late election has caused more genu.
inc surprise and CONSERVATION in the
Republican ranks than the results
achieved by the new element in the poll.
tics of the country-the Farmers ALI
ance.
The advent of this new party was hail.
ed with delight by the Republican lead
ers. They knew its strength would be
mainly confined to the South and trans.
Mississippi States. Confident of their
enormous majorities in such States as
Kansas, Nebraska and Minnesota, they
thought the Alliance could not work
them serious harm, and they viewed the
movement as one we'll calculated to break
up the existing political lines in the
South. At last, they exclaimed with one
voice, a political force has been found
which will destroy the Democratic solid
ity of the South and which will split the
Bourbon cohorts in twain. How sadly
they deceived themselves the results of
the recent elections fully demonstrate.
While in the Southern States the Ali.
ance men, almost to a man Democrats,
went in to control Democratic primaries
and conventions, their brethren of the
West, largely Republicans, held aloof
from the old party, and decided to make
their own nominations and 60 it alone.
The reason for this difference in the pol
icy of the organization 10 the two sec
tions was doubtless due to the fact that
while in the South the Democratic party
was already committed to many of the
principles advocated by the Alliance,
the Republican party in the West and
elsewhere was committed to no single
one of them. The Alliance in the South
was satisfied in the main with Democrat.
ic policy, and only aspired to control
that party 80 as to shape it's legislation
in certain directions, but in the West the
Alliance was heartily disgusted with
Republican policy, and it realized that
the record of the party in Congress left
no hope of securing any of the desired
reforms at its hands.
In Alabama the Alliance nearly sue.
ceeded in nominating the Democratic
candidate for Governor. In Georgia,
South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas it
did succeed in controlling the Demo.
cratic State Conventions and in placing
its men at the head of the tickets, and
they have been elected. In some fifteen
Congressional districts in the same
States Alliance Democrats secured the
nomination over regulars" and in
many others, where they failed, the
Democratic nominees, since elected, are
pledged to the Alliance platform, with
the single exception of the sub-Treasury
scheme. In st least two States, Georgia
and South Carolina, it is believed the
Alliance will control the selection of the
United States Senator. The Alliance in
the South has not injured the Democrat.
ic party it has mere dominated its rom-
nations in certain localities.
How different the result in the West |!
In four States hitherto regarded as veri-
table Gibraltars of Republicanism the
Alliance has fairly overwhelmed the
Republican ticket. In Kansas Repub-
lican majority of $4,000 has either en-
tirely or practically disappeared. Five
out of seven districts return Alliance
Congressman, and the Legislature chosen
will retire Ingalls,.
In Nebraska the Alliance has almost
elected the Governor, and at any rate has
compasaed the defeat of the Republican
nominee by letting in the Democratic
candidate Two Alliance men and one
Democrat are elected to Congress. The
Republican party has been, for the time
at least, obliterated.
In Minnesota, while the Republicans
apparently elect their Governor by an
| apology Of plurality, they have virtu'
ally suffered defeat, for as sgainst the
two opposition parties they are in a
hopeless minority, and they have lost the
FIVE Congressman and the Legislature.
In South Dakota the Alliance contested
with the Republicans on equal terms.
In Michigan and Illinois the Alliance
did not put ticket for State officers in
the field, but the organization has elected
legislative candidates and generally con-
tributed to Republican defeat. It may
hold the balance OF power in the illinois
Legislature and control the election of q
successor to Senator Farwell.
Such is the outcome of the Alliance
movement in the campaign of 1880.
The deductions therefrom are pertinent.
It has shown itself to be power in
American politics, and in future elections
it is likely to be very important factor.
No political movement has ever shown
such amazingly vitality in such short
space of time.
As it looks now, the Democratic party
seems likely to be the immediate benef.
ciary of the Farmer Alliance "idea." !"
The returns from the West show conclu.
siYely that united the Democracy and
the Alliance can carry nearly every large
Western State, and even when running
separate tickets the Alliance draws so
heavily from the Republicans that it
eopardizes the success of that party in
all the great agricultural States of the
Mississippi Valley. There is no question
that the Alliance holds the balance Of
power to day in Illinois, Iowa, Michigan,
Minnesota, Kansas, Nebraska, and prob
ably in the two Dakotas.
Whichever party secures its support is
sure to win in 1892. Without its sup.
port or with its hostility the Republican
party is in hopeless minority. The
States it promises to control have always
been considered Republican strongholds,
ond they have been added up in the Re-
publican column as certainly as Georgia,
Alabama and Mississippi are put in the
Democratic column. With some of these
States voting for Democratic candidate,
or even casting their electoral vote for
an Alliance candidate for President,
New York ceases to be pivotal and the
issue becomes much involved.
The Republican party can hope for
nothing at the hands of the Alliance.
The lattersowes its creation to the pre-
tectiye tariff policy Of The 6. Q. p. aud
to its Indifference to the needs of the
masses. Its aim is to alter and annul the
very legislation in which the Republican
party AYERS its absolute belief.
Tie Democratic party is much nearer
to the Alliance in its sympathies and
tendencies. Both advocate tariff reform
and low taxes. Both are against mo.
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