The great West. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1889-18??, 1890-02-21
THE WITHDRAWAL.

The Labor Ticket Two Years Ago.
A correspondent writes to ask us
whether it is true that Mr.. Donnelly
remained in the field as the candi-
date OF the Farm and Labor party
for governor, two years ago, and can
vassed large part of the state, at
his own expense, and only withdrew
when a majority Of the Executive
Committee of the party asked him to
do SO.
We understand this to have been
the case. And we are also told that
at the close OF the great Labor
meeting, in the campaign, at Mime
apolis, when Mr.. Dennelly had SO far
given no sign of abandoning the
fight, the candidate for Lieutenant
Governor on the same ticket with
him, Mr.. j. P. McGaughey, whose
fidelity to Knights OF Labor prin-
ciples has never been doubted, came
to Mr.. Donnelly and insisted
that the ticket must be withdrawn !;
that it was an absurdity to
keep it in the field; that those
who put it up would not support it !;
and that if it received a small vote
at the polls it would disgrace the
labor cause and strengthen the mon
opolists. This demand was backed
up by the request OF the State Ex-
ecutive Committee; and then. and
not till then, Mr.. Donnelly withdrew,
at the least $3.50 poorer than when
he began the campaign. The whole
charge is a device of the enemy. No
friend OF the Alliance would today
advocate that we put state ticket
in the field; and yet the Alliance
sentiment is ten times stronger now
than it was two years ago. And two
years ago Mr.. Donnelly was adverse
to putting state ticket in the field !;
he was absent in England when the
Farm and Labor convention was
called; he had never advised such a
course; and when he got back he pro-
tested it's nominating any one, and
refused to be candidate, and only
yielded to the unanimous persuasion
of the convention. But he told them,
in his acceptance speech, that he ac-
cepted the nomination with the dis
tinct understanding that a large
enough fund should be raised to pro-
vide for a canvass of the state; that
the printing Of tickets alone for the
whole state would cost $500; and
that one man alone could not can
vass the great area OF the state; and
that a number OF speakers must be
put in the field and their expenses
paid. The leaders of the movement
assured him that $4,000 would be
raised; and a committee was ap-
pointed for that purpose. Mr.. Don
nelly started out and canvassed a
large part of southern and southwest
ern Minnesota, and when he got back
to St. Paul he found that instead of
$4,000 the committee had raised
about $4,000! Any one, not a sheer
lunatic or a dishonest knave, must
know that a state can not be can
vassed and party fight made with
any such pitiful sum. Evc~r one
who knows Mr.. Dor. knows that
ne is the le-S,o man to give up a fight.
&c Hcc mas led several forlorn-hopes in
Minnesota politics, but he found his
party dissolving under his feet.
Suppose he had kept in the field,
and polled two or three thousand
votes, it would have had no appre-
ciable effect on the election, but the
end of the campaign would have been
the end of the Alliance.
The whole attack on Mr.. Donnellv
is dirty and dishonest; and some OF
the men who we're loudest two years
ago in insisting that Mr.. Donnelly
should withdraw, are now loudest in
denouncing him because he did with
draw. We hope we have heard the
last of such scurvy fapdoodle.
The National Alliance Insurance
Company, now being organized
throughout the states. is both stock