The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1891-10-08
DEFENCE OF TIE ALLIANCE PLAN.
Any Alliance Man can Vote According to
his Convictions, but Macune, Stokes
and Talbert Say that when the
Alliance Majority has Decided
on Policy every Mem
Der of the Alliance is
Bound to Support

COLUMBIA, September 25.- Secretary
of the State Tindal handed the follow.
ing this morning to this correspondent
for publication in the News and Cou'
rier:
To the E ditor of The News and Cou1
ier: Your paper and some other daily
papers have assumed an attitude to-
wards the Alliance which bodies evil to
the whole State.
The people who are not eligible to
membership in the Alliance are taught
to believe that the farmers are seeking
to rule them through secret, oath
bound political society. This is not
true. The secrets of the Alliance are
for business and social purposes. When
one enters a store to buy piece OF
goods he finds secret mark upon 1t. 1t
is the merchants secret. It is his right,
and no one complains ofit,:1t is very
unwise business man who parades his
business affairs before the world. And
no one has right to complain of the
secrets of the Alliance.
Suppose the merchants in their
boards of trade should conclude, from
frequent interchange of views, that
their iaterests would De promoted by a
certain law, or by certain changes of
existing laws, what could they do but
60 out before the whole people to advc-
cate their measures? This is all which
the Alliance has done politically In
their contest with the Bagging Trust,
and the cruel extortions of the credit
and lien law business, they naturally
enough inquired into the cause of the
evil and She way to remove it. They
laid their unfortunate condition before
the country, and the measures which
they think would relieve them in the
most public manner, and invited the
fullest discussion of them. They had a
right to expect that in other classes
they would find many humane people
who would consider their case in fair
spirit.
,MAcUNE's DOCTRINE DISPUTED.
No mans vote politically is bound
by any oath of the Alliance, nor car be,
for the reason that the Alliance has no
right underi;s constitution or laws to
ask him how he voted at the last elec-
ton; and so far as politics is concerned
there is no Alliance oath nor secret. If
you can by fair argument show an
Alliance member that you have a
better remedy than his tor the made
quate supply of money, there is no
Alliance oath to hinder him from
asserting to your proposition. The de-
mand for more money and the best
way to get it is therefore as open for
public debate as any political question
which ever was before the people.
Senator Morgan, whom you quote,
says: "Before the great Democracy is
required to adopt the Oeala platform,
it should be discussed bcfore the people
and voted on in Democratic primaries,
and every Democrat should be heard
datiently, fairly and fraternally, who
wishes to be heard" etc. That is pre-
cisely what the Alliance proposes.
It seeks to get patient, fair anG frater-
nal discussion. 1t has failed to get it
so far, but is making very rapid pro-
eress. The enemies of the Alliance
have tried to prevent fair discussion
and to denounce in advance every man
as demagogue who might sympathize
with the Ocala demands. Instead of:
patient, fair and fraternal discussion it
has been socialism" "paternaiism,"
ssundemocratic demagogueism," which
is mere abusive assr rtion and not dis
cussion. .--.
When Christ restored sight to man
who had been born blind it caused
great wonder among the people, and
they took him 10 their rulers, the
Pharisees, to hear an explanation of it.
They denounced Christ as an imposter
and devil. The blind man demonstrated
that whereas he was blind he now
could see. This argument made them
oluiad. They said: "Do you who are
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