St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1891-08-22
THE LOTTERY AND THE PARTY.
New Delta.

new DeIta. Z s-I
Daily the lottery papers comes to us with
remonstrances against dragging the lot
terry into politics" At all times .can the
lottery supporters be found upon, the street
corners and in public places declaring
that the lottery is not a political question,
but one of State policy" and therefore it
must not be made an issue in the Demo-
cratic party.
We confess that our ignorance is so
dense that we fail to make any distinction
between political question" and "a ques-
ton of State policy To our mind they
mean one and the same thing, and an
effort to create difference between them
is jugglery with words made, or rather
attempted, for purpose.
On every side in the lottery ranks we
hear protests against submitting the aues-
tion to the decision of the Louisiaaa
Democracy; and whenever anyone ad}t,-
Gates such a course with the lottery ch'tr-
ter he is at once accused of desiring to
split the Democratic party" This we
construe into threat to refuse to abide
the result of action by the party upon the
question-in plain English, to bolt, if the
matter is decided against them; for the
only way "split" can arise is for one fac
ton to leave and set up for itself. This is
what the lottery crowd declares will take
place if the party is called upon to decide
the question; and, as they can speak only
for themselves, it means nothing more nor
less than that they will bolt if the issue is
decided adversely to Morris and his gam
bling scheme.
We make light on such threats. They
are the desperate utterances of a few baf-
fed and disappointed leaders, who, hav-
ing misjudged the honesty of the white
men of Louisiana, are now as greatly mis-
judging their courage. Having failed to
cajole, they are now trying to bulldoze.
The Democrats of Louisiana having re-
fused to become their accomplices in an
Infamous scheme to plunder the people
they are now striving to frighten them into
becoming their unwilling tools. They
know the ominous significance to the peo-
pie ST Louisiana of a division of the white
people at the polls. They know it means
return of negro domination, and another
era of responsible government and of
fraud. spoliation and robbery These are
the things with which these leaders are
threatening the Democrats if they refuse
to put their necks under their feet, and re-
sign into their hands the prorogative of
the Democratic party to decide questions
ofpublic policy for Democrats.
But their threats are idle These so-call-
nI foa fEafr II
legiance to the party any considerable
number of Democrats. They may each
take off handful of personal following in
revenge for the refusal of the party to obey
their dictates; but they can not disorgan-
ize the party itself and hand the State
over to Republicanism in retaliation for
its refusal to enter into partnership with
crime Whatever may have been their
power in the past mithia the party, outside
of it they are impotent. Their influence
within the party has been exerted in a /
vain endeavor to deliver it, bound hand
and foot, to the lottery company, and now,
telling that in that effort they have des-
troyed that influence, they are willing to
wreck the party.
The real position of these men can be |
put in q few words They virtually say /
.You must not let this matter be deter |
mined by the white voters of the State
but you must bring divided white vote to |
the polls and let sohd negro vote decide |
the issue. Ii you will consent to have the
Democratic convention ignore the lottery |
question divided white vote will be the |
result; and If you have that convention
condemn the lottery proposition, there |
will be a bolt and and the same result will be |
brought about" In other words, the de- |
termination is to have the matter put in |
such shape that lottery money can buy
enough purehasable negro votes to decide |
the issue in their favor. To this we say /
that the Democratic convention will decide |
the matter, and if they refuse to abide the /
decision, they will be Eliminated as political
factors in Louisiana