Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1891-08-13
r.PEslAL To TIE rLArS pElLEn.l

about June | with hand organ on
| his back by Mrs. Charlotte Smith, the
president of the WOman's Industrial
League of the United States, with in
structiOns TO grind out to the people OF
Ohio the pitiful story of Major McKin-
| ley's heartless treatment of him when
he was here last winter trying TO secure
pension. Mrs. Smith has no political
axes to grind in this matter. She is a
kind, generous. hearted woman who
has given her life Ia the cause of the
working women and suffering human-
! ty. She became interested in Fetter-
mans cfsr last winter when the poor
man was standing on the street corLers
trying to sell enough newspapers to
keep his sick wife and four children
out of the almshOuse. She went to
Major Mckinley herself and made a
personal appeal to him to get through
Fetterman's bill, which had been
pending for months, hut what with
turning legally elected Democrats out
of their seats and other affairs of state,
Mr.. Mckinley said he was too busy at
that time to look after the case of a
poor, blind veteran. He declined even
to see Fetterman. Mrs. Smith warned
Mckinley then that the time might
come when he would rue the day he
turned his back on George Fetterman.
That day has come. Fetterman's
wife was sent to the poorhouse to be
confined. The child of union soldier
was born in charity hospital because
the leader of the Republican party in
the house of Representatives was too
busy squandering the peoples money
to push through bill for the fathers
relief. When congress had adjourned
Mrs. Smith went to the pension office
and forced Gen. Raum to grant Fetter-
man pension of So month under the
recent disability act. This pittance,
however. was not sufficient to keep
Fetterman and his family alive, and
Mrs. Smith advised him to purchase a
hand organ, with which he might be
able to gather up on the streets enough
money to keep the wolf from the door.
Acting on this suggestion. Fetterman,
secured hand organ. The Italians
were playing them on every street
corner, but when the blind soldier,
who had helped fight the battles of his
country, sought to make a livelihood in
the same way, his hard fate pursued
him. Some Republican officials took
umbarge at the idea of union soldier
soliciting charity in the streets of the
national capital in that manner. They
said it did not look we'll under a Re-
publican administration and they in
duced the authorities to refuse him
license. That refusal practically drove
Fetterman out of town. When Mrs.
Smith heard of it she was naturally in
dignant at the hollow mockery of the
Republican claim to special friendship
for the soldier. She saw that they held
out a promise to the ear which was
broken to the hope; that as far as the
politicians were concerned it was
friendship of the lip and not of the
heart. Knowing the history ofFetter-
mans case as she did she laid the re-
sponsibility for his pitiable condition
at the door of Major Mckinney. Mrs.
Smith, therefore, believed that the
soldiers of Ohio whose votes Mckinley
would solicit should be informed of the
treatment one off their comrades had
received at his hands and she told Fet-
terman to 60 to Ohio and stump the
state against Mckinley with his hand
organ. Fetterman has literally fol-
lowed her instructions. He has gone
through the northern tier of counties.
Everywhere his story has preceded him
and his presence has attracted atten-
ton. He was at Cleveland during the
Democratic state convention and the
afternoon Gov. Campbell arrived he
stood out in front of the Hollenden ho-
tel grinding out his feeble welcome as
the band played 1.-THE Campbell's are
Coming"
Hundreds of people became interest
ed in Fetterman's case.
Mrs. Smith has received great many
letters from Ohio concerning it-many
more than she could answer. Several
of the head officers of the G. AR. who
are are trying to manipulate the Grand
Army in the interest at the Republi-
can party, wrote to her asking her to
deny the intervirw with her in the
Plain Dealer of June 80. To each of
these she replied that every word of it
was true and that more could be added.
She is ready now to make statement
to that effect over her own signature,
The Republican managers, and Major
Mckinley especially, are alarmed at
the crusade of the blind soldier and
they have sent several confidential
agents here to appeal to her to call
Fetterman off. One of them said that
this crusade would defeat Mckinley if
persited in. Mrs. Smith, however, has
steadily refused to interfere. She has
no personal interest in the matter ex-
cept that her sympathies are with Fet-
terman. She says justice demands that
the truth be known and if it defeats
Mckinley he has only himself to
blame. The major was not slow to ap-
reciate the damage Fetterman might
do him and had two interviews with
the blind soldier. The account of those
interviews is contained in two letters
from Fetterman to Mrs. Smith, now in
the latter's possession, one of which
the Plain Dealer correspondent has
read. The first one was written from
Wellston on July 13 and says that Nc
Kinley had sent for him and that he
had gone to see him. Mckinley was
evidently cautious at the first inter-
view, but he gave Fetterman to under
stand in a round about way that if he
would deny the Plain Dealer interview
he, Mckinley, would in his turn see
that the blind soldiers pension
was increased. Fetterman wrote to
Mrs. Smith for advice. The latter re-
piled by telling Fetterman that the
cause was one of principle. "McKin-
ley's proposition comes too late," she
wrote. Hold the fort, said she, land