The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1891-02-05
THE ALLIANCE OBLIGATION.
Fealty os Alliaacemen as Demanded by
the Ocala Platform.

the Ocala Platform.
To the Editor Of Thu Herald and
News:-l ask that you will reproduce
the following editorial which appears
in the last number Of the National
Economist, the official organ Of the
National Alliance, that members OF
the order may know the truth and
learn that my position is correct IN re-
gard to the obligation of members.
The writer has voted since lS32 and
never voted any ticket but the The
Democratic ticket. His life has cen
devoted to work for the common ,ood
and general welfare without reward or
the expectation of reward. He i. will
ing for the people to say whether he is
or ever has been an office seeker. he
is now an Allianceman, standing firm
ly on its principles, demands and meas
ures, and knows no party that opposes
them. He knows principles, demands
and measures alone, and members OF
the alliance who do not staud where
he does are ignorant Of their oollga-
tions or reckless of them.
No official can sell out the order
while he is member Of it without eX-
posure if he knows it. The traitor in
all ages has been the scum Of mankind.
The members of the order in Kansas
are loyal and brave. They heroicaliy
stood by their colors and elected an
alliance champion to the United States
Senate over Ingalls,, the bloody-shlrt
souatter. They were not sold out.
The editorial in the National Econo-
mist, volume !, No. IS, page 300, reads
as follows:
"The question is constantly being pre-
sented as to how much fealty each in
dividual member of the Alliance owes
to declarations of the National Farm
ers' Alliance and Industrial Union at
Ocala and st. Louis. There is no
question but that delegates to both the
Ocala and the st. Louis meetings, who
were present and participated in the
discussion and then voted upon the
measures, owe allegiance fully and
completely to the decision arrived at,
but in order to fix this doctrine as one
of the fundamental principles of the
Alliance, and to make it certain that
every such delegate did owe such allie
glance, the following resolution was
adopted by the Supreme Council at
Ocala:
"ResoIved, that we discuss freely, fully
honestly and thoroughly all measures and res
olutionS presented for consideration, and
that where the action Of the majority has
been had that we delegates pledge our united
support to them, believing when this body
has spoken 1t IL our duty 10 stanc as tnlt
10 the outside world"
"The adoption of this resolution for
ever settles it as to fealty on the part
of those who participated in the meet
ing Of the Supreme Council.
: LAS to the question of fealty to these
demands by the individual member
ship much might be said but since
these delegates to the Supreme Coun-
Gil were representatives elected by State
Alliances, which in turn were repre-
sentative bodies composed of delegates
elected by the counties, and they IN
turn were representative bodies COM
posed Of delegates elected by the subs
who composed the individual mem
bership of the Order; now, therefore,
every single member Of State, county
and sub-Alliances must Of necessity be
bound by such action unless they re-
| pudiate it. 1t is one Of the Oldest and
best established principles Of law that
the principal is always bound by the
act of his agent when the act CT
the agent has been made known
to him and he has not repudiated l..
Silence is a full and complete ratltlcs!-
ton Of the act Of the authorized agent
under all circumstances. This, Ii must
be admitted, fixes the question as to
fealty throughout the entire Order, and
pledges it firmly and irrevocably to the
St. Louis and Ocala demands, except
in such cases as it may have repudiated
such action. Brethren should remeul-
Der this when they hear an indlscreet
brother attacking the platform Of the
Order and ridiculing it, and talking in
the opposition. They should hold him
personally responsible, bringing him
before the proper authority and trying
him in regular form.
1.-The question may be asked, how can
the Ocala platform be repudiated ? The
answer is, the State Alliances can re-
pudiate it if they choose, and so can
sub-Alliances, and so can County ALI
ances. True an individual cannot take
any personal action in reputation,
but if he is not in accord with the
same and ready to endorse it, he
should withdraw from the Order, and
ioin the ranks of those with whom be
belongs"
The writer kindly requests all news
papers in the State, friendly to the
Alliance, to reproduce the above edito-
rial from the National Economist for
the information of alIiancemen.
Respectfully,
ELLISON S. KEITT.
ESoREE PLANTATION, S. C., Janu-
ary 81, 1891.