The Forrest City times., 1892-09-02
Making a Joke or It.

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 Republicans and papulites vie vith each other in holding the force bill up to rilicule and describing 1t as a mere
 scarecrow. made up by democrats for campaign purp0S-S \ perSnn unac quainted with recent political history
 would imagine from the light and hu- morous veil with which this subject Is
 treated by them that is proper place
 in the campaign is with the false alarm
 sounded by republican spell binders and
 newspapers about the Confederate de- mocracy and ti:e rebel brisadiers. He would never suppose that tlie whole land was recently being rocked by a tre-
 nendous battle in the congress of the United States over this infamous meas
 ure. that the bill was passed through
 republican house of representatives and
 that republican president was waiting
 with feverish impatience to sign 1t ss
 soon as IL should pass the senate; that
 the defection of two or three decent re-
 publican senators, joined to tue solid
 democratic vote, finally defeated if; that
 upon its defeat every republican organ
 in the country made the air blue with
 curses against the republican traitors"
 and bitter maletictiOns upon the mli- derous "Southern brigaiiers:r that the republican leaders and republican or
 gans pledged themselves anew to cou- tinue the fight until this bill should be
 enacted into law; that tiIe party lately 1 assembled in convention and renewed it's declaration of war upon tue South. It would never for moment be sup posed by stranger to our recent his tory that any man or any party could have the impudence to treat the force
 bill as a jest with such d recent and such villainaus record behind it. All
 these things the republican orators and their populite allies suppose that the
 people have forgotten. And they call it scarecrowi Now we defy any de-
 cent republican in this country to an- | swer the plain question: Would your party, if it had the power. pass the l Lodge election bili?" If he says no,
 he gives the lie to the solemn declara- tion of his party leaders and the action
 of the last republican congress gives the lie to him. Has single republican 1 leader disclaimed the action ot his party l in the Reed congress? Has q single one of them disayowed the purpose they so lately avowed with such em- phasis to renew the effort to pass this monstrouS bill as soon as they can? Where IS there republican leader CT a republican newspaper which will con- fess a desire to abandon the force bill?
 Not one. We defy any republican liar or populite fool on the crust of the earth to name one. Yet Ignoramus Winstead and Blatherskite Weaver af- feet to rldicule the South's protest against this measure as though 1t had never been a real issue and was merely invented by democrats for campaign pnrposesl Both are attempting to de- ceive the people. A little month ago
 the Republican party was waving the force bill in the air. Now it keeps it hidden in the folds of it's garment Weaver and his crowd have convinced
 the republican managers that they have a chance through the aid of the popu- lites to capture" several Southern states, and they have concluded that it
 would be wise to carry the force bill behind them instead of flourishing it in
 the air. Instead of advancing upon the South with naked sword and open threats, they come with pleasant words, with one hand outstretched in a peace l full attitude and the other carrying a | dagger behind their backs. The history of the infamous attempt to pass this hateful measure: of the violent and desperate means employed to force it's
 passage; of the trampling down of the
 rules and precedents of hundred
 years, and of driving lawfully elected
 democratic representatives from their
 seats in order to accomplish it, is too
 fresh in the memory of the Southern
 people for such squirt-gun politicians
 as Winstead, such blathering hirelings
 as Weaver or such scallawags as Me | Dowell tO make a joke of if Their
 buifoonery is nauseating and their
 hypocrisy deceives no one. The people
 are not fools.