The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1892-05-10
MACHINE POLITICS.

ton aom[os+iIn of the delegates from
int ~ congressional districts as to
CerU4rone He says the custom is for
mm~anoressional Convent IN to make
tno formations If So, 1T Is a very
tnG n1srom. and if insisted IN this
pau nav defeat the will of the people
YEA State. The effect of such a Gus
o. This wear will be to take the peO
w ~ nnawares and beat them in detail,
E~noansp they may not go, and may not
''ndprstand the Importance of going to
NV but the State Convention. The
anS essence of machine politics is that
:. va ddeafeats the will of the people. For
nvomnle: the majority of the people of
IT, State believe in 1. Free silver.
, - Increased credit currency. 3. The
meal OF the 10 per cent tax on the
ic r Of State banks 4. The repeal of
10 ~;ntprnal revenue law. s.. The re-
J1ction Of the tariff to a revenue basis,
nd 6 The absolute control (at least)
e the railroads for the benfit of the
nnop!e. This platform will S weep the
Statp bv fifty thousand majority. This
the machine politicians all know, and
they know. too, that such a victory
would sweep them into oblivion. They
have found out that the people are
coming here in vast numbers to the
State Convention. and that for once
thny are going to control it, and at the
very least they will make the platform
7 have indicated Now every sane
man knows that such a platform can
not be adopted at Chicago. and that
even i it could be. il would not carry
New York and New England.
Everybody with brains enough to
come n OUT of a shower of rain knows
that the Democratic sentiment in this
State is wide apart from the sentiment
the same name in some other sec
tionS The question then resolves itself
into one Of this magnitude: Shall our
Electors ant Congressman this gear
represent the sentiment of North Caro-
lima or Of some foreign State? The
have determined you shall
not have your views and sentiments
represented To circumvent you they
have devised the following methods:
l. To crowd the State Convention
wi h machine Democrats whom they
call "straightOuts A straightOut
dotes on dead issues, keeps his ia e
turned toward the SodOm of the past
and keeps always repeating 1855"
1870 dark days" negro rule"
L" war record. party, and traitor, >
He does not know that the people right
hi nose are in worse condition
in 1853
Machine method No. 9: To dilute the
platform with partisan verblage
until it will sit on the stomachs of all
moral dyspeprics. 3. To insist on
delegates to Chicago to take
back any features in our platform
offensive to the New York Democracy,
e. the "pUvotal State" To pre-
tend that the reform Democrats
are gOi z to adopt some outland-
Ish pension measures in order that
NAV weaken the reform in the
eyes Of the people. 5 To gOad those
relief to demand more than it
is pOs~ible to get. 6 To encourage the
sp0ils hunters and office seekers among
US to trade in our principles, and there
by divide and distract us with side
personal politics z. To per-
Secute us INTO making a political party
out of ourselves before we have given
ourselves the advantage of first offer
them our reform. 8 To fool us
into dragging State politics into our
50 that they car lash us with
the color line. 9. To deceive us into
believing that the addition of offices
and off e hunters into our ranks isany
real strength to refO m 10. To poison
the minds of the ignorant and vicious
the leaders of reform and to
them continually with having
no higher motives than office seeking
Fire thai battery into that group
yonder," said Napoleon; they are
The battery was fired and
the commanding general fell. Do you
catch the point? w. j. PEELE.
P. S-This is not a contest for men,
but for principles II you send only
men seeking reform to your cOnven-
tiOns, a bad candidate is an impOssi
bility. His defeat is already accom-
If the complexion of your
delegations is determined mainly by
their favoring or not favOring partlcu-
lar candidates. there will be confusion
worse coufounded. You will have re-
viT44d all the evils of personal poll
tics" against which | have so long
warned you A pers )nal contest Owe
non essential Offices is still more fatally
Objectionable No State office Is essen
tial to the success of our reform; sill
If you send only those honestly seeking
reform in national politics, they will
incidentally make the best possible
nominations In State politics. AS good
Democrats (and the reformers are the
best they will naturally vote for the
best and most available candidates for
all Offices, State and National; but as
reformers they will make it their great
first duty to secure a proper platform
in national politics and a proper set of
candidates to carry it out. and they
will keep out Of consideration all State
politics and candidates till this main
business be accomplished. The simon
pure Demo ratio reformers who have
put the truest Democratic principles in
the platform, will be the fiGtest to deal
with all matters of State politics, and
they will be the sureet to get the best
and most available man for Governor.