People's party paper. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1891-1898, 1893-05-12
The Mercenary and Predatory Theory
of Party.

VI l.
Dallas News.
The Atlanta Constitution insists
that all reforms must be secured
within the party lines. If this bril-
liant idea had prevailed all along we
would still be outlying colonies Of
Great Britain, with plenty of taxa
ton and no representation. We
might be today even an insignificant
portion of the Roman empire with 3
Caesar to worship if none of our
ancestors had ever left the ''grand
old party" The ridiculous theory
of the Constitution is the old, old
idea that ''the king can do no wrong"
Under it the people are responsible
to the king-a king simplex or king
multiplex-and the king is response
bic to nobody. The world is getting
full of enlightened who believe that a
political party should be held for it's
mistakes, its failures, its cowardice,
its crimes, just as other organizations
are held. Some of these people
have gone off with the populist move
ment. One of these writes: "Tariff
reform, free coinage of silver, income
tax and financial reform constitute
three fourths or more of the funda-
mental principles Of the Peoples
party, and consequently the adop-
ton of these principles by the demo-
cratic party will recall and entice
back to its fold nine-tenths of the
Peoples party who split off and de-
serted the Democratic party in de-
Tense of these very truths. The
Peoples party since its foundation
stone of Jeffersonian democracy"
This statement is followed by a
question, whether the Democratic
party will give to the people these
alleged blessings and thus pring back
to it's folds the wanderers who are
clamorus for them. The writer
says further: owe do not hesitate
to express it as our opinion that if
the Constitution can Undue and en-
force upon its party the principles
that it at present so ably advocates,
it will have done more to heal the
division than all things else combined
could have done. " The Constitu-
ton offers to do on this line all that
it can. But whether it shall be able
to convert the democratic party to
the populists idea of free silver, in.
come tax and other matters is not
considered imperatively important by
the Constitution. 1t contends that
the populists should come back IL
any case. But we would suggest, "
it says, "that the best way to bring
about the peace and harmony sug-
gested is for the third party people
to quit their foolishness and come
back again into the ranks of the dem
ocratic party" Why? Must peo-
pie who do not believe alike come
together merely to keep up party
machine? It may suit the spoilsmen
to have this done, but how are the
populists to secure what they want
through party that refuses, in spite
of the eloquence Of the Constitution
and others, to adopt their ideas of
government? The truth about it is
that party fealty, as understood by
the modern school of benefciaries, is
based not upon general agreement
and harmony of opinion, but upon
vague and fugitive promises for the
future and the tangible spoils of
Office in the present. A party that
depends upon nothing higher than
considerations of this kind is merely
an army Of which cowardice is the
only conscience and greed and hun
ger the only courage. Such party
should fall to pieces as soon as pos
sible.