The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1893-07-20
AN OPEN LETTER
TO CAPTAIN ASHE. EDITOR or THE
RALEIGH NEWS i OBSERVER

RNhe tOntrasteG---Nh here Butler got Iii
Pafri"ti" EntIusia.m.--Dear Captain
Right About Fac..''--shoot, Luke. q
Give Up the Gun.
Ny DEAR CAPTAIN-In the issue o
the News-Observer, July 9Th, you re
fer to Marion Buffers speeches il
Chatham county, advising Alliance
man of the Democratic faith TO LEI
the apostle Of discord and Of opposi
ton to the Democratic party severely
alone"
| ask you to pardon this open let.
ter in reply. 1t best suits my con
venIence TO submit in this way some
reflections for your patient and
courteous considerations. 1t will
reach thousands of eager readers
through Tue CAUCASIAN, and the
people will understand how deeply
| am concerned that the truth should
be known. The essential difference
between you and Butler is in adher-
ing 10 first principles. Butler ad-
vocates the sub-treasury or ware
house plan as a means of financial
relief. SO did you only short while
ago, with great force and vehemence
Butler advocates -metalicIsm.
SO did yOu until within the last few
days. You have abandoned that
and now say that the world Gnclud-
ing India, of course) is against silver
as IL money metal,
Butler advocates the free coinage
of silver. SO does the State Demo
cratic platform, and so did you until
stumped on the India scare-crow.
Butler advocates Il revision of the
tariff. SO does the national and
Stat.- Democratic platforms, and You,
dear Captain, were profoundly agi-
tated about the MCKINNEY bill up to
the very day of the election. Your
editorials on the tariff constitute a
part of the imperishable litera ture
on that great question, and they have
oeen carefully Y archived, let me hope,
for the intellectual diversion of your
readers two and four years hence.
Butler advocates an income tax.
SO does the State Democratic
platform and so do you. But both
you and the platform are likely to
change front on this question.
Butler advocates honest elections.
You are as dumb as Il December
oyster III the face of the most out
rageOus election frauds ever perpe-
trated on a fee people. You knew
when the State election law was
passed that its purpose was ballot
box robbery. You know to-day that
in twenty counties in North Carolina
in the last election twenty thousand
illegal votes were polled and al least
twenty thousand more legal votes
were Illegally suppressed. Butler
not.
The repeal of the ten per cent. tax
on State banks is your hobby, or at
least it was only day or two ago.
You advocate. in this connection. the
boarding % gold as a reserve fund.
Thus from Il bi-metallc and free coin
age advocate of last week, YOU out
Herod Herod as gold bug Of to day.
Butler advocates a stable. uniform.
cheap, elastic, sound national cur
rency. The agricultural interests of
the country demand such a currency.
Everybody who possesses a thimble
full Of common sense knows that our
financial conditions have entirely
changed since the honest. debt-pay-
,,,r 40 nf St,+o lo, w., Ill
IN to your hobby with some show of
but | shall be surprised /
f you do not soon abandon it. /
lOtIce that our members of Congress |
rom North Carolina. particularly /
hose "Alliancemen of Democratic /
'aith,' are taking the cue from you
and are about ready to surrender the |
sherman act for the repeal of the
State bank tax. Woe be unto them |
when they do it,
Butler urges the people to inde- |
pendent political action, believing
hat neither Of the two old parties
will give them the legislation they
demand. If that is a crime you are
o great extent responsible for it.
I ou we've Senator Merrimon's law
partner when he was a candidate for
reelection to the United States Sen
lte. Merrlmon was hOlter. He
was elected to the Senate over Vance
~ Republican votes. He was de-
bounced. maligned. cursed, scorned
throughout the State. His name was
1 by-word ond a reprOach. The
neaness "revenue raider" was a gen
,leman and patriot compared to the
now lamented Jurist, lawyer, states
! ou flooded the State with literature
the independentism that
mas since found a permanent abiding
place in the politics of this State.
lou, then, We're the 'apostle of dis
cord and opposition to the Demo
:ratic party" You gallently lead
he "forlorne hope" The seed you
hen distributed is the wholesome
bread that is now feeding the hosts
IF Independent "Alliancemen of the
Democratic faith" Truly, my good
it was bread east upon
he waters At that time Marion
Butler was a bare-footed boy rum
ling at large in the huckleberry
swamps of "sweet Sampson with a
oeu around his neck. 1t was an
sventful Saturday afternoon he
liked out in his Sunday clothes and
walked in to Clinton to help the town
boys shoot marbles and whittle dry
goods boxes. \ copy Of the Raleigh
Observer, then edited by Sanders and
Hale, containing your famous back
loor correspondence, fell into his
hands. From every section of the
State there appeared letter from
'one of the people" breathing the
spirit of revolt against the Demo
cratic machine" 1t set his ambitious
young soul on fire. 1t was that in
spiration that has made him the idol
zed leader of "Alliancemen of Dem
,cratic faith" who are now in revolt
against the same old Democratic
Merrimon-God bless his memory