The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1894-09-13

Light Thrown on the OfftCta
Record of Auditor Bierman
What Will the Democrats Dc
With Judge Willis, Who
Takes Pride in Being a Thirc
Party Man.
The Democrats of Minnesota, after Q
desperate struggle between conscience
and expediency, have at last got .
ticket in the field. The convention Of
the party held in st. Paul ON Wednes
day last was a curious spectacle. Flo,
weeks beforehand, the Democrats OF
the state had thought Of nothing else
but the issue-to fuse, or not to fuse.
In spite of the melancholy experiences
of two years ago, there was a very
large element of those hungry for local
Office who insisted ON another joiut
campaign with the Populists. To the
credit of the party it must be said, how.
ever, that there We're enough stead.
tasty opposed to this program to defeat
1t. When the convention assembled
there was no one who dared stem the
tide of anti-fusion sentiment, or give to
the fusion scheme anything more than
covert support This would have been
more praiseworthy if the party had not
given the lie to all its fine pretensions
at the last moment by indorsing one Of
the candidates, and that one perhaps
the most Objectionable of them all,
named in the Populist ticket.
Ofhcial Record Of Auditor Bierman.
The only two candidates of any par
ticular interest in this convention were
those of Mr. Bierman for state auditor
and Judge Willis for associate justice of
the supreme court. The remainder Of
the offices are filled with such Demo-
Gratis as would consent to accept NOM
nations; most Of them quite respect
able, and most of them, except General
Becker and Mr.. Ludwig, known to very
few people outside of their immediate
constituencies. Whatever may have
been his private reasons for fighting
Mr.. Bierman, Mr.. Doran's head was ex-
ceedingly level when he declared that
the Democratic party could not afford
to carry into the coming campaign the
handicap of its present state auditor.
Huge frauds have already been un-
earthed in the matter of state pine
lands that have been carried through
during the incumbency of Mr.. Bierman.
A large amount of money has been re-
covered to the state from those who
profted by these illegal transactions. 1t
is said by one of the committee, now at
work ON timber frauds, that the total
misrepresentation of state property dis
covered up to date will exceed million
dollars. 1t would be very difficult
matter to persuade any voter that mis-
demeanors of this number and amount
could be committed, and record Of the
transactions passed through the state
auditors Office, without any suspicion
upon his part of misdoings. If Mr..
Bierman's conduct of his Office has been
thoroughly honest, then he is too care
less man to trust with the immense
interests Of the state in its public lands.
As far as he is concerned, the Demo
cratic campaign must be defensive
one from first TO last.
What Will Dss,ocrats Say About Willis?
Less excusable will the straight-out
Democrats of the state consider the &C
ton of the convention in indorsing the
Populist candidate for associate justice
of the supreme court. If there is one
place in the government to which a
Populist should not be admitted under
any circumstances or on any plea, it is
its highest judicial tribunal The Peo-
Piles party has no respect for law. In
every state in which it has been in
power it has assumed that ''might
makes right" as thoroughly as any des-
pot who ever lived. To put such men
as this upon the bench is to say that
justice shall no longer be considered,
and that laws shall be interpreted ac-
cording to the personal or political in
terests Of those who administer them.
Tried by this test, Judge Willis is as
good a Populist as any of them. His
record ON the bench of Ramsey county
is the record of ranting demagogue.
He has repeatedly prostituted his high
Office to the basest partisan ends. 1t
was service such as this that endeared
him sufficiently to the Populist party to
make him their willing and welcome
nominee. He has never disclaimed
their principles, and in accepting him
the Democrats of this state have as
sumed all the dishonor of fusion with
out receiving single compensating ad-
vantage. Nothing can save them from
the consequences of this but prompt
and public rejection on the part of
Democratic voters Of the Populist can
didate.
Democratic Platform Lacks Meaning.
The platform adopted does not con.
tain single definite and clear cut prop
osition. Any man of any party might
take his stand upon its vague and gilt
tering generalities and declare that
they expressed hiss political faith. We
all of us believe in safe and sound
currency; in the rights of labor; in
equal justice to employer and employee;
In just pension system, and in arbi-
tration as method Of settling labor
disputes; but as to the specific methods
by which any of these general objects
are to be attained the platform is wholly
silent and wholly worthless. 1t is as
little inspiring as the ticket nominated,
or as the debates of the convention.
They all have the funeral air of one
prepared and resigned to his fate.
The leaders of the Peoples party are
not little chagrined by their failure to
make ten-strike out of the observance
of Labor day. 1t was down OH their
bills to have speakers Of their own har.
angue vast crowds of working men
everywhere on that day, and call In q
small army of recruits for the Peoples
party in November. 1t was a pretty
good scheme, based on the dissatisfac-
ton of labor with recent events, and on
the public advice of few heads OF
labor organizations to their members to
support the Peoples party. But, the
laboring man is no, such fool. Hif
political opinions are his own, and out.
side of the matters on which his union
properly assumes to control his actions,
he intends to be his own boss. Those
who assembled to listen to the political
speeches of Labor day were few in num-
Der and mostly those who think that the
organization of labor Is a means To q