St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-09-19
u,LOGiCAL MIR OWEN

Ii was strange tumble of sound prem
Use and unsound conclusion that MIR.
Owen gave the large audience which
assembled Monday night in Newmarket
| hall to hear this prophet of a new polit-
zeal dispensation declare and eXpuund
its creed. The man of either OF the old
parties, who had learned the vital diff
ferences which give to them their
cause of being. who listened to him felt
that the speaker was striking out no
new path, was declaring no new polit-
ical faith. was laying down no new
political principle, but was wandering
along the border line which defines the
boundaries of the old parties, and was
sometimes on one and again on the
other side of the line, but always in the
province of one or the other. 1t was IA
mixture of incOmpatiDles, tumble Of
paternalism and individualism, of Re-
publicanism and Democracy.
1t is true, as Mr.. Owen said, that the
present conditions of society are but
repetition in other forms of the same
old struggle of man against privilege;
OF freedom against tyranny; of the
mass against the few. This has been
the story Of the human race from its
emergence from barbarism and the be.
ginningS of that organism called society
and government. In all times some
men have keenly realized the advantage
OF the use OF the enormous power OF
governments either to advance their
social or material welfare, and have
schemed and planned to get that control
in their own hands, and in all times the
masses have risen in revolt against the
inevitable tyranny that resulted, and
gained in the struggle a larger measure
of freedom. No matter by what name
these hostile elements have been called,
the party of privilege has always been
Daternal in its pretenses, while the CD
posing element has always been demo-
cratic.
1t Is also true that there is too much
idolatrous worship of mere party; too
much surrender OF the right of individ-
ual Judgment to the men. few in num-
Der. who direct parties. 1t is true that
the proper conception of party organi-
cation is that of a machine designed
and operated to effect certain ends
thought to be desirable in government.
1t is true that present conditions are
almost entirely attributable to the use
to which the Republican machine has
been put. But it is most illogical to
conclude that because one machine
produces bad results tina: therefore an
other machine. which has produced all
ho 70 mi hoc
far blessed with, should also be discard
ed and new machine constructed.
1t is not only illogical. but IL is waste
full Of energy, time and money. The
farmer who. finding one machine in
effective and refusing to use another
machine because the other had failed.
should go to work to build one himself
with all the disadvantage of want of
material, implements and skill, would
not exercise that horse sense which
leads men to do what they wish with
the best appliance ready at hand.
Political parties are not kept in stock
ready made. They are things of slow
growth, and years must be given to the
propagation of the ideas in which they
find their reason for existing. Time,
effort. money must be put into the build
ing of new party as in any other
human enterprise.
Ii, then, Mr.. Owen and the men who
are following him believe that the
present struggle is another one of those
between the mass and the privileged
few. here is great party already organ
lied. pledged by its principles and in.
dorsed by its past record. to wage the
contest for the masses. Mr.. Owen has
not tried it; very few of those who are
trying to build an ark of their own have
tried it; in fact, in this state their
efforts have only resulted in preventing
its trial and in continuing in control
the party on which they charge respon-
sibllity for existing conditions. 1t may
be true, we will admit that 1t is true,
that there are men in the Demo-
cratic party who are uudemocratic. and
who exert themselves to prevent the
party from accomplishing what it is
pledged to. Some OF these have, unfortu-
nately, sat in the power-house and ma
nipulated the levers to prevent the ma
| chine doing its full work. but it is
| easier to eXpel these untrue represent
atives than it is to build new machine,
| and it is vastly more sensible thing to
| do.
MIR. OVENS illogicalities may be
briefly summarized. He appeals to men
to cast off the thrall of party loyalty,
while he himself is unable to divest
himself Of party prejudice. He is a free
trader and the candidate of a party
which ignores the tariff in all its phases.
He is an opponent of class legislation
and belongs to party which clamors
for an extension OF it. He is free
trader in everything but silver, and in
that he is a protectionist more ultra
than any disciple of the school of Nc
Kinley. He would have more money,
and he opposes plan that would make
more than half of our money COM
modify merely. He is Democrat who
| abjureS Democracy because there are
Democrats who are obnoxious to him.
| He is all individualist III a party of ad.
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