The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1894-01-03

costs when the rights of the people
were threatened. The rights Of the peo-
ticn whether the people shall own the
railroads or be owned by them. Al
ready IN this State insolvent railroads
refuse to pay taxes and boldly bid de-
fance to the people But are we shut
into buying these roads already built
at the fraudulently inflated valuation
of watered stock? If the fraudulent
water were squeezed out of them the
actual cost would probably not exceed
a fourth of the amount claimed. What
is to hinder the government from
building it's own lines? Certainly such
an enterprise would be a Godsend to
the three million men who are today
moneyless and homeless, with starving
wives and children among them, SIM
ply because the national bankers panic
has stopped the wheels of Industry ana
damned up misery upon the people.
a Democratic administration is pend
ing millions a year in permanent
Structures sor the safety and dlstribu-
tion of the mails. What would be the
difference in principle between DONG
this and constructing lines tor tne
transmission of those mails? A meas
ure that at the same time protect the
invaded rights of the people aud 1ur-
nisheS general relief from an over
shaaowing menace, looks very dis
tinctlv Democratic to US, and 1t Will
take something more, General, than an
exaggerated estimate of cost to fright
en- the people from 1t.
5. You say in regard to our demand
for the election of United States Sena-
tors by the people, that it will require
a change of the Constitution to etf-ct
this. There is no news in that. You
have, we suppose, read the demand
as printed in the body of your article,
| and you must have seen that it is dis
tinctIy demand to change the Con-
stirution. You fail utterly in this, as
ID previous instances, to adduce sim
gle argument why is it undemocratic
| to propose,a "a needed change in the Con
stitution. You say you hardly think
that the change Will be made in time
to allow any cf the present young aspl-
rants of the Alliance to test their
strength before the people" Just what
| bearing this little ling at the young
aspirants OF the Alliance" has upon
the undemocracy of the demand (thaT
is what you were to prove. is not ap-
parent. You say you "have never de-
nouneed the Alliance Perhaps not; but
covert hings at its leaders has been
faYorite way of trying to InJure it
among people who for political rea-
sons dare not denounce it openly.
6 Yes, as rule we as individuals
oppose tae State bank proposition of
the Democratic platform. But what
has that to do with the Ocala platform
which you set out to prove inconslst-
ent with the Democratic? "You have
we suppose, read the Ocals platform,
and if you did you must have seen that
it makes no reference whHtever to
State banks. What bearing then has
our individual opinions upon your
proposition that "no man who upholds
(the Ocala platform), can properly
claim to be Democrat ??'
But if we are to be kicked out OF the
Democratic party because we as lndl-
| vinuals oppose one plank in the party
platform, we will have goodly con-
tingent in our company. We will have
a majority of the Democrats in the
United States Senate, who opposed the
administration view of the silver plank
of that platform and we will have with
US the great masses Of the American
people.
What constitutes the test Of a Demo
crat any way in this degenerate day !
Is it unquestioning adhesion to every
plank Of the Democratic platform? Is
1t fidelity to principles? Certainly not
if We are to judge by the practice Of
the party. We have gold bug Demo.
Gratis and greenback Democrats, free
trade Democrats and protection Dem
ocrats and tariff for revenue Democrats.
The party of free trade elected more
than once high protectionist to the
highest position in the gift of Demo
cratic CUngress; and even now form
er Republican candidate for the Pres
idency occupies the highest place ID the
cabinet by appointment of a Democrat
ic President who had behind him a
Democratic Congress and the whole
machinery of government. If adher-
ence to every plank of the platform
were necessary to constitute man
Democrat, then Samuel J. Randall, q
| pronounced protectionist, could never
have been speaker OF a Democratic
Congress, and Walter Q. Gresham,
former Republican candidate for the
Presidency, could never be chief ad-
wiser Of Democratic President. What
then is the sole test of mans Democ.
racy under ths. practice Of the party
I Evidently it is his-ssnport of the nom
4 81 t,1n
Finally, after all your some@hat
lengthy discussion, you find only i've
out of twelve points upon which you
take issue with the Ocala platform
You distinctly agreed with two, as
does "every Democrat" you say. To
that extent you yourself uphold the
Ocala platform, and under your OWL
ruling you cannot properly claim &c
be a Democrat"
The most casual reading of our let
ter will snow that we made no objec
ton to your organizing what, in the
last analysis, would be Democratic
clubs independent of our State Demo
cratic organization. But we had nc
concern about that. We simply asked
you to explain your statement that enc
man who upholdS the Ocal& plat1orn
can properly claim to be Democrat
You refused point blank to answer the
questions we asked, md proceeded to
;. compare platforms, with the result
shown above, that not even ion tha
groand could you defend your charge
against US.
THIS effort to make it appear tha
we objected to your organizing Demo
cratic clubs is entirely apart from th'
question you yourself raised, and is no
warranted by anything we wrote. l.
appears to be IN line with your other
efforts to read Alliancemen out of the
Democratic party and dlscredit the
young Alliance" leaders. while pro
Tossing great respect for the organiza
tion. w. u. EVANS,
President South Carolius State ALI
ance. J.W. STOKES.
Lecturer South Carolina State Alliance