Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1895-07-03
WORDS OF WISDOM
FROM T. L. NUCENT AS TO THE
PROPER COURSE.
The Abandonment of the Principles of
the Omaha Platform Would he Sui
cidal and Result Disastrously to the
Peoples Party.
Ct. L. Nugent, in Southern Mercury

IT. L. Nugent. in Southern Mercury
To be a consistent and persistent re-
| former requires, apparently, an enor-
nous amount Of faith and hope. Again
and again have the independent voters
endeavored to get together in the ef-
fort to wrest our government from the
control of the privileged classes and
restore to the plain masses that partic-
ipation in the conduct of public affairs
to which they are justly entitled.
Earnest and patriotic men in every
section Of our country have, for twenty
years past, labored with unselfish devo-
tion to unite the industrial classes of
both country and city in declaration
of principles upon which they could
all stand. and thus to bring them to-
gether in a common fight for the
emancipation of labor. But as often
as the work of practical organization
has been attempted, it has been nulii-
fed and defeated by an appeal to parti-
san prejudice and by the false conten-
tion that no important reform was ever
effected through third party. There
can only be two great political parties,
said the self-seeking leaders. These
have well-defined issues upon which to
appeal to the country. They represent
political principles affecting the per-
manent administration of the govern
ment. Third parties are always parties
Of one idea. Therefore, fight for reform
in the old parties"
Thus the people have been held With
in old party lines and thus has every
movement organized to fight the bat
ties of freedom been defeated The
greenback party arose, and the demo-
cratic nominee in the south was quick
to say, 81 am greenbacker in the DEM
ocratic party! Stay in the old party
and get what you want"
In the north, republican nominees
made similar appeals and promises. In
both sections the greenback movement
dissolved, and the two old parties con-
tinued the same old alignment. perl
odically fighting the same old battles,
and both alike studiously avoiding any
committal to the policy of the green
hackers. The union labor party sprang
into existence, was met with the same
sophistry and false assumption, and
speedily found its grave. The farmers
got together upon practically the same
issues presented in the platform OF
the greenbackers, but they soon found
how hopeless it was to fight for reform
successfully in the two old parties.
They saw after a brief trial the folly Of
trying to reform political conditions
by means of non-political methods. In
city and country there were any num-
ber of Independents, but when the
elections came ON they were like sheep
in the midst of ravening wolves. The
house of labor was divided against it
sels How then could it stand? But
the farmers had learned in the hard
school of experience. The Alliance.
thanks to a kind Providence, became
intensely political. Light began to
break through the political clouds.
The olive branch was extended from
country to city, the white flag of peace
fioated over alliance and trades unions
and toilers began to pool their issues
and get together. Then came the st.
Louis conference of February, 1892
that wonderful conclave of labor's rep
resentatives. There, brother populists,
labor made known it's demands-form-
ulated them in words that will live
forever.
Before that time each organization
of labor had its own creed, adhered to
it's own narrow policy, selfshly pur-
sued its own ends, ignored the demands
of all other workers, and found as a
result defeat and discontinue. Having
succeeded, however, in getting to-
gether and in formulating their de-
mands, these representatives of labor
went vigorously into politics and
pledged a solid labor vote for the party
which should adopt those demands
The peoples party at once organized
upon the lines thus laid down, and has
been fighting the battles of labor eveI
since. In the first campaign it polled
over / 1000 900 votes, to which 1t added
900 900 within the two years following
1t is safe to say that it could to-day
DOLL more than 100000 votes. More
than this, it is growing with unexam-
pied rapidity. All of this has been
accomplished on the Omaha platform
and yet there are populists who would
in the campaign of 1896, eliminate from
that platform the land and transporta.
ton planks and leave the party stand
ing on a single financial ISSUE And
why is this? The silver question, tht
answer is, will be the pivotal one-tht
"storm center" of the campaign. / dC
not doubt the sincerity or patriotism
of these people, but the unwisdom o.
the course suggested, in my judgment
can hardly be expressed in adequat,
language. Suppose we make none,
platform only; will it be straight de
claration in favor Of scientific none,
or inconvertible paper? If so, can w,
hope for the support of silver demo
Gratis and republicans, all of whom to
man want gold, or gold and silver, a
a base for the issuance of paper prom
ises to pay-credit money only? Ar
we prepared to commit ourselves il
favor Of convertible paper currency
by uniting with the silver democrat
and republicans in the coming cam
paign? II so platform declaration 70
scientific money, or inconvertible mon
ey, will be misleading. II we declar
for inconvertible paper, what sense vii
| there be in maintaining separat
party organization? Convertible pa
! per and free coinage of silver measur
! the extent of reform as advocated b
Gen. Warner and his bimetallic league
E and, IL our platform should go no faI
ther. it would be foolish not to disban
I our organization and go en- masse int
the movement to elect MIR. Sibley. In
s deed, IL we fall below the demand 70
q scientific money. or at least fnconveri
Q ible paper, in our declaration for hnar
d cial reform, then, with land and trans
4 portation eliminated, our party wi
q have no excuse for its existence. II "
!. must take the fag-end of financial re