Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1896-07-17
THIS TO THE LEGION.
VOICE OF THE PRESIDENT OF
THE REFORM PRESS.
willing to Meet Men Half Way for an
Honest Union But There Must BE NO
Surrender Of Principle.

ZION. Inc Duruen Is great, tue idpor
is hard, but the responsibility is still
greater. 1t is sacred trust, and l
would consider myself dishonored II
l did not do my whole duty without
fear.
I have carefully investigated the
situation; have followed the mysteri-
Gus missionaries who have gone from
state to state; have had careful reports
of their work; have investigated the
full purpose of the silver leaders and
the democratic silver men, and have
had correspondence from nearly every
state, and every letter but one indi-
Gates that the honorable union we all
pray for will simply be an invitation to
endorse the democratic nominees of the
Chicago convention, who will undoubt-
eddy stand squarely on 16 to plat
form. The utterances of Senator Till
man in regard to the populist party,
Of Senator Wolcott and General Warn
er and many other democratic and re-
publican silver advocates, thoroughly
indicate that they have no idea of seek
ing an honorable union with our party.
They propose to disband and destroy
it, and these pretended friends are US
ing men in our party to do it.
Mrs. Emery, in one of her last let
terc to me, said: "The real foes of our
party are inside our own ranks; there
is no danger from the enemy. From
hundreds of papers from all parts of
the nation, read carefully each week,
am convinced that the peoples party
is unit in favor of the union of all the
reform forces. On an honorable basis,
none of us would place a straw in the
way of such unuion. We long for
it and pray for it. But If it is feast
of democratic buzzard we are invited
to, the whole membership of the party
will repudiate the proposition with
scorn.
The southern bourbon leaders real
ize that they can only hope to save
endorsing free silver and stealing
portion of the platform Of our PARTY.
1t is simply purely partisan trick,
and no one earnestly desiring free coin
age, or other vital reforms, should be
fooled for one moment. The record of
the democratic party since 1873 shows
a long list of broken promises en- this
question, and it is these betrayals of
confidence that caused the great ma
jority of the southern democrats to
leave their party and join our ranks.
They have made heroic fight. Their
struggles for fair ballot and honest
count; their determined adherence to
principle and their adherence of fu-
sion have gained the confidence of
every true reformer in the United
States.
If the national convention endorsed
the democratic nominees it would be
a base betrayal of these gallant men,
bers of our party, and every one of
them would repudiate our action.
How hopeless would be the attempt
to deliver the Union soldiers in our
ranks, and the thousands of men who
have left the democratic party forever,
to such combination as the ballot
box suffers who have stolen the rights
of the people in half of the south, and
have, by the constitutions Of South
Carolina and Mississippi, disfranchised
two-thirds of the voters of those states.
By an honest ballot and fair count
the peoples party would be in major
ity in nearly all the southern states,
and to give up the contest and sur
render our people in the south to the
will Of these men, who will control
that convention, would be party per-
fidy and dishonor, unequaled by the
Hayes surrender in 1876, and the
treachery of the democratic party in
destroying silver in 1893 when they
had pledged the people they would re-
store it.
We will place the responsibility
where it belongs. We have given every
opportunity to secure an honorable
union. We have gone to the very
verge of ruin to show our willingness
to meet all honest men half way, to
secure union of all desiring financial
reforms, and ncw We have ample evil
dence that the democratic convention
will endorse silver and nominate can
didates, and then raid of people out
side and inside our party will be made
to secure the endorsement of our
party at st. Louis. The responsibility
of dividing the silver forces will rest
upon the democratic party and free
silver leaders who have sought to de-
lude and deceive us.
Any hope Of reform on the money
question, of restoration of silver, of
direct legislation, Of curbing the power
of corporations, of fair ballot and
honest count, of guaranteeing repub-
lican form of government to every
state, of emancipating this nation
from British dictation and foreign rule,
can only come through the success OF
the peoples party. 1t is in every sense
the only true American party in the
United States.
We warn all true members of our
party to see that none but delegates of
approved loyalty are elected to the St.
Louis convention, and to see to it that
those already elected stand by the
faith, honor and integrity of the party.