The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-04-01
VOTE IT STRAIGHT
KNOCK OUT THE CITIZENS, TICKET
ONCE MORE

sponsibility CT an Organized Party
Cane and Locke Trying to Pull the
Wool Over the Peoples Eyes so as to
disrupt the Republican Ranks Before
the Fail CampaiGn-Their Dark Stair
way Nominees Should be Defeated
Badly-Get in the Band Wagon
The Demo-Pop crowd are making
frantic efforts this spring to sweep"
the city.
The city elections this spring will be
the skirmish Of the fall campaign and
there seems TO be a conspiracy on the
part Of the Populists and Democrats. or
at least their bosses and mangeres, TO
get as much pie as they can.
The sherif's office and postoffice have
the reputation Of being the leaders in
the campaign against the Republican
ticket. RUFF Cone and George Locke
Bre the visible heads of the fight and
they are leaving nothing undone to
break the ranks Of the Republicans.
RUFF Cone is the agent of John Bried-
enthal in this section of the country to
make the fight on the Republican party
with a view TO carrying an election and
thus diSOrganize the forces of the Re
publicans in order that they might be
weaker, through consequent disunion,
In the fight next fall in this county.
. George Locke is manipulating affairs
with a fine hand in hopes of Beating the
ticket for that and other reasons. The
Democratic party is so nearly burst
that people are making arrangements
every day 10 take their demits out Of it
and place them in the Republican
lodge. The only way TO stop the stam-
pede from the party is TO revive the
hopes of the righteOUsly Disconnected
and indignant. by defeating the Repub-
licans in the city elections.
This would be a ludicrous statement
II confined and applied exclusively TO
Wichita; for what Wichita does is only
drop in the bucket in a national cam
padgn- But the fact is that a secret I'M
derhanded similar effort is being made
Rll over the United States. It is no new
thing. It is one of Cleveland's old
tricks. When he was in politics in New
York his policy always was to get a
victory in the municipalities first and
thus strengthen his party for the larger
battles to be fought in the state Every
body knows, who knows anything about
Grover Cieveland's style. that Tom
Fitch has been given instructions to
beat the Republicans in Wichita this
spring and to use all the influence and
prestige at his command to do so. OF
course Cleveland does not know that
there is such man as Tom Fitch, or
such a place as Wichita, perhaps. but
subordinates do and it is through them
that the work is done. They care Moth
ing for Wichita or whether an ire
sponsibla city council sinks it in debt or
not; all they care is to have ReDubli-
cans beaten there for the effect it will
have in the campaign next fall. A party
that has such a record for disastrous
debt mourning habits as the Democratic
party has should never ask to be placed
q { the head Of such a business comnu-
nifty as Wichita IS
well" the Indifferent, honest, unsus-
pecting Republican says, the Demo
cratic party is not asking to be placed
at the head Of our affairs-this is a citi-
zenS ticket" II is not a Citizens tick
ct The name citizens is an alias. IF
a swindler comes into this country and
'rks the people for suckers and sue
ceeds it Is his custom to try the same
trick over again under an assumed
name. That is what all frauds do. That
Is what Democrats are doing now. 'Citi-
zenS" tickets sound well but nobody has
ever seen one but what turned out TO
be & fraud Of the worst kind Electing
a. ticket of that kind 10 ma mage the af-
fairs of a city IS as injudicious and IN
wise as picking up a tramp and making
him the cashier Of a bank. "Citizens"
tickets are the Jramps OF politics. It is
possible that one Of them may turn out
all right but il is not pr0ba bic. One of
them has never been known to fill the
expectations Of the public heretofore
end it is not likely any one of them will
in the future. Bad as the record of
Democracy IS, evil and crazy as the
record Of Populism is. Il would have
been better for the two parties TO boldly
put 4 ticket in the field and call 1t
'Dero-P0p ticket" than a Citizens
ticl1et," people would have more respect
for it; they would have more confidence
f. il. The strength Of a Republican
form of government is responsibility.
Where republics exist, as in South and
Central America without responsible
party organizations. they are weak and
do not inspire confidence. This is be
cause those who chance 70 be in power
are free from the restraints of a party
that stands responsible to the people.
The foun6iinSs without a parentage
that acknowledges tneFs-without the
pride Of ancestry to check them-3re
more liable 10 SO wrong and crooked
and unCheCt,&I TN3n children VINO know
they have parents who VIII he ashamed
Of their sin. out with such political
bushwha Ckers. But some one will say.
Have not the citizens right TO noni-
nate ticket?' or course they have But
because George Locke and Rufe Cone
set in 2 stairway OF lean M against a
telegraph post and nominate a ticket IS
no reason why the people should tear
their shirts to elect that ticket. Even if
* had been q good ticket 1t should not
be leCted. The American plan Is TO
nominate candidates at a representa-
tive gathering of a fair proportion of
the electors and any other method IS an
Innovation Of safe and fair custom and
should be stepped on. Dicta tors have
no place in the politics Of this country
and boss rule should he S0uelched. This
pocket burrough idea, is a little too Eng
lish n be tolerated by the people Of
Kansas.
On very rare occasions a citizens
ticket miSh, be justifable. For in
stance # The nominees Of party were
notably bad, which occurs sometimes
iu large cities Ike New York but never
IN thA west. Does anybody charge the
Republican nominees Of Wichita Of be
ing bad? On the contrary is Il not
unanimously conceded that they are
ell splendid men, broad, fair minded
citizens. men who have made a success
IN business and in the professions?
Can't all Of them be trusted TO represent
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