The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1896-02-06
! FALSE PRET,ENSES.

FALSE PREIENSES.
The anti-machine movement which
has just been org anized with great eff
fort and much expenditure Of wind at
Minneapolis no doubt has it's serious:
side to it's projectors, but to the out
side public it presents itself as piece
OF delicious humor. It reminds one Of
the definition of heterodoxy. Tt is
everybody's doxy except your own.
doxy. This Washburn anti-machine
crusade means death to every other
machine except the Washburn ma
chine, or the Evans machine-or, more
properly speaking, the Washburn-
Evans machine. What they are after
is to capture ''the machine that con-
trolls the Republican party in this
State" The assumption that the Re-,
publican party of this State is con-
trolled by a machine is not very fat
tering to the intelligent, independent
and self-respecting Republican voters
OF this State. But that is the idea of
the Washburn-Evans anti-machine
movement. They have an idea. that
by organizing central club or cabal
OF local politicians at Minneapolis
they can run the Republican party of
this State. We have a notion that
they will wake up some fine morning
to find out that the Republican party
OF this State runs itself, and thatqa
body who attempts to run it will be
run over and ground into an indis-
tinguishable mass Of political jelly. 7,
It matters nothing to the Pioneer
Press which of the candidates who
have been named shall be elected
governor. We should as soon see the
able and eloquent ex-Mayor Eustis in
that much coveted chair as anybody
else, or the genial Van SAINT or Farmer
Gibbs, and we know of no objections
which have been urged against another
term for the present governor. To be
sure, an anti-Clough organization has
been effected at Minneapolis, but so
far nobody has pretended that in his
official capacity Gov. Clough has failed
in the performance of any public duty.
They bring no charges against him,
as 1t is quite certain they would if they
could-pretty good proof that they can
find nothing in his administration
which deserves serious censure. There
is no pretense that their hostility to
him has any other ground than that he
is an anti-W ashburn man, and that is
a weakness which he shares with
multitude of his fellow citizens. But
the Pioneer Press has no preference for
Clough. 1t would be equally pleased
with any of the other candidates who
have been named. But it objects de-
cidedly to the false pretenses under
which the war against him is being
carried on at Minneapolis the pre-
tense that there is a ring which has
controlled the Republican party for
the last eight years. If there is such
a ring the Republicans of the State
are entitled to know who compose it
and what it has done to call the re-
Duke. If somebody, or a ring of some
bodies, is to be smashed, who are they,
and what are they to be smashed for?
What is all the bowling about, any
how? What Republicans generally
will object to is the organization Of an
actual ring to run the politics of the
State on the pretense Of smashing a
pretended one.
There are several excellent candi-.
dates before the Republican party of
this State. In fairness to them all the
Republican voters should have a
chance to choose between them, ac-
cording to their merits. But to spring
9 false issue upon them by organizing
g campaign in the interest Of certain.
ambitious politicians at Minneapolis
on the pretense that it is a war against
the machine is not honest and will not
succeed with the intelligent Republi-
cans Of this State. Pio,,eer Press.
Il
DAVIS boomlet is said to have been
given a fresh start nv H a,,,,;; M