San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1896-09-30
NO FUSION
WITH THE REFORM REPUBLICANS
OF THIS STATE.
The Plenary COMMITTEES Issue a Stirring
Address and Will Keep in the
Middle of the Road

Denison, Texas, Sept. 30.-The follow
ing address to the Republicans Of Tex
as has just been issued by State Chair
man Fairbanks and committee:
To the Republicans of Texas:
At meeting of the state executive
committee of the Reorganized Repub-
lican party of 1892, known as the Re
form Republicans" of Texas, held at
Dallas, August 6, 1896, AN earnest de-
sire was expressed by all present, for
harmony between all factions of the
party in the state, and with a view of
bringing this about, our former state
chairman submitted certain suggest
ions which were unanimously adopted
as expressing the sentiment of our or
ganization; Among other things, he
said it was our duty to see that the
control of the party should not be in
the hands of those who are willing to
use the organization for individual
ends. That we should respond to all
sentiment in favor of harmony and,
for the purpose of doing this in the
most effective manner, recommended
meet at Fort Worth Sept. 8, one day
after the other convention had been
called and for the express purpose of
considering any proposition that might
come up favoring harmony. He stated
that we were willing to abandon the
census plan of representation, but that
the lack of harmony did not come from
our methods but from an indisposition
on the part of the other organization
to adopt any measures of discipline
that would be broad enough and deep
enough to admit any citizen of Texas
into the Republican party without i'm
posing offensive personal conditions as
q predicate to affiliation therein. He
also proposed a definite plan for har-
mony: that the convention to meet
Sept. s, was to elect a good conserva-
tive man, not specially committed TO
any faction, as state chairman and that
he select as vice chairman, one from
our organization one from the quincy
faction, one from the Grant faction and
one from the Sound Money Democrats
If they chose to act with us, the chair
men and vice-chairmen thus chosen,to
constitute the campaign committee for
this campaign. All of these overtures
and suggestions were ignored by the so
called regulars" or black mad tans.
But prior to their convention, another
effort was made; resolution was pre-
pared for their convention to act upon,
very mild in its demands but would
have been accepted; this was never al
lowed to reach the convention for ac-
ton, nor was there at any time the
slightest disposition shown towards Sc
curing an expression from the conven-
ton for bringing about harmony and
unity; showing clearly that it is not
the desire of the leaders to enlarge the
party by getting in, as active workers,
a large element that is amply able to
take care of itself; but upon the con-
trary, prefer to keep the party just
large enough to hold primaries and con
ventions but not so small but that the
federal offices will go round.
When our convention met, more than
twenty four hours after the other one
was called to meet, they were still
wrangling over who should be boss"
over their temporary organization,
Quincy or Ferguson, with the chances
largely in favor of settling the matter
by their usual methods which, however
was happily averted by reason of the
strong reform" sentiment that admit
eddy prevailed in the convention.
Having thus done everything with
in our power to bring about harmony
and no action having been taken by
the black and tan leaders, there were
but two things left for us to do; abso-
lutte surrender, which would have been
a practical admission that what we
had ever claimed and the reason for
the existence of our organization were
wrong. This our people emphatically
declined to do and, were evidence or
the business of our cause necessary, 1t
would be amply given by the fact that
the black and tan leaders now claim
that there are 10000 to 100000 Repub-
licans in Texas; when they are con-
fronted by the records which show that
by their methods they have never been
able to get over $4,000 of them and that
was twelve years ago, since which time
the vote has steadily and rapidly de-
clined until their last efforts, two
years ago, when they only received 90,
900.
Declining to surrender, we had but
one other course to pursue and that
was to put out a state ticket and con-
tinue our fight for better local condi-
tons. Still we did not abandon all
hope or effort for getting harmony I'M
der the leadership of the new state
chairman, Mr.. Green, upon whom we
desire to cast no reflections whatever)
and for this purpose, the undersigned
were appointed a committee with full
power to suspend our organization and
withdraw our ticket if necessary.
With this end in view, we submitted
to the plenary committee Of the Green
organization, the following proposition
which upon our part abandons separ-