Birmingham state herald. (Birmingham, Ala.) 1895-1897, 1896-10-15
PATRIOTIC AND POINTED
The Address of the PoFuist National Commit
tee to the Peoples Party Voters OF
the United States.

Following is the address prepared by
the populist national committee at It's
session in st. Louis Tuesday,:
To the Peoples Party Voters of the
United States:
Your national committee INDUCED the
hope that The patriotic action of the peo-
pies party in national convention, IN
subordinating the interests of the party
to the success of the vital issues involved
in this campaign, would be met by equal7
ly unSelfish devotion to a combination IN
the present democratic party, and that
all the friends of silver could present a
solid front against the mintons OF greed
by supporting one ticket, the truly CO.
operative ticket-Bryan and Watson But
this hope being disappointed, there were
but two courses left, one or Whlch must
be adopted.
First, to run straight Bryan and Wat
son electoral ticket In every state, Whlcn,
on account of the failure of the democrat
ic party to support this ticket, would nave
effected the same result in this campaign
that would have followed the nomination
of straight populist ticket at ST. Louis
namely, the election of Mckinney ana the
triumph Of the gold standard.
The other course left open to your com
mittee that was consistent with the act1on
of the convention in nominating Mr.. Bry-
an was to do everything in It's power 10
unite the voters of the country against
and embarra ssments which, II the demo-
cratic party had put the cause first ana
the party second, we would not have en-
countered.
Arranging for q Division.
This could be accomplished only by ar
ranging for a division of the electoral vote
in every state possible, securing so many
electors for Bryan and Sewall AT the
opening of the campaign this, under the
circumstances, seemed the wisest course
for your committee, and 1t is clearer TO-
day than ever that 1t was the only Sa1e
and wise course if our votes were TO De
cast and made effective for the relief OF
am oppressed and outraged people.
Following this line of policy, your COM
mttee has arranged electoral tickets in
three-fourths of the states, ana VIII 40
all in it's power to make the same ar
rangements in all of the states. BY per-
fecting this arrangement, and every SIN
cere opponent of the gold standard giving
loyal support to these joint electoral
tickets the peoples party will not only
secure in .the electoral college for Bryan
and Watson several times as many votes
as we could have possibly secured by
making a straight ticket, but we Will Sc
cure the defeat of Mckinley and the
gold standard, which should now be the
greatest desire of every citizen who be-
lieves in the principles of true democ-
racy.
BY this arrangement we can unite
large majority of the voters on our JOINT
electoral tickets, therefore the only hope
of the money power and trusts IS TO dl-
vide and conpler. The republican man.
ayers and their democratic allies realize
this and are putting forth every effort to
accomplish this end.
Call for United Action.
Some of the democrats of the revenue
stripe, who are not yet Weaned from the
flesh pots of Egypt, but are sticklers of
regularity and are nominally supporters
of Mr. Bryan while secretly and in every
underhand way trying to accomplish his
defeat, are advising against the joint
electoral tickets, and failing in this they
advise democrats to scratch the people
party electors, and already few so-cal-
ed populist leaders are advising the rank
and file of our party to strike back for
refusing to support the democratic cleo
tors of the joint electoral tickets. This
is trap set by the goldbugs, who are re
joincing that a few honest men have
fallen into it. These reports today are
the only ones that buoy up the hopes of
the republican managers, and the demo-
Gratis and the populists who are thus en-
leagued are doing just what the gold
men desire. Therefore, we appeal to every
populist, who may have been misled by
such mistaken or false pleas of pretended
loyalty to the peoples party into refusing
to support such joint electoral tickets, to
stop and consider the result of such con-
duct and refuse to be influenced by either
misguided or corrupt men.
The revolution of the American people
against these Doodle men during the last
ten days has so united them that victory
Is now assured.
MARION BUTLER, Chairman.
]. r. SOVEREIGN,
Fl. w. REED,
GEORGE f. WASHBURN,
Wy 1opJDENrpHAJ,