The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-08-28
AN EVIL TEACHING.


There is one portion of the speech of
acceptance by Mr.. Lind, addressed to
the Populist party convention, which
must call down the sharpest condemna-
ton from every lover of his country
and his kind. No one need hesitate to
criticise Mr.. Lind's utterances freely,
because he himself has renowned for
| himself the obligation of party and the
protection which party loyalty to its
candidate sometimes extends. Mr.. Lind
said to the convention of the Peoples
party that, although he intended to ac-
cept the nomination previously
made. he would not accept it
as Democrat. He said that
he did not accept this second nomina-
ton as a Populist. Being, therefore,
neither Democrat nor Populist, and
having, in the same speech, renowned
his former Republicanism, at least as
behind the shield of party loyalty
Therefore, not as a Democratic candi-
date, not as Populist candidate, not
as renegade Republican, but as a citi-
zen, to use Mr.. Lind's own designation
for himself must he be arraigned for
teaching a false and evil gospel when
he places himself before the people as
| a champion of political arraignment
of class against class
There are a few good things in Mr..
McKinley's letter of acceptance, and by
all odds the best of them is his happy
| quotation from Washington, in which
the founder of this republic warned the
people for all time to come against that
| familiar art Of the demagogue, CEN
turtles DID, which consists in breaking
the ranks of the people and destroying
their liberties by instilling into their
breasts class prejudice and class ha-
tired. Let us set side by side some ex-
tracts from the speech of Mr.. Lind to
the Populist convention and those
memorable utterances Of Washington.
Thus says Mr.. Lind:
The issues that have brought us together
that have rearranged party lines, are based
on the determination of the producing classes
TO receive IOr themselves that snare OF the Dell
efits that are now claimed and enjoyed by the
non-producing classes. One of the questions
now pressing, and more vital than the money
question, is, shall this be government for
the people or for single class?
A century before, the father of his
country left these golden words of adj
vice to posterity:
I admonish the people against the object of
oyertures like these. l admonish every in
dustrious laborer of this country to be ON
his guard against such deluson. l tell him
the attempt is to play off his passion against
his interest, and to prevail him in the
name of liberty to destroy all the fruits Of
liberty.
We say that this is none toe severe
characterization for any man, what
ever he be called, Democrat, Republi-
can or Populist, who assists or encour-
ages the separation of the American
people by lines of cleavage into classes;
who teachess them the false doctrine
that such classes now exist, and who
thereby makes it felt that, if his effort
shall be successful, the future of this
country must absolutely consist, not of
the free government of free men in
common concourse assembled, but of
the alternating triumph of upper and
neither strata, into which, in pursu-
ance of this advice, it's people shall be
permanently divided. If such line of
division shall ever come, God save the
country.
With all the earnestness and all the
patriotism that men can feel, let them,
without reference to party obligation
or relation, reject and repel the doc
trine that would set class against
class, and that has wrought all too evil
Iy in our past history by telling labor
tile, whereas they are and must be
identical; that has sought to make all
this great, happy land of ours a camp
occupied by hostile and perpetually
cooperative workshop and a family of
men united by common ties and COM
mon aspirations. Be it Democrat, Re-
publican or Populist who is to direct
the future of this republic and this
state; be it gold standard or silver
standard that is to remain in the as
cendancy; be it high tariff or free trade
under which we are to live, we can toll
crate any or all. But we cannot per-
NIT the heresy that our elections and
our government embody a struggle Of
class against class to take root and
grow among the people without estab-
fishing as the work of our hands the
beginning of the downfall of the re-
public.
| ssVOTER'S' ARGUMENTS CONSID-
Erred.