The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-12-07

appointing. In that instance Mr. Nc
Cleary made his canvass on the gold
standard and came out with a major
ity very much greater than his prede
cessor scored in 1890, and converting
his own plurality of 6,90S in 1892 into
a majority of 3,50S. But there had been
financial depression and low prices of
and how far selfishness steadily ap-
pealed to had brought Decentralization
meantime coud not be known until the
votes were counted. 1t was the farmer
in this state, as in every other where
agricultural interests predominated.
The strongest if also the meanest mo-
tives of men were played upon, higher
prices for produce and scaling of debts.
If under all these circumstances the
farmer failed to respond to the lure in
such numbers as to show free coin
age to be prevalent among q majority
of them, 1t will certainly suggest itself
to those who are in control of the Dem
ocratic organization that a bait that
failed to catch fish is not worth using
again. The returns are now in, and a
further analysis of the farmer vote and
its significance as bearing on the fu-
ture of the Democratic party is worth
making. The two districts of the state
that are essentially agricultural are
the Second and Seventh. They have
no large manufacturing interests and
mo large cities. About 20 per cent Of
the people live on farms. They cast
80 per cent of the vote Of the state
this year. If free coinage could not
carry the farmers of these districts, it
is of no value as a vote catcher, and,
having been taken up for that purpose,
may well be sent to the limbo of futile
bats.
The state census of 1895 gives the
occupations of the adults of the state.
we md that the counties of the Sec
ono district contain 1864 persons
classed as farmers, market and truck
gardeners, the last two being. I'M
whole. The Seventh district contains
37,173 in this classification. The total
vote of the former this year was Sc, 7O2.
or which the enumerated farmers
formed u per cent. In the Seventh
district the total vote was 1920, of
which the farmers were rs per cent.
Not that these percentages of the vot-
ers were farmers, but that the total
number of farmers bore that propor-
ton to the total number of voters. Nor
is 1t clear that all those classed as
farmers are voters, but after making
all deductions for these uncertainties
it is apparent that a large majority
OF the men on the farms rejected the
bait of free silver.
MI. Bryan received 20,15S votes in the
Second district. A considerable por-
ton of these were cast by urban voters.
How many cannot now be ascertained.
but certainly enough to make Mr.. Bry-
ans share Of the $4,000 farmers fall
considerably below a half of them
"A0ooui o5lllS feature Tor those
VINO may contemplate a continuance of
fusion and sixteen to-one policies is the
TACT that, of the gain Of 1862 votes
in this district since 1892, the fusion had
but 2,256 to 11,346 for the Republicans.
In the Seventh district Mr. Bryan re-
celved 24,S29 of the 1920 votes cast, or
5o.4 per cent. Making any reasonable
deduction from his vote for the urban
vote, it again becomes apparent that
less than half of the 37,173 farmers vot-
ed for him. Here, too, is the significant
fact that, of the gain in votes of 49,
14O since 1892, the fusion drew only
SOIL to the 1O12O won by the gold
standard