Evening star., 1896-10-20
Last Week Was a Bad One for Him
in the Hoosier State.
FUSION A SOURCE OF DISCOMFORT
Effect of Letters of Archbishop
Ireland and Bishop Chatard.
ANGES IN THE VOTE
Of The Evening Star.

Correspondence Of The Evening Star.
INDIANAPOLIS October II, 1896.
THIS has been a bad " eek for Mr.. Bryan
in Indiana. Several causes have operated
to make 1t 50. The republicans have re-
covered from the fright that seized them
last week and are pulling cut more earnest
ly than ever and with greater enthusiasm
than at any time during the campaign. The
democrats have met with several very Sc
we're blows. The sound money demonstra-
tion of last Monday disclosed the fact that
they would have to revise their figures as
to the strength of that wing of the party.
Then. too, several notable democrats in the
state have announced that they could not
and would net support Mr.. Bryan. The
Bryan men had been thinking that all the
distractions that would occur were already
known. and these new desertions, and by
men Of commanding influence, has startled
them.
In addition to this the fusion patched up
with the populists Is proving a source of
very great discomfort 1t satisfies nobody.
The populists are finding great trouble in
swinging their men into line for the fusion
ticket, while the edemocrats are fairly raging
at being called upon to vote for populists.
The candidates on the democratic state
ticket are especially vindictive over the
deal and declare they will not pay another
penny of the assessments that have been
levied upon them They declare that the
ceal was fixed up by the national commit
tee, and now that committee must furnish.
the money 10 carry 1t through. The popu-
lists say that to pull down their state ticket
would utterly destroy their organize tior.
and TWO years hence if they want to get a
ticket on the ballot, ii will have to be done
by petition. Taken a whole 1t Is an
awful muddie. The fusion has already in
creased the democratic disaffection to Rry-
an. and is likely to cost him some thous-
ands of votes, some of whom will go direct
ly to Mckinley: but the most of them will
remain away from the polls.
The trip of General Sickies and his party
through the state has also been a blow to
Bryan. 1t has brought back to the repub-
licans many who had been wavering, and
some who had actually declared for BRYAN
while 1t has also added quite largely to the
number of sound money democrats.
Archbishop Ireland's Letter.
One of the severest blows to BRYAN. how
ever. was the letter Of Archbishop Ireland.
1t was followed by one from Bishop Cha
tard. the bishop of this diocese Blshop
Chatard is and always has been a demo-
crat- He has also always been a very con-
Servative man. and there is no cne in the
church who wields such an influence with
the Catholics of Indiana as he does. His
declaration that the SUI cess of the Chicago
platform would mean an overthrow of or
ganized government, and hence destructive
to the interests Of the church. Is already be-
ing felt in Catholic circles. A prominent
Catholic said today that he believed the
letter of Bishop Chatard would turn the
scale in favor Of Tracewell, in the third
congressional district. This Is the district
that has about 1000 democratic majority,
that faith.
Another potent factor this week was the
great railroad demonstration Of Thursday
The Bryan men have been claiming all
along that ct least 40 per cent of the rail-
read men who are now wearing Mckinley
buttons and posing as members of McKin-
ley clubs and marching in Mckinley pro-
cessions are doing it for blind and will
that sort Of talk.
II there Is one class of men more than
another who are able to size up a political
situation after they have visited the field it
Is the correspondents sent out by the great
papers OF the east. With one or two ex-
ceptions. after getting all the light possible
mere. they have declared that Indiana was
sure ior mckinley. Notwithstanding the
great boasts of the Bryan leaders Several
OF them have carefully gone over the state
talking with the people as we'll as with the
politicians. and their observation has forced
Tor sound money.
Former Vote Annlyzed.
Under normal conditions, Indiana has al
ways been a close state and the partv
that had the best organization was the
party that won. The election of 1892 en-
phasized that fact. In 1883 Mr. Harrison
mad the best organization, and carried the
state by 2,34s. Four years later Mr.. CIave-
land was successful by G.+s2. and yet he
only polied ,SO4 more votes than he did in
1SSS. In 1883 the mugwu jumps voted for
Harrison, and in 1892 for Cleveland. This
year they are for Mckinley. The republi-
can dfsanection in the agricultural regions
will prove very much less than the demo-
Gratis have been claiming In fact 1t will
hardly reach fifty per cent of their claims
Take Terre HaLte: as an example. The re-
publican loss will be less than two hundred
In that county One democrat from there
showed The Star correspondent a list of
anti-Bryan democrats. all of whom he per
sonally knew, and with whom he had
talked. and the list counted 317. He said
he did not have all. and was satisfied that
Mckinley would get at least four hundred
democrauc votes in that county, and Pal
mer would get almost as many
II has been claimed by the democrats
that they would gain between two hundred
and three hundred free silver republicans
in Montgomery county. The best-pos.ed
republicans in the county saw the number
Will not exceed fifty. and that Mckinley
will get five democrats for every republican
he VIII lose: and they have a list Of the
democrats. Their list is not of doubtful
democrats. but these known to be opposed
to Bryan and will vote against him.
Marshall county is another place where
the democrats have been counting on max
ing large gains. Republicans from tn ere
assert that the former free silver republi-
cans are nearly all back in line while they
know of one hundred and fifty democrats
vote against Bryan, and that Kellison the
democratic candidate for Congress, will
run two hundred votes behind his ticket in
that county
Changes From Former Years,
The democrats have been claiming that
two years ago they lost heavily from disaf-
fection on account of the hard times. but
that the democrats who voted with the
republicans that year are all back in line
now That they are mistaken in this cal
culation Is readily shown. Take Madison
county. as an example. In 1892 that coun-
ty gave Cleveland 346 plurality. In 1894 the
republicans had plurality of 9O4, showing
that there had been a very great change
in sentiment. The republicans of the coun-
ty say they have diligently searched to find
If any Of the democrats who voted with
them two years ago had gone back and de-
clare they cannot find one. Every indica-
tion from that county points that the re-
publican plurality this year will be large
ly increased. No one puts the increase at
less than three hundred, and many are
firmly convinced 1t will be nearly double
what 1t was in 1892
This county IL another where a great
change took place between 1892 and 1894
Here they have not gone back but the