Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-01-24
North Carolina Republicans Would
Give a Senator for a Governor.
DEMOCRATS DIVIDED over MONEY
Fusion or Cooperation the Issue
of the Hour.
POLITICAL QUIET PREVAILS
Special Correspondence Of The Evening Star.

Special Correspondence of The Evening Star.
RALEIGH, N. c.. January %, 1896.
There are sixteen members of the re-
publican stab executive committee. A
member assures The Star correspondent
that all the sixteen are bimetallists, and
that all the other republicans in the state
are of the same way of thinking. If this
be true, there is quite change Of view in
a few months, or even weeks. The men,
Der also says that the sixteen are for
fusion or cooperation with the populists,
and that only Chairman Holton opposes
this step; that the chairman has no vote,
is figurehead and is sure to be whipped
into line; that fusion is an absolute GER
tainty; that eleven Of the sixteen members
are for Daniel L. Russell for governor;
that three are for Oliver H. Dockery and
two for James E. Boyd. But the member
who says these things Is an original fusion
| list and a most earnest supporter of Rus
| sell, so, perhaps, 1t is well to take his
statement with several grains Of salt.
There are suspicious populists. who scent
afar some scheme to sell them out to the
republicans. They fear, or say they fear,
trades of some kind. They say the re-
publicanS arrogate too much to themselves,
and they hint, without saying, that the
| odds are against fusion, or cooperation,
| and that certainly no man can yet say
whether it will be brought about.
| Democrats Torn to Pieces.
| The democrats are torn to pieces in this
state by the gold and silver question, and
| the news which filters through from Wash
| ington is that the party is equally racked
| there, certainly so far as Congress is con-
| cerned. And yet the political quietness
| is absolutely amazing. Nothing like it was
ever known in campaign year NOBODY
| ltnows, or appears to know, what to say or
u 1a CT
| to happen; the republicans, while they be-
heve they will dominate the situation, yet
| cannot say so, while the democrats are
| keeping up their policy for the past year Of
| waiting for something, they know not
| what, to turn up. When Chairman Butler
| ascertains what his party wants, he will
act. This is both courtesy and policy on
| his par, even though he is said to be dc
| tator by the democrats.
Cooperation or Fusion.
The ''non-partisan'' idea has taken deep
root among the populists. They tried the
| experiment with the republicans in regard
to the supp eme court and they think it has
worked well. That court is now composed
of democrat, two republicans, populist-
| ACCOMPLISHMENTS and a popuiist-demo-
crat. That Is nearly as the political pro-
| clivities Of the justices can be described.
| This was the pet scheme of Senator Butler.
| He now wants it carried further, and some
|
| partisan electoral ticket would look well.
| 1t Is new idea, but then this state is just
| now sort of hotbe1 for that sort of thing.
There are some distrustful popuiists, and
| while the leaders appear to desire to be
conservative, yet there are intimations that
| some of the lesser lights are inclined to
| lean toward republication. The struggle
just now is between those populists who
| favor fusion with the republicanS-co-oper-
| alton, they term it-and those who think
| their party can stand alone and put up its
| own ticket.
| Senator Buffers Methods.
Senator Butler, the pcpulist chairman is
the hinge on which this all turns. Some of
| the democrats are doing a very foolish
| thing in belittling Senator Butler. He is a
shrswd politician. has his party in hand in
this state better than any chairman before
him Of any party whatever, and his ca
pacty for organization is wonderful. Now,
Senator Buffers ways of getting at facts
| and at ideas are clever. For instance,
while the republican chairman works from
| the state committee toward the people
Butler works just the other way-from the
| people toward the committee. When he
desires to know the views of his party he
consults first of all the township chairmen.
| Or these there are thousand. What these
recommend as the course to be pursued is
the course the state committee follows
| Thus two things are eliminated; complaint
| VI DOSSlSm by the committee and COM
| plants that the wrong course was taken.
Senator Butler hopes and believes thai
his party is making heavy gains frcm botf
the parties. He hopes to see 1t at the front
OF the silver movement and believes it will
be the backbone Of the new silver party
His friends declare he has no aspira tions
for the presidency. but would favor Sibley
and they indicate that the latter will be the
silver leader.
Senator Butler believes that the e.ectora
ticket is of prime Importance; more SO thar
the gubernatorial nomination. There are
Of course populists who differ rs to this
Some republicans say that their party
must certainly name the man for governor
that if the populsts name him the latter
party Will say 1t has carried the state
while in point of fact the republicans desr,
| to be able to say this themselves.
Republicans After the Goyernorxhtp
Ohio Wilson, one of the leading populists
asked whether the republicans wanted tn,
governor so much that they would let tn,
populists have another Senator. Thomas b
Keogh, prominent republican. replied yes
The republicans have for many weeks as
sumed that they will nominate the gov
| ernor, and also that they and the populist
would certainly fuse or cooperate Thi
assumption gals some of the populists, TO
among the latter are several leaders VIII,
want to be governor. The populists sa.
they are entitled to the good things, as blu
. for them the republicans would have gon
on year after year getting beaten by tn
democrats, without prospect or hope of
change
Cars Withdrawal.
1t had been the opinion up to the pas
few days that Julian S. Carr of Durham
one of the richest and most public -spirite
| democrats in the state, would be a candi
date for the nomination for governor, blu
J now he has dropped out and so the chic
| IN hi
: | are those Of Gen. William r. Cox noy
, | secretary of the senate). Thomas w. Ma
son and Lieut.. Gov. Doughton.
1t will perhaps be two weeks or NOR
! before the question Of fusion (or co-opera
. tion) is settled. 1t is easily the first of al
the issues this year.
EXCLUDE SETTLED DISTRICTS.