Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1896-08-20
As to Fusion IN Missouri.

| one fraught with the gravest conse-
quences. and should be acted upon by
the State Central Committee only after
the most careful and dispassionate con-
sideratiOn-a consideration that looks
as web to the future as to the present
needs of the party.
| The National Convention is the par
tvs supreme tribunal. Being the
highest expression of the party's will,
each member of the organization must
either acquIesce in its decisions, for the
time being, at least, or declare himself
outside of the fold.
After full hearing of all sections
and of all shades of opinion, a plat
form was put forth at Chicago, and
William j. Bryan and Arthur Sewall
were placed thereon to carry its ban
ner in the present campaign. The
Chicago Convention spoke for the
party throughout the nation, and its
acts are binding wherever branch of
| the organization 04lSIS.
If this view is correct, no section of
the party has any right, of its own mo-
ton, to do aught else than was con-
templated by the convention. Mani
testify it would be departure from all
safe precedents, and violation OF the
sacred obligation we are under to car
ry into effect the expressed will of the
party, as uttered by the National Con-
vention, if we should place meu on
our electoral ticket in this State who
will not support both Bryan and Sew
all. Should we do this, our lips would
be closed If the State Central Com
mittee of New York, for the purpose
of securing the election of State OFF,
GERS, should give the boiling Democra-
cy q share of the electoral ticket Of
that State, or if Iowa should, for the
same reason. conclude to divide her
vote with the Prohibitionists.
| Admitting the existence of any pow
/ CT W uuuO lb0 "OEA Vi VIC Oh1Ode
Convention, it seems to us that the
State Convention. held only two weeks
ago. would have been the only body
proper to consider the question of fu-
sion. 1t was not even named there.
The province Of the State Committee
is to carry out the work laid down by
the people in convention assembled;
not to abrogate, supersede, or amend
it.
II State Central Committee can
practically nullify the action of the
National Convention, what vast field
is opened up for the manipulations of
the plutocrat and boodler! If the acts
of the National Convention are not
binding upon State Committees, the
National Convention comes to be a
mere formality, to be discarded as
useless. Mr.. Sewall is as much the
candidate of the Democratic party as
Mr.. Bryan. II one can be partially
discarded, so can the other.
Again, many Democrats who prefer
the single standard have bowed to the
will of the majority and will support
the National and State tickets in No
vember because they are the creation
OF the Democratic party. Suppose we
make our ticket hybrid, could not
these people justly say they were not
bound by party ties to such creations
that as Democrats they would vote for
Democratic nominees, but that no
party allegiance could bind them to
vote for Populists and Populism any
more than for Republicans and Republi-
canism? We think the only safety for
Democracy lies in the strength of
Democratic principle, and an adher-
ence to the work formulated by its
properly constituted authority.
II the future OF the organization is to
be considered there will be no setting
aside of Democratic electors in this
SA1bCs 4nO pO1AtlC6L AuG-MOTkCE Will
look gleefully on while a State Central
Committee undoes the work of Ma
tional Convention. To him it is the
entry of the thin end of the wedge
which, IL he can drive home, will make
the action Of National Conventions OF
no more binding effect upon the whole
party than a precinct primary.
We grant that the Populists are
working to accomplish the same ends
we are working to accomplish in this
campaign. We regard them as fellow
soldiers in the present fight for human
liberty. Their platform largely en-
bodies the principles OF old.fashioned
Democracy. 1t was because they had
lost faith in the Democratic party's
virility-because they saw it. as they
believed. hopelessly enmeshed by the
plutocracy-that thousands OF them