The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-12-05
MAJOR HupsoN,s HOWL

u
campaign will be found in Major Joe
Hudson's abuse of the Prohibitionists
| There was time when the Republican
| party could have saved itself in this
state by simply consenting to be fair
with the people on the prohibition ques-
| ton. But Major Hudson was one OF the
particular ones who, as editor of the To
peka Capital, was ever found urging
| the PrOhibitionists to stand by their lad
whatever the result politically to the
state. He always held prohibition to be
question transcending the political
issues of the Republican party. So In
face of the experience and example OF
Iowa and in response to the demand OF
| the element of the Republican party rep
| resented by the Capital the Republican
| party of Kansas continued to answer
the petitions of the people substantially
| with the remark with which Vanderbilt
| acquired his literary fame. Hudson
now abuses the Prohibitionists for be-
| ing impolitic and inconsistent, just as
though they were ever anything else
Major Hudson's objection and criti-
cisms come too late. The Republican
party no longer has the say in Kansas.
| II has been dominated out of its day OF
| grace by men holding to the views of
| Major Hudson and his confrerees. The
Republican party can neither resuhmit
or re-affirm. It's done. A very few
thousand liberal votes would have saved
| IL in the late election. A resubmission
plank In its platform would not have
| lost a single Prohibition vote and would
have more than overcome the ante-eiec-
ton hedges Of Mr. Leedy. The whisky
marty and its ally are in power. Its
bosses will do a great deal OF talking,
but they will not permit any action.
They want the prohibition question left
lust where it is, left as the fad OF Re-
nuhlicanism. The Fusionists will not
hear to resubmission and they know
that a new constitution is years away
even should the legislature permit
vote. which it will not. The prohiDiuon
question in distracting the Republican
| marty of Kansas has afforded possible
victories to a heterogeneous opposition
| who don't care what man drinks so
he votes with them and against the Re
publican party. An ex-justice OF the su-
| preme court Of Iowa, a Republican and
| stiIl a prominent federal official. HIM
| self a strict Prohibitionist, said TO us the
other day that in unloading prohibition
only was Iowa saved to the Republican
party. The Republican party is not the
Democratic party, nor is it the Pop par
ty. Then why should it play that it is
the Prohibition party. when there are
at least three such organizations already
in the field? Some of the best and wis
est Republicans of Kansas have for
years been urging the Republican party
of Kansas TO unload prohibition and let
it ship for itself, while still others have
been demanding in no uncertain terms
that the whole question be resubmitted
| to the people. But all advice has been
| UNDECIDED. every demand ignored. until
at last. we are in the fix where scolding
| is the only thing left to do. Republican
officials are being invited to step down
and ont and the party is at the mercy
| of u Fusion, many of whose members
are themselves Prohibitionists but who
never let their moral convictions stand
| in the way of their political preferment
| Democrats and Pops may successful
| " and congenially fuse, but Republi-
| cans and the Prohib party, never.
The great body of the Republican par
ty are for temperance, but they are not
| cranks.
1t may be that majority of the peo-
ple of the state are in favor of constitu-
| tional prohibition. But nobody knows.
The Republican party, through the in
flUence of extreme men, while in power,
persistently refused to let the people ex-
press their desires by direct vote. But.
however that may be. there are more
Prohibtionists in the Pop party, with
this difference, that no Fusionists will
ever be found sacrificing campaign sue
cess to any side issue whether moral,
religious or POLITICAL