The advocate., 1897-08-25

lO years ola 10 Challenge the sayings
OF so eminent a jurist, so profound a
scholar and so shrewd a politician as
G. @. Clemens is to exhibit an amount
of nerve rarely seen even in Kansas,
but man who has dug his living out of
the prairieS of central Kansas for thir-
ty-twO years ought to be able to tackle
anything from Mark Hanna to Judge
Williams. l agree with Mr. Clemens
that the st. Louis convention was the
funeral OF the Populist party as a
national party. The golden OppOrtu-
nifty for the POpulist party was in 1896,
when it had a chance to hold it's con-
ventiOn in advance Of either party, de-
clare its principles and name it's can
didates, but 1t failed to seize the OppOr-
tunity, and the consequence is that we
became the tail Of the Democratic kite.
The Populist mission has always
been proclaimed to be to educate the
masses into our belief in political econ
Omy, and large numbers Of our people
attended the Democratic convention at
Chicago and urged them to declare for
free silver. But, 10 and behold, they
adopted our entire platform from "a
to lizard" except that they want a
redeemable currency. They placed
upon that platform Mr.. Bryan, who is
dearer to the hearts of the American
people to-day than any other man in
America. Was there anything else the
POpulists could do than to indOrse the
nomination? Certainly not. But some
say that the Democrats are not sincere.
Was there ever harder fought pOlit-
ical battle than that at Chicago last
year? Was not the entire gold-bug
contingent Of the party there with the
whole power Of the administration be-
hind them? Yet they defied them and
spewed them out. Not only so, but the
Democratic State convention in Ohio
re-affirmed the Chicago platform, but
amended the financial plank, making
it the most comprehensive Of any that
have ever seen.
"Who is Mr.. Bryan? Is he Popu-
list?" say yess He stands essen
TALLY for all that POpulists stand for.
There is so little difference In the
platforms 1t is not worth naming. Mr..
Clemens says further: II am as free
as ever to treat all other political par
ties but my own as political foes"
say he has no such right and to do so
is to stultify himself before the people
and exhibit himself as a scheming poll
tician. 1t should be apparent to Mr..
Clemens that 1t is impossible for two
political parties to exist with exactly
the same platforms. The Democrats
had a national ticket with Electors in
nearly every State with more than six
millions Of votes to back II up and with
all OF the party machinery. Was not
the Populist vote merged into that
party and counted as Democrats? Then
why count them as foes? Ii strikes me
that there Is no alternative but that
Mah0met must go to the mountain.
Why stand in the middle of the road?
We have always said that 1t made no
difference what we were called Then
since the Democrats have eXpOunded
our principles and grasped the oppor-
tunity to be leaders as a national party,
is 1t not childish to talk about Demo-
Gratis being our political foes, In the
face Of the fact that the allied money
power OF the world Is determined to
reduce us to serfdom? The recent ex-
ira session Of Congress shows that they
do not intend to take any chances. All
of the trusts but the bankers have been
reimbursed, and in the next Congress
they will get their currency legislation
through If it is possible to do So
Thereby they will deliver over to the
bankers the most sacred function OF
government, viz, the issuing Of money.
Mr.. Editor in another year we will
have to choose another Congress. Is
1t not the part Of wisdom to harmonize
every element and marshal lall our
foroou POr tha Oran taat nOlitical conflict