The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1897-01-10
THE CHARGES OF BRIBERY TO
BE INVESTIGATED.


Pritchard, have :been floating through
the air for several days.
The local. and visiting correspondents
of napers in and outside of the State have
wired these charges to their papers.
Visiting Populists, who are yet for sill
yer. have acknowledgement at the wanton
BETRAYAL of the party by certain Populist
legislators. and shave carried home the
news that dishonest methods" are being
employed to elect a thinly gauzed gold
bug to the United States Senate.
Republicans taking among themselves
have Dragged that they could buy "Popu-
list legislators on xhe hoof, and that
1--WE had Butler beaten before he left
Washington"
The public generally, seeing the meth
DDS and manners of the manlpulators,
have come firmly to believe that the sena-
torial contest would not be decided by
the usual arguments, but by the free use
OF money or the promise of Federal pa
known Wake county Populist, gave ex-
nression Yesterday to q sentiment heard
from Populists on the street and in the
hotels when he said that "any Populist
who votes for Pritchacd has sold out
That is Popuist talk, and you hear a
great deal of It, showing that the masses
of the party share the feeling expressed
by the Progressive Farmer when it said
in its last issue:
Mark Hanna & Co, may be able
to buy a few Populist members of
the present. Legislature, but we dom
think manv Of t-l.a are for sale.
Hanna can't buy the great common
people, and we are here to state that
if any buying is done or any efforts
made in that direction the mlddie-of-
the-road Populists in this State VIII
never cooperate again with Republl-
cans, and will see to it that the Re
publican party be wiped out in the
State as completely as 1t was over
twenty years ago and as surely as
was Clevelandism in the last election.
A word to- the wise ought to be suf-
ficient."
The widespread belief, founded on facts
susceptible of proof, was expressed so
freely yesterday and the day before, that
certain Populists, who are opposed to
Prtichard's methods, determined to make
an investigation, and Mr.. Atwater intro
duced resolution, drawn up in Senator
Buffers room Immediately after the eau
Gus on Friday night, in the Senate yes
terday to investigate the charges. OF
course the resolution passed unanimously,
the Pritchard men being afraid to vote
against them.
There is no doubt that more than one
attempt has been made to bride members
to vote for Pritchard.
There is no doubt that those Populists
who were willing to sell out could be &C
commodated.
There is no doubt that, for the first
time in che history of the State Except
when the Republicans had an orgy here
in 1868, miscalled Legislature when
headquarters were opened to bride mem-
bers) on such scandal has blotted the fair
name of our commonwealth.
When the National Republican cam
paign closed, there remained unexpenied
a fund Of two million dollars, as stated
by leading Republicans. After the cleo
ton. Mr. Hanna announced that thu Re
publlcans would keep up their orglni-
cation and keep open Headquarters in
certain States in order to control the
United States Senate. This, he said,
would be the after campaign policy Of his
party. These States he said were North
Carolina, Kentucky, South Dakota,
Washington and Idaho. These five are
the States he has manipulated most to
carry, and of these five North Carolina
offered the best field for his peculiar
methods.
Now Cor little arithmetic Here are
FIVE States with FIVE Senators to be elect
ed, and two million dollars in actual
cash to elect them. Five will go into
two million, -four hundred thousand times,
So far so good. But Mr.. Pritchard is an
especial pet of Mckinley and Hanna.
They want him in the Senate, they need
him. He may come high but tney are
hound to have him. If they only spend
the allowance. that would naturally come
to this State for a Senator, we would
get 100000.
But they viii spend more if necessary.
They want to keep the State under Re
publican rule. Kentucky is safe for them,
and in none of the others is there much
necessity for spending large amounts
OF money except in North Carolina. Their
Il ght in :ham Is 10 defeat strong dyed in-