People's party paper. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1891-1898, 1897-11-26
FUSION.
Points to be Considered Before Deciding
this Important Question.

though the truths of the Peoples Party
are fast growing popular, so that it is
no longer nearly so hard as formerly
even in the face of great odds, to fight
for them, yet men are already, previ-
ously, asking if it is not now time to
step into the offices. Perhaps the last
battle is near being fought. But it Is
much to be hoped that the splendid
purpose of the Peoples Party shall not
be wrecked on the spoils system. A
government for and by the whole PEG
pie cannot be obtained by men meeting
together and agreeing between them
selves how to divide the offices. The
people are already tired of that sort of
thing in the old parties They certain
ly will not tolerate the hypocracy of
turning the rascals out" in a party
with the least pretentions to reform.
Some of these fusionists remind one of
lazy school boys, who, just before
solving the problem of equal rights, 2"
run 10 their big brothers, Bill Demo
crat or Bill Republican, asking their
aid, and then they fight together to see
who shall get the credit. They have
none of the wisdom of the apostle Paul
who says; o, Populists, BE not yoked
unequallv with unbelievers" Demo
Gratis and Republicans, what com
munion hath light with darkness ~
Others seem over-sanguine and in their
eagerness to subdue injustice are blind
to the ordinary laws of human progress
They believe in miracles. Bless their
simple coniding natures, they would
entrust their most Important errand to
their old enemy, the Republican or
Democrat. if either comes with a
hypocritical smile and specious out
ward show of friendship. Rememb Der
it is not so easy for leopard to change
his spots. Our orators, who have al
ways excoriated the old parties, are
now giving themselves the lie, when
they favor fusion. That wise old devil,
the money power, having failed to
dwarf the Peoples Party with ri icule,
now in fear as he listens to the oncom-
ing muttering of countless hosts, an
irresistible army of wronged and op-
pressed people, has taken his onlv
mode of defense by setting brother
against brother, by foolish fattering
offers, by false spies, by hostages of
silver.
The war now on is greater than that
of the rebellion. This is a war to free
both the white and black slaves, and
consequently far more effort is called
for. 1t is easy to swap principles, easy
to false ideas into a common platform
on which to drift into Office. when
there is no initiative and referendum
with imperative mandate, compelling
those elected to do as they promised
before election or when, If they do,
the courts will not uphold them. But
let the real reformer remember that a
political party can no more suddenly
change it's whole past nature than a
man can. In advising for or against
fusion we should not be influenced by
what few well intentioned Democrat
c or Republican individuals may say,
but only by the historical whole of
their respective parties And what
that history has been that the party
will certainly continue to be prospect
! i've Of what individuals in these parties
may do or say. Such individuals do
not dictate the policies of their parties.
The real inside history of those parties
is dictated by the Tammauies, Mark
Hannas and Platts of our great cities.
They are in turn controlled by the mo-
nopolies which the Peoples Party so
earnestly desires to baud over to the
government. Therefore ask how can
parties holding such divergent views
fuse with each other? The Democrat
ic and Republican party alike through
their rings believe that it Is not wrong
tor any man, company or monopoly to
accumu ate without restriction any
amount of land, means of transporta
ton, or power over labor, yes, aud even
if necess ary to enforce such power with
gatling guns. Both of the old parties
are equally responsible for the evils
that have arisen since the war. They
| have both constantly increased the
burdens of the industrial classes for
the benefit of those who prey upon
them. Both cater to the trusts and de-
pc nd upon the spoils system. The his
tory of both of these old parties in all
our great cities conclusively proves the
truth of this statement. 1t is unneces-
ssry to refer to the countless examples
of collision with gas, railroad, tele-
phone, telegraph and banking schemes
to take advantage of the peop e. Eve
ry one knows how these are patronized
by the minority rings controlling the
machinery of the Democratic and Re-
publican parties. Nor do we have to
go back of the last presidential cleo
ton for our illustrations to see what
these parties really are. The spoil4
element is the power behind the throne
in both Democratic and Republican
camps. That spoils element holds
President Mckinley by the throat and
compels him, even in the face of pro-
testations of Republican newspapers,
to seal 1000, 900 of the peoples mon
ey for the benefit of the Morgan syndi-
cate in the Union Pacific deal, rushed
through before the meeting of congress
1t can not be denied by any man with
head on his shoulders that the credi-
tor classes of the east will never allow
either of the old parties to be DONNA
ted by the reforms, especially in f.
nance, which characterize the Peoples
Party. Therefore fusion is i7le talk
or, if it is not idle talk, it lays the men
indulging in it open to serious suspi-
cion.
What now? The cause of reform
will be most advanced by allowing
those who think they are Populists,
but imagine they can fuse with such
parties, to fuse with them They must,