The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1897-06-16

The Peoples party OF King county came
within an ace Of being born again" las.
! night, II one can apply scripturai eS-
| preston TO such an earthly aggregation
as the Popuiists.
Judge Richard winsor. the father ~
Fopulism in this county acted as sponsor
Tor the occasion. and had IL not been or
two or three suspicious,y inclined indivifu-
ais who thought they saw 'msddle-ee-
the-road aspect about the movement,
the new birth would have been complete.
As IL was, The matter was made the sub
Jecf of long wrangle conducted af-er
| the manner OF Populist convention. with
rnnumerabla motions and substitutes
points OF order and divisions.
II AL happened in this way: Judge VIM
| sor was made chairman of the Peoples
party convention at Lewis hall, called for
/ the purpose of electing delegates 10 the
/ district convention TO meet this morning
| at 10 o'clock TO elect delegates 10 the
Nashville convention July T. Mr.. Winsor
launched the project on the convention by
| stating early in the proceedings that
number of men. heretofore calling them
| selves Silver Republicans. had come TO
! him and expressed their. dissent from the
! proposition advanced by John Wiley at
/ the fusion meeting Monday night. that
| silver was the issue for 1885 and would
be the issue In 1900
These Iaen came TO me and expressed
/ their dissatisfaction with that sentiment"
1 said Mr.. Winsor Some Of them Indicated
desire to act with the Peoples party In
| the future. For their benefit ! drew up
/ this roll" and the judge read the follow
| ing:
We, the undersigned. for the purpose
OF participating in the convention or the
Peoples party for King county, for the
election OF delegates. 10 the district con-
vention of the Peoples party To be held
/ Lewis haH. 10 elect delegates TO the ma
/ tional convention OF the Peoples party
at Nashville. Tenn, July next do hereby
! pledge orr undivided support TO the per
! petuation of the organization and TO the
maintenance of the principles cnunciated
+ at ST. Louis ard Eliensburg by the Peo-
pies party. that We each renounce all al
4 legiance TO the party with which we have
/ been a member in the past and pledge our
peepe 80 party enS ons "a Il sha
| FORM
Addison Smith moved that all Demo-
/ Gratis and Silver Republicans who desired
| to become ''reformers'' with the Peoples
! party be invited To make themselves
members.
| 1t was suggested that no man should be
| allowed TO join the party simply for the
| purpose of acting in the convention.
| Finally 1t was agreed that the new con-
verts should pledge themselves to re-
nounce- all allegiance with the parties
with which they had been acting in the
past. On motion of p. P. Carroll the
document read by Judge Winsor was
adopted. and 1t was made the sense OF
the meeting that all persons present de-
| string to participate in the convention
should first place their names at the bot
tom of the pledge.
1t was made plain that Judge Winsor
was acting IN harmony with the move
ment to reorganize the Peoples party on
lines independent of the fusion organiza-
| tion of the last campaign If he had in
tended to bring about such a reorganiza-
| ton of the Populist party of King county
! then and there his plans received q
| speedy setback.
Bruce Hardin was the first to attack
| the proposition In emphatic tones he
| declared that he was opposed to any such
| action as contemplated In the pledge. He
! saw "a little joker" in the tail end of the
document. where 1t hound the signers to
| act with the Peoples party In the future.
| This means" said Hardin, that IL a
| minority of the party should go of by
| itself and refuse to participate with the
| majority in any fusion with the Silver
| Republicans, that we would all bind
ourselves TO act with this minority.
| am opposed to taking any such action"
Talk Of Betrayal.
| Judge Winsor--I assume that no per-
son or persons have determined what the
| Peoples party shall or shall not do In
the future. No such action is intended
| by this pledge
J. l.. p. Snyder declared that the Pcpu-
lists needed some such scheme to hold
them together. He proposed rather a
startling way of dealing with traitors aud
! corruptionists in the party. Said he:
( n -
! the party was sold out. There ought 20
be some radical means OF dealing with the
men who will betray the party, as II has
| been betra yed In the past. Our candidates
should be made to sign such pledge as
this when we nominate them for Office.
| I would like TO see the traitors who sell
! cut hung 10 the taliest telegraph pole In
| Seattle" (Applause>.
| Another speaker declared TINT the mem
bers Of the convention were there as
! Populists and not as fusionists. He adj
vocated adopting the pledge.
In this way running fire was kept UP
/ for half an hour, the arguments being d.
recteo n matter which the convention
| had disposed of by vote. Or. Mitchell
Hardin and others asked II they would be
prevented from acting in the convention
If they refused TO sign the pledge. They
said that they had fought the battles OF
reform In the Peoples party too lone
10 be expected TO sign a pledge every Fix
months.
A. r. Jones took the platform and en-
deavored 10 straighten out the tangie.
Ee said that the reorganization of the
party. which was begun at Olympia by
the organize ion OF the Peoples Fnr'y
State Club. was made necessary by the
! fact that certain allies OF the populists
in the fusion movement had given IL OCT
tina. the Peoples party was dead and
that in the future the members of that
party would have to follow some other
banner. THE term Peoples party. as
applied to the fusion organization was "A
misnomer," shouted Jones. 1.-THE Populiet
party does not intend 20 let the tail wag
the dog and that Is what we are 10 let
these people know. The fusion move
ment vas organized by schemers who
hoped 10 dsintegrate the Peoples party.
The time has come fer us 10 say tina,
this thing has got TO stop.''
/ Fay the Roll.
/ Other Speakers tried 10 smother the
flames NJ opposition TO the Winsor pledge.
bat without avail. and finally motion
was made 20 allow all known Populists
present To participate in the convention.
In the meantime a number OF members
had signed the roll
Among the frat to place their names on
the document were John r. Fay and G.
y. Dam These gentlemen were seated iu
the rear Of the hall. and had evidently at
tended the convention for the purpose OF
announcing their conversion 10 Popuiism.
pure and simple. As they walked 10 the
crairmsn's desk and signed the roll there
was loud applause and during The re-
Of 10 hnsE