The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-07-01
WATSON MAY GO HIS OWN WAY.
ALMOST SURE TO BOLT IF THE FL
SION FACTION WINS.

in This Weeks Issue of the Peo-
pies Party Paper-FusiOn 10 Fight
a Common Enemy Declared "A Fatal
Pitfnu. but Full of Profit to PoPu-
Iisim's SO-CaIIed Leaders-Bryan's
Recent Utterance n Climax.
Atlanta. Ca. June GG-The half-credited
rumor that on account of the fusion ques-
ton Tom Watson might withdraw from
the populist parry was to-day. for the
first time. shown to have a very distinct
foundation.
Senator Yancy Carter was here short
time ago and expressed his views on the
subject but he was regarded as rival
for the Georgia leadership, and his idea
of the situation was not adopted by every
one.
Mr.. Watson has not left the party but
he has written a signed article in which
he intimates in the strongest terms that
II the fusion faction prevails the organi-
cation need no longer count on his sup
port He does not mince matters at all,
but comes out in very straight forward
fashion.
The peoples party paper, just off the
press, is the publisher. Mr.. Watson starts
off by comparing the history of the Old
greenback party with that of the populist.
Populism, he says, is but a new edition
of greenbackism, and Is threatened with
destruction by the same rock on which
the greenback party split, to wit, fusion.
Seeing that we could not be destroyed
by open warfare" he says, 1.-THE bosses of
the two old parties began to practice upon
us the deadly medicine they had used on
the greenbackers.
"They pretended to adopt our principles.
They prayed us TO combine with them to
defeat common enemy. In the west
democracy snuggled up to populists and
proposed fusion against the republicans,
the common enemy
I'm the south the republicans offered
aid to defeat the democrats. the common
enemy Our people dreaded these comoi-
nations but the leaders loved them. Flu
sion put them in office. Fusion took hold
of some of the weakest brethren and put
them into fat places, local and national.
when a ten-dollar man found himself
In a thousand-doliar office he naturally
thought well of the stairway which led
him up to such office.
has been Endorsed by one or the other of
the old parties, when our votes were need
ed in some local contest; and both the old
parties have been getting farther away
from us i'm actual practice every year.
THE republican party belongs more abb
solutely and unTeservedly to the corpora
ton and the money power now than it
did ~ 1890.
THE democratic party is further away
from free silver at Is to / and expansion
of the currency now than ID was in 1898,
when it struck off from the statute book
the last remnant of legislation which
favored silver
Its action in 1896 was a snare-a monu-
mental piece of cheek and hypocracy.
Its platform was never meant TO mean
what they intended the people should I'M
derstand it to mean.
"And the nominee for Vice President
was guarantee to the Wall street ele-
ment of the party that special privilege
was in no actual danger.
'Sfnce that silver platform was adopted
and democracy cleansed and purified the
democrats of Georgia have refused to vote
against gold contracts past, present or
future.
THE democrats Of Alabama and Arkan-
sas have followed suit.
And Mr.. Bryan Qf correctly reported)
has capped the climax by saying the ques-
ton of ratio does not matter SO much
after all.
"If the peoples party is to endure. It
must purge itself of fusion and get back
to its original position. If the democratic
party is right. we ought 10 disband our
party and join theirs.
If the republican is right, we should
disband ours and join it.
Fusion represents no principle under
the sun. 1t is the stepladder of the place
hunter
"Only that and nothing more.
'If fusion with the democratic party is
good for populism, pray explain the mer-
its of fusion with the republicans.
''If fusion with the republicans is right
expound TO us the righteousness of fusion
with the democrats.
"And II your logic is not tried when you
get through with those propositions en-
Tighten US, we humbly beg of you, as TO
the patriotic principle of good government
upon which Mr.. Butler bases his fusion
with both the old parties in North Caro-
lima.
I'VE would really like to know how pop
ulistic principles are to grow by being
traded Off, first to one of the old parties
and then 20 the other.
Then we especially hunger and thirst
20 know how warfare on both the old
parties is TO thrive when an Office barter
exchange is established with both"
The most pungent paragraph of all Is
the concluding one. in which Mr. Watson
sums up Thus
Our own belief is that no gentleman
vii remain in the peoples party il the
idea once gets abroad that populism and
HesslaniSm are synonymous terms II our
voters are mere mercenaries to be traded
Tor ofice In any market where there Is
demand for them. no decent man viii he
caught In that company"