The Anaconda standard., 1898-02-23


a claim to local office in the name Of
the political party he trots with. but
who were proposing a line of conduct
which should amount to a policy that
will unite the silver forces in anticipa-
tion of results of national significance.
Whatever the motive. one finds evil
dences of some differences of opinion
in the press of the state. Here is the
Standards neighbor. the Anaconda Re
corder, for instance, which, a few days
ago, expressed the opinion that the
republicans in Montana can get to-
gether and win and which, still more
recently, on further reflection, remarks
that it is not prepared to go on record
for fusion" and that it secs no good
reason why the silver republicans
should supineiy sit down and endorse
the questionab BILE edicts of the leaders in
Washington
This is a question over which, as We
see it. there cannot possibly be a quar-
rel We can understand why some
democrats might look with disfavor on
the proposition of fusion in the state
that lis a matter on which the Standard
has been listening to the views of its
contemporaries rather than putting out
views Of its own. We can see, we say,
how some democrats might protest,
they being rather strong partisans who
realize, as we all do, that the demo-
cratic party in Montana, practically to
a man. is Loyalty for free coinage, and
realize, too, that the democratic ra
tional party has done the bulk of
the winning. wherever silver has made
winning. At the same time, the
Standards belief is that the democrats
in Montana, knowing that the state is
not essentially fighting ground, are
ready and willing to answer any call
from the recognized national leaders
and cheerfully obey their call.
We can understand all this, but we
confess that concerning the people who
are called silver republicans the case
is not 50 clear to us Nominally there
are two republican parties in Mon
tana. In the nation there is only one
republican party and essentially there
is only one in Montana that is the
party that supports the national repub-
lican administration. The local party
known in a few states as the silver
republican party is as completely at
variance with the republican party on
the party's one vital issue as unionists
and secessionsts We're in the days or
the rebellion The so-called silver re-
publican party has it's representative
men in those who refused to sit in the
republican national convention and
who in congress constantly fix the at
tenton of the country on themselves
by voting against the republican ad-
ministration.
We suppose it is fair to say that
these silver republicans are about fifty
per cent of the republican party in
Montana They may be a larger per-
eentage. but we should say that 1t is
not very much larger. The real repub-
lican party, the announced goldbug re-
publicans. cast more than ten thousand
votes in 1896 in IA total poll of tiftythree
thousand If now the silver republi-
cans choose to go to the real republicans
in Montana and get together. we
have no doubt that the proffer will be
warmly welcomed by the republicans;
we have no doubt that. in that event,
the regular republicans would gladly
permit the silver republicans to name
the tickets from top to bottom, The
goldites could we'll afford that because
the one purpose the silver republicans
would be serving would be to keep the
regular gold republican party alive: IL
would die presently in Montana without
help of that sort.
Thus. we say. one can understand
how democrats in Montana might in
cline to the belief that their party can
afford to so II alone. But with the
silver-republican element the case is
different That element can dictate,
but only To one party-it can dictate to
the regular gold republican party, the
only essential republican party. Going
to that party IL can take its chances on
getting some state and local Offices the
real service II will render will be 10
keep the regular republican party alive
in this state That is to say, this sill
ver-republican plan proposes to trade
the chance of getting some offices for
services rendered in keeping organized
and on its feet the opposition 10 silver
in this state.
This is the fact about IL, and there
fore the Standard says that. to its
mind the Helena Independents COM
ment is an apt and accurate summary
of the situation. We also share the
view of the Independent when il says
that the democrats of Montana will
not be found arrayed against the
wishes and the judgment Of the men
who are SO ably conducting the national
contest" We are not persuaded that
the Independent is right when IL sug-
gests that the need for union lis not SO
pressing in Montana" At any rate, il il
-, a