Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1898-09-08
NAME NATIONAL Tickle !
Middle = of Readers Nominate
Barker and Donnelly.
EARLY ACTION TO HEAD FUSION.


Northern Delegates Bolt Under Leader
ship of Palmer of Illinois-Antifusion
Convention Adopts the Longest Plat
form on Record-Contains Seven Thors-
and Words.
CINCINNATI, Sept. THE middle-of-
the-road Populists have reorganized the
Peoples party, renewed its former dec
laration of principles and nominated its
national ticket two years and two
months in advance of the date Of the
election.
The object of this early action was
to head off any such fusion as that OF
1896. While the radicals controlled the
convention they could not have carried
out their program without bolt from
northern delegates. The western and
southern delegates nominated Wharton
Barker and Ignatius Donnelly and de-
clared the principles of the reorganlZed
party The eastern states were not
represented. 1t was the smallest ma
tional convention on record and 1T
adopted the longest platform on record,
one of over 1000 words. Most Of the
usual rules Of conventions were ignored
as most of the delegates came with self
constituted credentials, owing to the
confusion over the call. 1t was a very
noisy convention and no connected re-
port of the proceedings will ever be re-
corded While the Peoples Party was
heretofore divided on the issue Of fu-
sion, it has now been found that even
the nti-fusiOnists are badly divided and
that the fighting among the middle-of-
the-roaders themselves has just begun.
Adopt Referendum System.
The most important action Of the con-
vention was the adoption of the refer
endum system as the cardinal principle
in the future of the government of the
recognized party. After the nomina-
tons had been made a resolution was
offered by Captain Frank Burdett of
Mississippi providing that the nomina-
lions Just made be referred to a refer
endum of the voters of the Peoples
Party of all states and territories, and
that said referendum be taken in ac-
cordance with the rules adopted by this
convention for the future government
of the Peoples Party. These rules con-
stitute a radical substitute for those
adopted at st. Louis in 1896. The main
change provides that the new Peoples
party should never again hold a dele
gate convention Of any sort, national,
state, district or local, but that the NOM
nations for all officers shall be made
through the ''initiative and referendum
or petition Endorsed by popular vote"
Another supplemental resolution was
adopted, providing that the new ma
4;or Il committee, OF which Milton Park
is cbair,, Van, may take such action as it
NAV find asscessary, in the courts or
otherwise, to see that Itis names Of q!
candidates Of the Peoples Party in all
localities shall appear in the regular and
legally prescribed ballots. Those who
followed Palmer of Illinois out Of the
convention afterward held conference
and appoi1r@ Joseph A. Par.sssg Of Ken
lucky, James Z. Mcbride Of Michigan,
James erris of Illinois and Horace Mer-
rift ri Tennessee a committee to draft
mother address.
Candidates Well known.
While the candidates of the reorgan-
lied middle -of-the-roaders for president
and vice president have never been in
public life yet both are well known.
They have been identified with the Peo-
pies Party ever since its inception and
both are known as ultra radicals on the
most extreme doctrines of the Populists.
Both of them supported Thomas Wat,
son for vice president i'll 1896, and bit.
terly opposed the efforts at fusion at
that time and ever since. They are
both bitterly opposed to Colonel Bryan
and charge him with instigating Sena
tor Butler, as the chairman Of then
former national committee, in his effort:
to drive them into fusion and to breal
up the Peoples Party. Wharton Barker
of Philadelphia, the candidate for pres
ident, is the editor of the American
the national organ of the middle-of-the
readers. Ignatius Donnelly of st. Paul
the candidate for vice president, ha
been known for years as the author VIII
advocated that Lord Bacon was tn
writer of Shakespeare's plays, and i
also the author of numerous works o.
finance, especially on the silver ques
ton, and en- specialist questions.