Lewiston teller. [volume] (Lewiston, North Idaho) 1878-1900, 1898-09-02
How the Fusion Fused.

a weeh of contention and strife, the |
second fusion has been effected in |
Idaho politics. The result is a week |
ticket, composed of bosses, political |
hacks, chronic office seekers and pro- |
fessional politicians. Instead of har- |
mony, peace and good will among the
factions the re is ON the contrary an
open expression of bitterness and
thorough disgust with manner and
method of the fusion and also with the
personel of the ticket.
The disruption of the silver forces of
the state, the discord and the bitterness
of feeling that has come from the con-
vention results in great measure from
the action and influence of Steunen-
berg and his Tammany Hall contin-
gent This assertion is not made from
partisan standpoint but was the
open expression of the feeling cleaned
by personal contact with the members
of the several conventions met at Boise
last week. And the expression is not
in any degree confined to the opposing
parties, the governors own party
members are just as free to express
themselves as opposed to the methods
by which he manipulated the conven-
tions.
The governors whip hand was
shown early in the convention when
by forcing the adoption of the majority
report in seating the contesting delega-
tions from Bingham county the AFRO
gance of his lieutenants nettled the
delegates. The vote on this question
showed that Stuenenberg controlled
the delegation by majority of about
30 votes. And thereafter during all
the proceedings of the convention the
majority took every occasion to ride it
rough shod over the wishes of the
minority. 1t is to this impoltic action
on the part of the Stuenenberg forces
that the bitterness now SO openly ex-
pressed is in great measure due.
An incident or two near the end of
the convention shows how nearly the
Tammany Hall methods came to caus-
ing open revolt in the democratic con-
vention. The conference sub-commit-
tee had been journeying from the city
building to the convention hall about
every thirty minutes from S O'Clock
Saturday night till after midnight.
The silver republicans demanded the
governor and failing in that they OBJ
jected seriously to Steunenberg. The
majority at the convention hall would
not yield. The conference committee
were worn out with the contentious OF
the week. Every delegate was ON the
ragged edge of Il revolt. Redwine of
Lemhi, made motion that the con-
ference committee be dismissed and
that the convention proceed to nomi-
nate a straight democratic ticket. The
proposition met with a general cheer
of approval and if the question could
have been put it would have carried
everything before it, The Steunenberg
lieutenants, thoroughly frightened,
begged frantically for fifteen minutes
more time to adjust things, and luck
lily for them they hit upon the divis'
. ion plan whereby they got the gov
ernor at the sacrifice of everything
: else, but the delegates got some salts
= faction in defeating Martin for attor-
lney general. Martin was on the
, Steunenberg slate but unlucky for him
; the delegates did not come pledged tC
; his support The delegates did for him
: what they would have been pleased to
> do with Steunenberg had they not
been tied by instructions given at the
: county conventions.
= Steunenberg, Gum, Taylor and
a Williams were the prime movers IN
: the call for the second populist con
. venti0n, and the hopeless spit when
, res ulted was caused in the main 10y
, the contention among the leaders al
? which was the regularly constituted
> convention of the peoples party Th'
2 holt from the Taylor convention, how
> ever gave to the Blake faction repre-
; sentation of nine-tents OF the popuilsti
in the state and the refusal OF tn
? democrats and silver-repubicans Il
? recognize so large per cent OF Tn
, strongest SILVER party in the state
? seems almost without reason. Few"
: popuIists will follow Taylor and WI
: lams than democrats who follo"e'
2 Hawley into the Dubois camp t"'
wears ago. Net the democrats "hlee
: ia factions. The truth of the matte
2 ~ expressed hy many delegates iron
: both the parties forming the fusion
Z i that they We're glad of "A good eXcus
Z 10 shut the populists ont. The g'ound
= for excluding them are certainly nc
L in sympathy with that great cause q
Z silver which needed harmonizing