The San Francisco call., 1899-03-15
STANDING BY THEIR GUNS.

THE majority still rules at Sacramento 1t has
the first and last say upon the question OF Sen
atorial caucus. If the party interests require the
instrumentality OF it IS for the majority to
so decide From the beginning it has decided that
those interests do not require Caucus From time
to time recacitrant minority has attacked the ma
iority on this issue, but has failed to shake It. The
majority to which alone the interests OF the party are
committed has guarded them and will do so, we be-
Ieve to the end of the session The various candl-
dates supported by the majority have offered repeat
edy to retire and leave to the Legislature clear field
for the majority to occupy and act upon. Only the
one minority candidate Burns, has refused, and by
standing in the way has compelled the majority to
still stand guard.
Surely the majority and the people should be i'm
pressed by the spectacle. The Burns campaign has
veen run on winks and mods and signs, grips and
passwords, all intended to imply reserve strength
the appearance of which has been confidently pre-
diced score of times. AS the contest has aged and
one after another these predictions have failed the
bluff has degenerated into joke AS far can be
seen now, it is the intention OF Burns to prevent
final adjournment and wait until the pressure OF their
personal concerns will cause enough members to go
home to reduce the number needed to elect
down to his size This the last desperate resort OF
the minority candidate, whose tactics have annoyed
the majority against which it has been in rebellion
The party and the people watching this scheme as
they have the others that preceded it and tailed in
their turn, as this will fail and follow them to the
limbo OF marplots which have distinguished the
Burns candidacy and its methods
Good party aware that If no election take
place the interests of the party and country will not
be endangered, because even with Delaware, Penn
sylvania and California leaving their three seats va
can't there is left Republican majority of twenty in
the United States Senate Good party men wish that
that majority in the Senate, the largest for years.
shall be maintained and they know this be done
only by such nurture and admoniton of the party IN
its highest purposes will retain tor 1t the esteem
and confidence of the country, now so heartily mani
tested and freely given This cannot be done by
showing mere wantonness in electing Senators who
represent none of the best motives and highest pur-
poses of the party. Using its power to elect tew
Senator's like Burns and Addics is the short road to
loss of that power by its vicious abuse Every Re
publican in California who is so from principle
knows, feels and says that the election of Burns
means future defeat of the party here and the sap
ping of its strength everywhere For that reason
they expect every man stand by his duty and his
guns and defeat every scheme OF the turbulent Mi
norty which is behind Burns. AS his candidacy II
openly announced last fall would have defeated the
party last November so his election now will defeat
it next year. This no one doubts nor denies No
one doubts that his candidacy secretly intended
and planned for long before the last election 1t was
among the set purposes Of a few men who have no
interest in the party except to gather the spois OF its
victories, and who nothing for the advancement
of its principles These cherished their plans in
secret while those who strive for party success for
the general welfare were making pledges and prom
ses to the people inconsistent with the waste OF its
power and triumph in the election of Burns. These
men are Justly indignant at the booded PROPOSE
ton to stamp them as liars and agents of false prom
ises and pledges made to be broken 1t is well for
the party that its majority in the Legislature has so
far stood for the redemption of these PUBLIC pledges
and has repudiaed the secret plots OF Burns and his
Junta.