The San Francisco call., 1899-07-09
ENCOURAGEMENT FOR REPUBLICANS

| T seems almost certain that the attempt OF the
Huntington Herrin- Burns Kelly Crmmins COM
binaton to spread a wet blanket over the ne
publican organization in San Francisco will tail.
Never has there been an effort to destroy great party
that involved more supreme rascaity. San Iran
CISCO owing to the power and dishonesty OF the Hun
tngton monopoly, has been noted for unique polti-
cal phenomena But the deliberate proposal through
the regular County Committee OF the Republican
party, ratify and confirm all the treacherles and
frauds for which the Kentucky corporation has stood
the sponsor during the past year easily transcends
all former experiences.
The conditions that force great American COM
muny almost to remain seepess in order to save its
own life have become virtually intoerabe. No matter
what the fundamental political differences in the
United States may be- it will be generally admitted
that the Republican party originated N bralns IN
character and in independence The men who founded
the party were Americans and, rather than sacrifice
principle, they would have blown organization
into spinters. They did not belong to the class OF
stereotyped partisans who could be forced through
the grooves of machine and labeled with some dis
gusting mark of surrender to corruption. Abraham
Lincoln, Hannibal Hamlin, Salmon P. Chase, Will
liam H. Seward and their great contemporaries were
unprepared for the genuhections and the adulation
that could alone have produced the literary efiores
cence OF the Cotton letters in which Coils P. Hun
tington signally illustrated his grammatical INSULT
cheney and his rude conception of Dictatorship
Republican independence, which has been steady
element in party history, survives to-day and proposes
to become regnant in San Francisco and to defeat
the Huntington trade with the fusion Democracy. 1t
is very doubtful whether the blanket ticket does not
violate both the letter and the spirit of the primary
election law. Upon that point some premonitory
observations have been made by the City and County
Attorney and by others that full OF point and i'm
Fressive in their application But, independently OF
the purely legal aspects OF the case, which may prob
ably dispose of the whole matter the Republicans who
control the results OF elections are displaying an
ganized activity Of which the Huntingdon H erin
Burns Kelly Crimmins combination had better take
notice. OF course, in view OF the representative
principle that has been dogmaticaly violated by the
Republican County Committee, the best thing that
can happen is ruling against the right to present
Huntington placard of 500 delegates to a municipal
convention from eighteen Assembly districts But
whether this ruling can be obtained or not the Re
publican voters of San Francisco have evidenced their
intention to control their own party. There are two
organizations, fully described in Our local columns
which, though operating on different lines, concur in
their objects. blanket ticket is tolerated-n other
words, il the primary election is construed by monop-
olistc interpreters-they will face the corporations
with tickets OF their and it is by no means i'm
possible that the blanketed underbred may be beaten
at their game. All that is needed to overcome
the Phean auxiliary to the traitors to Republican
principles and to Republican integrity is a represen-
tative convention. The present indications are that
such aggregation Of intelligence, of conservatism
and OF American manhood may be secured
One thing is certain: No railroad ticket can be
elected. For that proposition The Call and some OF
its contemporaries will be responsible With no un-
dercurent OF selfshness, with personal objects to
be subserved with a fixed purpose to combine the
decent political elements of this community in tri-
umphant vindication of principle and 'of character
The Call feels assured that failure is impossible This
is American city and it is to be governed by Amer
leans, and not by mperiaistic methods