The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1900-08-08
TOWNE DECLINES
THE NOM|NAT ton
Letter to the PopuIist Com
mittee of Notification.
REASONS FOR HIS ACTION
His Acceptance Would IDjure the
Cause Of Political Reform.
HIS ELECTION IS OUT OF THE QUESTION
Struggle is Between Stevenson and Roose-
welt, Therefore Consistency, Common
Sense and the Highest Patriotism
Demand My Withdrawal"
(By the Associated Press

10y the ASSOcldIeO IreSS.)
Duluth, Mimi, August Former
Congressman Charles A. Towne, who
was nominated for the Vice-Presi-
dency by the Populist National con-
vention held at Sioux Falls, in May,
has sent the following letter to the
Committee of Notification, Hon. P. NJ.
Ringdal, chairman
''Gentlemen:
s'When on the 5th of July, at Kan
sas City 1 had the honor to receive
from you the official notification or
the action of your national convention
in nominating me for the office of
Vice-President of the United States, /
requested, in view of anomalous and
delicate circumstances in the PresI-
Dental situation that you permit me
to take the subject under careful adj
visement before announcing decision
either accepting or declining that
nomination. This request you were
pleased to grant. and now. after ma
ture consideration of all the factors
involved that concern the welfare of
the cause of political reform in this
country and my own duty thereto,
| am constrained to inform you in all
respect that 1 must decline the nomi-
nation rendered me by the Sioux Fails
convention.
''In announcing. this conclusion 1
cannot forbear TO express to you, and
through you, to the great convention
whose mission you hold, as well as to
that patriotic body of advanced politi-
cal thought that your convention rep
resented, my deep sense of the honor
conferred upon me. 70 be the IMAM
imous choice of such convention for
the second highest office in the SER
vice of the republic would be dis
tinction TO any citizen. Two circum-
stances, however, add emphasis to
this consideration in the present in
stance:
sFirst-That the nomination was
unsolicited by me; and
"Secondly-That the convention as
in thescase also of it's nominee for the
Presidency went out of its own politi-
cal organization to select a candidate.
To my mind this action of the Sioux
Falls convention in nominating for
Vice-President a representative of the
Silver Republican party is one of t.
most encouraging and inspiring spec
tacles in recent politics.
It's unselfshness and magnanimity,
its testimony to the precedence of the
cause OF the people over any merely
partisan advantage, raised the proce-
dure of that convention into the Sc
rene upper air of true civic heroism.
From such a spirit as this, what SER
vice, what sacrifice can not be asked
in the name OF the Republic 1t was,
of course, the expectation of your con-
vention that it's nomination for the
Vice-Presidency would prove accept
able to the conventions of the Demo-
cratic and Silver Republican parties
called to meet in Kansas City on the
Fourth of July. The Silver Republi-
cans, thirteen hundred and thirty
three delegates, representing twenty
eight States and Territories, were in
deed eager to name the ticket chosen
at Sioux Falls; but to the great Demo-
cratic convention another course COM
mended itself. The name of your
nominee was presented to that conyen-
ton and was received with remark
able demonstrations of approval by
the enormous number of citizen spec
tators and with the utmost respect by
the delegates. But geographical con-
siderations and the fact that in GER
tain parts of the country it was deem
ed wise to defer to a sentiment de-
handing that the candidate should
be man absolutely identified with
the Democratic organization, not only
by holding its principles and advocat-
ing its cause, but also by name and
profession, determined the selection
of the Hon. Adlai E. Stevenson, of Illi-
nois,a man of unimpeachable character
and of ripe political experience, who
as a member of Congress more than
twenty years ago was a close asso-
ciate and co-laborer of General j. b.
Weaver and other great leaders IN the
reform political movements of that
day, and who as Vice-President from
1893 to 1897, distinguished himself by
rebelling against the betrayal of DEM
ocratic principles by President Cleve-
land.
when Mr.. Stevenson had been nom
mated, what was it my duty to do?
My name had gone before the conven-
ton along with his and l had been
beaten. The nomination had been
made decisively and with absolute fair
ness. The candidate chosen was per-
sonally uneXceptional; his loyalty
to our principles was beyond question
and his career had been a long exem-
plification of them. Manifestly it was