The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1900-07-26

ifOrnia.
CayucOs, Cal, June %, 1900.
Ignatius Donnelly, Minneapolis, MINI.
Dear Sir: l possess a magnificent
ranch, embracing 100 acres, with mod
ern improvements, large orchard of
great varieties of fruit; soil and climate
adapted to the culture of fruits and all
varieties of farm products, and is as
owe no man or woman dime. Not
withstanding the freedom from debt and
all the independence and comfort
farm life affords, and which I enjoy, 1
am a full-fedged Socialist, and would
most cheerfully surrender all of my pos
sessions if by so doing I could be the
means of setting up a cooperative COM
monwealth, and thus extend all the COM
forts I enjoy to the whole community.
AS stated in my communication of
May 1, addressed to you personally and
published in the Representative June 7,
stated then, and reiterate now, that I
am a Socialist in the broadcast sense of
the term, but am moving and operating
with the Midroad Populists as means
to an end far beyond that which the
Midroad Populists have as yet pro-
claimed for. Namely, a cooperative
commonwealth.
am no more a Socialist now nor no
lose icf r
the fight for the Midroad Populist move
ment in this state to a bolt in the state
convention of 1898. I claim the right
to do any and all kinds of honorable
things which in my judgment will ad-
vance the cause and promote the well
fare of the great army of wage slaves
and homeless millions. l not only
move under the banner of the Midroad
Populists as means to the end of our
accursed system Of financial cannibal-
ism, but when the name of our party
was given to the fusionists by the SUI
preme court of this state, my undivided
energy and the influence of Industry"
of Oakland, my journal, were exerted in
behalf of the rotten Republican ticket
sinking into oblivion and to scatter the
squadrons of Democrats and fusion in
their unclean riot. And of the 10000
Midroaders in this state at least 10000
of them followed my advice and thus we
killed fusion in this state forever.
In my former communication I asked
you personally to draw your line be-
tween public and private utilities. Is it
in behalf of the 10000 Populists of this
MidrOad state to whom you look with
great anxiety for their support at the
polls for the Barker and Donnelly ticket
that you draw that line? A question
you have ignored; my entire commune
cation, and left its vital points to be
answered by your assistant who
away on Bretzes pumpkin and wasted
a whole column in weak defense of the
commission merchant and commercial
drummer.
uO Representative POoCS do IOpu-
list organ and assuming to speak for
the whole Populist party says that Pop
ulists believe in Socializing public utili-
ties and individualizing private utilities.
If Mr.. Twitchell, your associate editor,
speaks with your consent and your au-
thority through the columns of your
journal, and your journal speaks by au-
thority delegated to it by our party, and
we are to follow you as one of our stand
ard bearers, we hold that we have tho
right to be advised by you personally
as to your lines of demarkation that wo
may decide intelligently whether we
wish to march under your banner or to
move onto the real battlefield along
with the Socialists.
Midroad Populists in California, as in
every other part of this country, are not
people who can be persuaded to follow
any man, or journal, with eyes closed;
a fact to which Bryan, Butler, Allen and