Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-09-03
FIGHT FOR TWO STATES
BOTH PARTIES ANXIOUS FOR IN
DIANA AND NEBRASKA.
Com mittees to Send Their Best Ora
tors to Discuss the National
IsSues.
Special Correspondence Of The Evening Star.

Special Correspondence Of The Evening Star.
CHICAGO, September 1. 1900
Upon one thing the republican and the
democratic national committees are Of one
opinion. They both expect to carry Indiana
Mayor Tom Taggart of Indianapolis. demo-
cratic national committeeman from the
hoosier state Is the principal adviser of
Senator Jones on the subject. He brought
tidings to the effect that the labor vote is
greatly disaffected: that the workingmen
blame whatever they have to complain or
on the trusts: that the trust issue Is the
greatest OF ali in Indiana, and that upon
that issue the strongest fight should be
made. His reports were of so encourag ing
a nature that 1t was decided at secret
meeting Of the executive committee. which
State Chairman Martin also attended, to
place their strongest orators in the state
1t was this meeting that induced VIM. j.
Bryan to so arrange his itinerary as to
give him a number Of dates in Indiana. All
the big speakers will visit Indiana at some
time or another during the campaign. They
will adduce their most powerful arguments.
They will shout imperialism. mlitarism,
trusts. Then trusts again and more trusts.
But they will keep quiet on silver. just as
Mr.. Bryan himself keeps silent when asked
whether not he could pay off interest
on outstanding bonds. which Is payable In
coin" In silver. should it 80 happen that
he would be elected President. If Secre-
tary Cages assertion to that effect was
productive of nothing else 1t demonstrated
clearly at least, that Mr. Bryan Is not as
ready to answer any and all questions Is
once he professed to be.
Hard Fight In Indiana.
All these movements toward the Indiana
state line have given the republicans no
great concern. but they have made them
alert. They don't propose to be outdOne
when it comes to a campaign of oratory
and education. Indiana Will be battle
ground, the ground of battle royal. Every
inch will be contested. II the democrats
send one speaker of national note into the
state the republicans will send two. Almost
every United States senator who will take
the stump for Mckinley will stop of for
few days I'm Gov Mounts state. Senators
Beveridge and Fairbanks will devote weeks
of their time to the canvass. Nothing will
be left undone.
Nor will the republican congressional COM
mittee be idle Good speakers will go into
every close or contested district. But we
are not much alarmed" said Representa-
tive Jesse Overstreet of Indiana. secretary
of the republican congressional committee.
The democrats have had a way OF calling
Indiana their own for a good many years.
If that be the case. why do they propose to
make so desperate a fight for 1t this year?
Let Bryan tour the state If he will. If you
recall, he came into Indiana In August,
1895 He didn't carry the state. did her
Representative Dick. chairman Of the
Ohio republican committee. who was here
the other day. also has his own views rela-
tive to the formida bllity of Mr.. Bryan as
5tumper. We welcome him to Ohio, he
said. in the course Of a conversation
Wherever he stopped in Ohio on his pre-
ViouS Speechmaking tours he left trail or
reduced democratic majori,ies growing
republican pluraities. / don't think we will
find it necessary to put anybody on his
trail"
nj to ptati
street. The issues in Indiana, he said.
ARE the trusts expansion. finance and pros
pertty. But above all the issue is Bryan
ism. We are passing through critical times
just now. Everybody realizes that Bryan
is not able to cope with them. A man who
would run away from every complication
not absolutely of local bearing Is not the
man To place at the helm Just now. Inter
national complications are bound to arise
and they must be met they arise. We
cannot run away from them.
Struggle for Nebraska.
The little political amenities are being
woefully disregarded during this campaign.
Once 1t was considered the height of i'm
propriety to Invade the state Of the oppos-
ing candidate. Bryan threw down the
gauntlet when he announced that he would
open the Ohio campaign at Columbus Sep
TENDER Ia. The result is already in evil
dence. Bryan's own state, Nebraska, will
be as bitterly contested as Indiana The
opening meeting Ia on September g. The
republican national committee Is preparing
to send its best fighters there As in In
diana. every foot will be contested. Mr.
Bryan can't carry his own ward, nor his
own county. He'll have to look to his
state. Before the campaign Is over he may
find 1t necessary to devote a few bad DAYS
to q canvass OF Nebraska.
Split Among the Negroes.
One feature Of the yet young oompaign
Is the evident split among the negroes. 1t
can no longer be said that the negro Is
practically unanimously on the side Of the
republican standard bearer. There have
been number of important defections and
the meeting of the American council
at Indianapolis demonstrated that there Is
a marked division in the ranks. Negroes
appear In numbers at democratic national
headquarters. They are received with
marked courtesy unless the senator Is
busy" They considered an important
pawn in the contest.
But Vice Chairman Payne Of the republi-
can committee seems to be not at all dis
mayed He is inclined to view the move
mcnt phiosophically. not with alarm. 1T
is not an unmixed evil" he said. I'm fact,
l believe that division of the cOlored vote
would be unqualifiedly a blessing for the
country at large and for the republican
party. Divide the negro vote. and you re-
move the race question in the south. Obit-
crate the color line, and you Immediately
disrupt the solid south. The men of the
south favor expansion. sound money and
protection. The race question longer
there to solidify them, they will divide on
the political issues that divide the two
parties and the solid south will be a thing
Of the past 1t will affect Texas and Louis
Ia ma almost at once, and other states would
follow quickly. II would not hurt us in
the north. for a division Of the colored vote
will not endapger republican success In a
single northern state. j. e. ].
Democratic Insincerity.
To the Editor Of The Evening Star: