Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-10-30
Careful Canvasses Show That His
Election is Assured.
CHIEF CROKER is ONLY BLUFFINC.
He Does Not Believe That Bryan Will
Be Elected and Is Secretly Betting
on neutrality-suspicious. a Trite
Issue.

washington, Oct. ZO.-(Speclal cor
respondence)-Now that Mr. Bryan
has again shown himself in the
enemy's country" his adherents are
claiming everything In sight. l spent
one day in New York City, and heard
the clamor of the upper crust of the
canaille. 1t is frothy and vapid.
There is nothing in it.
At republican headquarters there is
quiet, calm, unpretentious confidence
of business men who know their bust
ness, and who achieve success by sub
stantial business methods. They have
had careful canvasses made of every
ward and precinct in the states where
1t was presumed that Bryan might
have chance of success; and the re-
ports received show that McKinley's
election is already assured.
Some people, even in New York,
think that Croker expects to carry
New York state for Bryan, because he
has put almost 100000 in bets. That
ought not to deceive any man of ex-
perience. Croker knows that Bryan
will be defeated, and knows that he
will lose 100000. He also knows that
some of his henchmen have quietly
caused upwards of 100000 to be bet
on Mckinley. That is the way big
rascals do big things in big way.
The Bryan campaign has been an
absurdity from the beginning. His
tissues" are chimeras, Pigments of the
Imagination. The people know that
there is no such thing as imperialism.
They know that the constitution is In
no danger. They know that the Decla'
ration of independence will stand for.
ever. They know that the country is
prosperous, and that expansion is In
evitable.
We who have lived thru many cam
paigns, remember that in the cam
paign of 1864. the opponents of Mr.
Lincoln raised the cry of imperialism
The people were warned that their in
situations were in danger. The wal
was declared to be failure. Besides
how could the union be saved by
force? How could people be CO
creed into an acceptance of the constl
tuition in the light of the new reading
of that instrument? AS for Mr.. Lin
coin, he was assaulted with both ridi
cule and abuse, and described as ;
coarse despot, utterly unworthy of au
thority or respect. The thing to d.
was to vote the party of force out ant
the party of peace in, call for truce
make terms and save the constitution
The warning went unheeded. Thu
war continued The coarse despo
was Endorsed at the polls by an over
whelming majority. Within 81.
months, peace was secured by force
and the union was saved. The cOnstl
tuition remained intact, and wa
amended to meet the new conditions
The southern states resumed their oil
national engagements. There was TO
time much suffering within thei
borders as the result of long an
Loody conflict, but the scars gradua
ly disappeared, progress set in and al
was well again. Men wha had pal
ticipated in the rebellion were electe
to high office, state and national, an
acquitted themselves in a way to shoN
that their love of country and pride c
section remained undeminished. The
were as faithful servants of the unto
restored by force as they had been {
the union before force had been foun
necessary to prevent disruption.
After thirty-six years the cry of in
perialism is again raised. Again tn
people are warned that their institl
tons are in danger. Again they al
d adjured to go to the polls and save th
constitution The party in power
II nsing force In asserting the nation,
authority, and that means empire an
militarism. The president, tho not tn
subject of coarse abuse. is yet the su
ject of the most extreme misreprese
tation, and is denounced unsparingl