Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1901-02-28
Partisanship vs. Fusion.

IL IS Lnub dDle 10 ulsRulse Itself, de-
ceive The passer by and to secure for
itself safety, where otherwise it would
be in peril.
So Democracy is the chameleon of
this country. 1t changes color with
each epoch, to correspond with the
teachings of the time and the concu-
sions of the country. 1t has thus
been able to disguise its designs, de-
ceive the voter, and to secure success
when otherwise it would have been
driven to defeat. From Jefferson to
Buchanan, Democracy was the expo
nent of expansion; under the leader
ship Of Cleveland and Bryan it has
been the enemy of that policy. In the
days of jackson and Pierce it was the
champion Of coercion; under Seymour
and Stevens it has been pleading for
peace In 1929 it stood for the gold
dollar and a sound and stable curren-
cy. In 1899 it stood by the silver
syndicate, and fluctuating finance.
In the sos it supported slavery by
its bred Scott decision and congress
ional compromises. In the '90s it
championed the cause of the Cuban
and the freedom of the Filipino. In
COS il lampooned Lincoln and exc
Grated the emancipation. In the cen
fury of conquest, it lauds that mighty
man and links his name with the
champions of its cause. So
II wires IN and wires ont. and leaves the
people still in doubt
Whether the snake that crossed the
track
was going south or coming back
Its whole course has been crooked;
its whole career has been chameleon
&c. Its changing course leads one to
ask the question of the colored gen
tleman: "Sam, what fo' you done
wear vo' gallus crossed IN front? We
can nebber tell whether yo' is comm
or goin' .. So Democracy always
wears its suspenders crossed both be-
fore and behind, and YOU never can
tell which way it is going. It
changes the color of its championship
with each promise Of popularity that
thus by disguise and deception it
may secure success.
It today masquerades under the
claim of .'nonpartisanship" and the
q
that partisanship is our peril, and
seeks by fusion to find an open door
to office But when and where was
Democracy ever nonpartisan? When
and where did it ever fail to profit
from its partisanship? When and
where with monumental majorities,
was it ever magnanimous enough to
reward Republican with a place of
profit? Was it in Chicago under the
administration of Carter Harrison, in
Milwaukee under the mayorship of
Mr.. Rose, Or in New York under the
craftsmanship of Richard Croker? Was
it under the Observation-Disclosures of
North Carolina, the terrorism of Texas
or the Goebelism of Kentucky? And
vet this Aguinaldo Aid Association,
which gave birth to the doctrine, 10
the victors belong the spoils, poses
as the champion OF nonpartisanship
whenever it is in the minority. hop
ing thus to humbug honesty and hero
ism into the support of its men and
measures. 'Tis the old story Satan
rebuking sin, " "the pot calling the
kettle black" Sir Subterfuger! You
can fool all of the people some of the
time, some of the people all of the
time, but you can not fool all of the
people all OF the time. They see be-
hind your mask. And whether 1.-THE
prize be a ribbon or throne wheth-
er it be that of a county judgeship or
a presidential chair, they will not be
led with the moose OF nonpartisan-
ship.
But granted that partisanship is a
peril, is it TO be fought by fusion?
| Did two wrongs ever make a right?
Can man surrender his conscience
for the sake Of success and claim to
be patriotic and pious? Can party
stultify itself and turn from its time
honored teachings. leaguing itself
with foes and to fallacies. knowing
them to be such, merely for the sake
of success. and claim the respect of
honest men, Yet What have we seen?
Why the Chicago platform. which
was like the witches cauldron in
Macbeth. skinned and served with
| silver spoon TO Democrats who had al
WAYS been Disguised with its sjeken-
ing stencil and swallowed by them
1
without groan or grimace.-and for
WHAT Why, to possess power-to
ride into Office. We have seen men
voting for fiat money, government
Ownership Of railroads, against eN
pansion and a stable currency. and
acting in favor Of irrideSeeut scheme
Of paternihilism, and every pernicious
doctrine TO which Democracy has
been opposed from the days Of Jeffer-
sen to the present. simply to follow
the folly Of fusion and to unite with
freaks to defeat the Republican party.
Men were thus told 10 put their prin
ciples and their pride in their pocket
that there might come another king
who knew not Joseph. It was the
attempt to mix acid and alkaG. There
was some ..siz aud smell but no
success And this i the conrlomer-