Waterbury Democrat., 1901-03-20
One Sanp1efo Harmony.
From William J. Bryan's commoner.

The democratic party showed in the campaign of 1900 that it was ready to welcome any returning democrat, and it is doubtless just as ready now to extend welcome to those who op- posed the ticket in 1900 provided they express Willingness to accept the principles of the party and give some evidence of their intention to support the party's candidates in the future. The prodigal son is always well treat ed when he sees the error of his ways and rejoins the family, but he ought not to demand q deed to rne house as condition precedent to h1s return.
 The nomination of MT Wells may, in St Louis, be attributed to his private character or personal merits, but out side of St Louis it is everywhere hailed as triumph for the reaction ary elements of the party.
 The Louisville Courier-Journal says of it: ''This action of the party in St Louis (the democratic nomination of a gold bug for mayor) is evidence that the process of reunion is going on. It also shows how rapidly the sill yer issue is passing from public view in such an extreme democratic state as Missouri. It is a most suspicious indication of the decline in party strife and the return of the masses to the old leaders under whom it was led to victory in former years''
 In the campaign of 1900 the demo- cratic party stood for the declaration of Independence, and for industrial in- dependence as well as for financial in- dependence, and the democrats of St Louis gave loyal support to the ticket. The republican party stood for an i'm perial policy and trust domination, as well as for the gold standard. and MT | Wells gave his influence to that par ty. The more prominent he was as q man and the more influence he had. the more valuable was his support to the republican ticket and the greater the loss to the democratic cause, If NIT Wells has changed his views, let i him publicly announce his conversion to democratic principles and his sins. though they may be many, will be for given. Of course. if the conversion did not occur until after he made un his mind to seek the nomination for mayor, some might doubt the sincerity of the change but so far he has failed 1 to give even that much comfort to the democrats.
 If MT Wells has undergone no change of opinion. what reason is there to doubt that he will use the in | f1uence of his office to defeat demo cratic congressman in 1902, as he used his individual influence to defeat dem- ocrauc congressman in 1896, 1898 and 1900? Is there any reason to believe that the environment which led him out of the democratic party has lost it's controlling influence over him? If he is the same man that he was in 1896. 1898 and 1900, official position will simply increase his power to do harm and weaken the party in it's eff fort to overthrow republican doctrines
 MT W'ells's nomination is a part of the plan of the reorganizers-natio in its extent-to capture the organiza- tion by stealth and then make the democratic so much like the republi- can party that there will be little choice between them.
 The democratic party now stands for definite principles and it aggres- sively opposes republican policies. The Kansas City platform embodies the principles of the party, and the rank and file of the party are attached to i those principles. Those who oppose the Kansas City platform will not make an open fight against it-even Mir Wells would not have been willing to risk a nomination on a platform repudiating the Kansas City platform but under the pretense that success can be won under the leadership of the reorganizers, men are being pushed forward for local offices who have no sympathy with democratic principles.
 The election of 1894 gave some indi- cation of the fate which awaits the party if it becomes the tool of organ iZed greed and bids only for the favor of the plutocratic element of the coun- try. Democrats cannot afford to lose sight of democratic principles in their eagerness to secure local victory, which, when secured, is nominal rather than real.
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