The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1901-07-19
IRREPRESSIBLE CONFLICT.
That is What RACES 10 DemOcracy's Cir
CIes. Lighted in Ohio.

Cles.. Twas Lighted IN Uhl0.
st. Louis Globe Democrat:
The action of the Ohio Democrats
i in their state conventions means some
thing more than that, in the wrsngle
between the local bosses, Mclean got
the candidates and Tom johnson wrote
the platform. The apparent rejection
of Bryan and all his works by the con-
vention marks departure IN Demo-
cratic policy which promises 10 have
important consequences for that party,
and to register itself eonspicuously in
national politics. We say apparent,
for there is much in the Tom Johnson
programme which Bryan would favor.
and there is something in it which he
has favored. The dsmagogic and
futile assault on the trusts which the
Ohio Democrats made has been made
frequently by Bryan. The fag-furling
plank of the Ohio platform could hare
been written by Bryan, for it repre-
sents his notions on that subject, as Ire
has often and prominently presented
them. But the platform makers over
whelmingly rejected the plan to re-
affirm the Kansas City platform, the
chief point of objection to that deliver
ance, of course, being its silver plank.
The convention itself took pains to
scorn and deride Bryan personally in
trampIing on the banner containing
his portrait
Warfare has been inevitable between
the Bryan and the antiBryan factions
of the Democracy in 1904 in any event
The first skirmish in that war took
place in the convention at Columbus
and the anti Bryanites won. The same
section of the Democracy which die
tated that party's municipal ticket in
ST. Louis a few months ago carried
the Ohio convention, with this differ
ence, that much of the Ohio platform
would have been favored by the NUM-
eipal ownership of st. Louis. who op-
posed the regular Democratic ticket
here. The break in Ohio has-been on
Bryan and silver, and the cleavage
throughout the country will be on
that line Bryan and silver are
synonymous. Bryan means silver, and
silver means Bryan. By throwing
Bryan overheard the Ohio Democrats
necessarily reject silver, though some
of the men on their ticket have favor
ed silver, and all of them
have supported Bryan. The
cause of silver and the fortunes of
Bryan are inseparably linked in poll
! tics, as the Ohio Democrats made plain
/ in their assault on both.
The war which has been started lin
Ohio in the Democracy will continue
until after the campaign of 1904 is
completed. At the outset the victory
/ is with the reorganizers, for the
friends of Bryan. numerous and elo-
quent as they were, were beaten.
Probably they will be beaten in many
other states, for in some of the west
and in most of the east the reorgan-
izers are undoubtedly in the prepon.
derance in their party. In most of the
trans Mississippi states however, the
Bryanite section is in the majority.
IL is in the majority in Missouri, not.
withstanding the victory of the anti
Bryan element in the municipal can.
vass in st. Louis this year. 1t is in the
majority in Kansas, Arkansas, Ne
braska, Texas and mosa of the othei
states between the Mississippi and the
Pacific There will be contest in thu
Democracy of every state on Bryan
and, while there is probability tina
he will be defeated IN the convention
of 1904, there is very far from being {
probability that that will strengthen
the Democratic party in the nation
at large. Bryan himself will make NJ
concession to the reorganizers. Their,
are hundreds of thousands of mel
who voted for him in 1896 and 1901
who would rather see the Republican
carry every state in the Union thar
have an anti-Bryan Democratic can
didate win. The Democracy's IRE
pressible conflict has begun, and i
r will rage until one or the other fac
tion is overthrown The Ohio conven
tion proclaimed to the country that tn
national Democracy is house divide,
< against itself, and the party will b
forced to accept the calamity whicl
that cond ition imnosas