The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1901-11-05
Over a Thousand Voters Turned
Out Expecting to Hear a De-
bate Between Lynn W. Wilson
and David |. Walsh
THE LATTER FAILED TO
PUT IN AN APPEARANCE
Mr.. Wilson Fired Hot Shots at the
Democratic Candidate for Sen
ator in the Second Worcester
District and Was Frequently
AppIauded

pie were crowded into Bigelow Hall to-
night expecting to hear joint debate
on campaign issues between David L.
Walsh, candidate for senatorial honors,
in the second Worcester district, and
! Lynn W. Wilson of Clinton.
Representative Walsh failed a to APP
pear and, after waiting 10 mi%dtes for
| him, Mr.. Wilson went on with his az
gument. When Walsh's name was
mentioned as one of those who voted
for the subway bill there was Kissing
and applause broke out frequently
when points were scored against him.
| The meeting was a mixed one or
Democrats, Republicans and Socialists.
| There were some Walsh supporters in
the hall, but the majority of those pres
ent were opposed to him.
More voters were present tonight
than turned out at the big Democratic
rally Saturday night, when some of the
ablest Democrats in the state. includ-
| ing Hon. John r. Thayer and Hon.
John W. Corcoran, were present.
Mr.. Wilson said
'I am glad to see so many here to-
night. 1t shows that the minds of the
people of Clinton are open to the light.
I am glad that all of you here have
| wonderful round boxes upon your
shoulders filled with the intricate
mechanism of reason, so that you will
under no circumstances be guided by
mere blind prejudice and instinct.
II realize that some of you here have
| been attracted by mere curiosity. That
| is not high motive but if you have
come with open minds to hear honest
| Iy and act intelligently, 1 am glad you
have come, no matter what brought
| you I am glad you are men of Mas
| sachusetts citizens of the state that is
the home of free thought and free
| speech The state that contains the
cradle of the liberties of this country
81 suppose most of you know that an
election is something more than horse
race. and something besides an oppor
tunity to bet on who will win. 1 shall
assume that you know-and if you do
not you ought to knoW-that political
| parties are something besides a me-
dunn for getting some men jobs. And
1 shall ask you to believe that no par
| ty has any reason for existence, or any
right to your votes unless it has some
thing to offer that will promote the in
terests of men or increase their happi-
ness. 1 shall ask you to believe that a
party platform is something besides a
mere collection of platitudes. And If
you find that to be so you will have to
find serious guilt on the part of any
man who sacrifices the principles of his
people and his platform, except for
motives of undoubted righteousness
and sincerity.
Il believe that no principle is so thor
oughly established in the minds of
most men, as the next step to be taken
toward a truly Democratic form of
government, as the referendum, which
| is the principle that demands for the
people the right to scrutinze the acts
| of their servants, and review in their
sovereign right any act or matter that
they please.
II shall ask you to believe that it is
not to be a pleasant task to show the
relation of the gentlemen of whose
public record 1 am to speak, to the
facts 1 am about to offer. And I as
sure you that only the severest impul-
sion of feeling of public duty could
influence me to stand upon this plat
form tonight to oppose a Democratic
nomination, even upon the high ground
that | never was a better Democrat
than I am now in doing this very
thing.
1.-The history of mankind is a history
of the struggle of masses of men for
freedom against the encroachment of
privilege and caste. To gain the right
of manhood suffrage a million mil
lion men have watered a hundred thou
sand battlefelds with their blood. To
prevent that increase of the sovereign
| ty of the people which is implied In the
referendum, the corporations fthis
country have spent millions of dollars
in the legislatures of its several states
and in the halls of Congress,
| I'm Massachusetts year ago the
platform of the Democratic party
contained a referendum plank, the
brightest jewel in the Democratic
crown. Today the conduct of Demo-
cratic servants who were elected up
on that platform has made US by
word throughout the state"
Mr.. Wilson then read the substance
of an open letter to Mr.. Walsh. in
which it was said that an effort would
be made to show that Mr.. Walsh in
! voting for the Boston subway bill, So
called, had betrayed the people and
his party, both because the bill was
bad in itself, and because the referen-
dunn was violated and the platform of
the Democratic party denied.
1.-The vote for the Subway bill was
nothing less than vote to steal a
great value from the people of Boston,
and present it freely to gigantic cor
poration. The bill was bad because 1t
gave a corporation a franchise for two
generations, a thing unheard of In the
policy of the state.
1t was bad because it gave the cor
for eight years, or a rental value OF
NEARLY $1,000 O00 1t was bad because
lit would have left the company with
sc, 600, 900 of stock in its possession I'M
represented by property and 1t was
VASTLY and beyond reckoning bad be-
cause it gave to this railroad the con-
ltrol of the entire street railway system
Iof Boston for 40 years, as against the
lefty and its people and competing cor
Dorations.
He then referred to the letter of Rob
lert Treat Paine, Jr., former Democratic
candidate for governor. saying that
platform was good enough for any
Democrat to stand on. He read from
the letter to show it was the statement
Iof Mr.. Paine that no man should vote
for Mr.. Walsh, because Mr.. Walsh had
violated the party platform. He read
from the Worcester Post, to show that
the Democratic papers of the state
were of the same mind, and said the
Post had printed two lists of names, one
a list of those who voted for the sub
way bill, and the other a list of those
who voted against it. The Boston
Post had called the first list list OF
dishonor, and the second a list of
honor.
Even Mr.. Quincy did not attempt to
defend the vote and had said that he
should not himself so have voted.
Il can imagine Mr.. Walsh saying to
himself, as he voted for that wicked
measure, Thank God that the martyrs
of the revolution shed their sacred
blood upon the holy soil of Concord and
Lexington and gained us such abund-
ant liberty that a little of it never will
be missed
Mr.. Wilson then endeavored to throw
a sidelight upon Mr.. Walsh's character,
in order to show that such acts as were
49,