Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1901-05-17
GARNETT, KANSAS, MAY II, 1901.
POPULIST ADDRESS
TO THE DEMOCRATS
NEW PARTY IS PROPOSED.
Plan for the Contest of 1902.

J. H. Curran, secretary of the Populist state
state committee, has addressed the following
letter to the Democratic committee:
To J. Mack Love, Chairman, and Members of
the Democratic State Central Committee of
Kansas:
Gentlemien-As you are we'll aware, the Re-
publican majority in the last legislature enacted
into law measure designed to scatter the op-
position to it, and thus perpetuate its control of
the state government This election law is an
iniquitous assault upon the political freedom of
every elector, and, in our opinion, gross in
vasion of their constitutional rights. 1t may
become necessary to test certain provisions of
the act in the supreme court to determine the
rights of the electors to organize anew, so as to
present united front to the party of private
corporations, known as the Republican party.
This law makes it impossible for the name of
a man to 60 on the official ballot as the candi-
date of two or more parties. Its purpose is to
force either the Peoples party or the Demo-
cratic party out of existence in this state, or to
compel them to put up tickets in opposition to
each other, and thus divide their votes. In
order to doubly guard against any union of the
opposition forces in Kansas, it forbids any po-
litcal party from having compound name.
The reasoning of the Republican leaders was
that the law would have one of three effects,
any one of which would insure them victory:
First, that the law would compel the Demo
Gratis and Populists to unite under the Peoples
party name, and that in this case, enough
Democrats, angered at the abandonment of
their party organization, would either stay at
home on election day or vote with the Repub-
licans to give them an easy victory. That the
law wonld compel the Populists and Democrats
to unite under the Democratic name, and that
this would lead enough Populsts to stay at
home or vote the Republican ticket so as to
give them an easy victory. Third, that the
Populists and Democrats, finding it impossible
to unite without the abandonment of their
party organization, would run separate tickets,
and this would insure the Republicans easy
victory.
1t must be conceded that so far as this reason.
ing extends, the logic of the Republican orig
cratic party is great national party, and
because of its national character, its members
would naturally refuse to give up its organiza
ton in this state. The Peoples party is a
great national party, holding views consider.
ably different from those held by the national
Democr ltic party, although the great majority
of Kansas Democrats are in agreement with
them.
1t is impossible for Populists to become mem
bers of the Democratic party at this time.
Many of them hope that the Democratic party
may come into substantial agreement with Pop
uist principles by the time of the next national
convention in 1904. On the other hand, more
of them fear that the putocratic element of
the Democrats will assume its domination in
the councils of the party and make union or
alliance with them impossible. Most of our
remedial legislation must, however, come
through state laws, and a supreme effort ought
to be made every two years to elect state legis-
the people of the state direct legislation and
and public ownership of public utilities.
Believing that the rank and file of the oppos-
ition forces in Kansas want to unite in the COM
ing campaigns, we favor the union of all these
forces in a new state organization with new
name, such as Union party, or other name, to
be selected to deal with state matters solely.
We favor the submission to the Populist and
Democratic electors Of the state OF the proposi.
ton as to whether or not they are willing to
unite in such an organization, and we stand