The Courier. (Genoa, Nev.) 1899-1904, 1902-10-10
The Republican Game.


brief editorial called attention to the
intense anxiety of the Republicans for
the Fusionists to divide, and scatter
their votes. Some of our Republican
contemporaries devoted much space to
the matter of Judge Bonnifield's with
drawal from the Legislative ticket, de-
claring that his action made the coun-
ty certainly Republican. The same
papers would have covered him all
over with abuse if he had not with
drawn. Clearly it was not the mere
fact of his declining the nomination
tnat made these papers So jubilant.
They found their pleasure in the
thought that there might be'a want of
harmony among the Fusionists of
Humboldt.
There is lesson in this which Demo
ocrats and Silver Party men should
study closely.
The aim of their opponents is to
divide and conquer, SO far as they ex-
pect to conquer at all. But the Re-
publicans do not expect to win gener-
ally. They are only looking for ad-
vantaees in spots. They do not be-
lieve for moment that they can elect
their entire State ticket They have
no serious thought of defeating Mr..
Newlands. They do hope to cut into
his majority in the next legislature by
dividing the Fusion vote in the legisla-
tive districts.
More especially do they expect to
elect in this way as many State Sena-
tors as possible, who will hold over and,
of course, vote for Mr.. Stewart two
years hence. Thus it will be seen,
wherever there is any local trouble
about the Fusion forces uniting upon
a single candidate, the State Senator
ship is usually the main cause of the
inharmony. The holdovers are what
the Republicans are now making their
chief fight for. They care but little
for the Assembly nominees, because so
far as that body is concerned the Re-
publican cause is hopeless in this cam
paign.
A good rule in politics, as in war, is
to find out what your opponent wants
you to do and then do something else.
The Republicans are intensely anxious
for the Fusionists to divide, and there
fore the Fusionists should weld them.
selves together more firmly than ever.
There has not been disagreemente
enough to affect the general Legislative
result. Those which have occurred
have not come from any want of ac-
cord among the masses of the voters,
but from conflicting personal ambi-
tions. These may be honorable or
otherwise in different cases. But this
thing every honest voter should bear
in mind: No personal ambition should
be permitted to thwart the popular
WILL or jeopardize the success of those
who are clearly in the majority. Hence,
everywhere, there should be a con-
certed effort to concentrate the Fusion
vote. Candidates who are in the field
mercy as disturbers-who represent
nothing but themselves, should be alb.
solutely ignored. In general, this
probably will be done. 1t ought to be
done all cases.
The voters should be intelligent
enough to distinguish the true from
the false. To be sure there may be
cases in which both or all of the Fus-
ion candidates may be perfectly sim
cere. Such candidates must certainly
be able % see that neither personal
ambition no. the public good can be
subserved by pres enting divided
front to united enemy. Wherever
the Fusionists are doing this they are
simply doing what their Republican
opponents want them to do, and it is
the poorest politics imaginable. lou
nal.
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