Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1902-05-17

now in position to swallow the SUD-
treasury plan, the government owner
ship Of railroads, ETC., all hitherto OBJ
jectionable doctrines, without compro-
missing his pride, judgment or party
standing. Indeed, as matters now
against the measures referred to, will
have to do it outside of the party, and
we doubt exceedingly If many will be
found who will do this. All that the
politician, whether Alliance or non-Al-
lance, has to say is, "Well, this plat
form is evidently what the people want,
and I'll have to give 1t to them"
So far as we recollect, no part of this
was intended as a iab at anybody. 1t
was merely intended as oil on the trou-
bled waters, and a hint to those can
didates, including Mr.. Hemphill, who
had suddenly found themselves floun-
dering helplessly out of touch with the
stampeding majority. If newspaper
has feelings that are capable of being
wounded, 1t may very we'll be imagined
how THE ENQUIRER felt next day, June
2, 1892, when the Columbia State, of
that date, arrived with the following:
The YoRKvILLE ENQUIRER speaks of
1.-The Incorporation Of the Alliance de-
mands into the Democratic platform of
the state" and sagely remarks that
'any one who desires to kick against
the measures referred to will have to
do it outside Of the party" We expect
ed better information and better sense
from a paper like THE YoRKvILLE EN-
oUIRER. There is no Democratic plat
form. The Irby constitution, under
which the convention acted, did not
permit the adoption Of a platform.
The Ocala demands were adopted as
resolutions, as the record shows. Fur
thermore, neither state platforms nor
resolutions can bind Democrats in ma
tional affairs. The national Democracy
is the highest authority, and any state
platform in antagonism to its declara-
tions is null and void. The national
Democratic party will adopt platform
at Chicago this month, and we will
stand upon 1t. It will not include the
Objectionable Ocala-South Carolina de-
mands. Meantime. entirely within the
party we spit upon and spurn the
Third party resolutions adopted by our
recent state convention. This could not
be a paper of Democratic principles and
do otherwise.
The reader Of the foregoing will note
a good many things, among others that
The State then held that neither state
platforms nor resolutions can bind
Democrats in national affairs" and al
so that it stood not upon the Demo
cratic platform that had been smashed
four years before, but that 1t would
stand upon the platform to be adopted
the politicians of all shades Of opinion
ent time it is holding that not only have
state conventions the power; but 1t Is
their duty "to bind Democrats in ma
tional affairs" Furthermore, 1T is hold
ing that these Democrats must be
bound not to the structure that is to
be erected out Of the wisdom and ex-
perience of the past eight years; but
to the mistakes through which the ma
tional organization has suffered disas-
ter and defeat.
To THE ENQUIRER all this is intense
ly amusing. We say, unhesitatingly,
that we regard the present national
Democratic platform as being abso-
lutely dead. 1t died on the day Of the
last national election, and it is as dead
as it will ever be. The idea of pledging
a candidate to continue to support 1t
is like tying a live man to a corpse. If
the proposition, however, were to
pledge allegiance to the next platform
we could offer no objection. Neither
could there be any objection from any
individual who makes the slightest
claim to being a'Democrat.