The progress-advertiser. (Lexington, Miss.) 1902-1903, 1903-08-27
WASHINGTON LETTER.
Fresh, Ciisp Paragraphs Concerning People
and Affairs Around Our National
Capitol.

Special Correspondent Of The Prog
ress-Advertiser. Washington, D. c.,
August 26. 1903.
have just returned from weeks
visit to the state Of New Jersey. /
visited many points In the state and
talked with a number Of the leading
democrats. l talked with men who
were true to the ticket in the years
of 1896 and 1900 and with democrats
Of the old Cleveland regime. In this
way came verv near getting a cor
rect consensus Of opinion and a clear
estimate Of political condition In that
state. found out some things not
generally known to the public, and
some things that the democrats Of
the country ought to know. In the
first place ascertained beyond all
cavil, beyond the peradventure Of a
doubt, that there is Grover .Cleve-
land propaganda actively at work all
over the East. I learned it from the
lips of a man high up in the councils
Of that propaganda, man who de-
clares that Cleveland is the only man
who can carry the East, that he is
candidate and that this game is being
played for the purpose Of again plac-
ing the name Of Cleveland at the
head Of the democratic ticket. This
man, my informant, formerly was in
the United States Senate. He does
not prefer Cleveland personally. He
does not like him. He prefers an
other man, but he says that Cleveland
is the only man who can carry the
states of the East that we must have
in order to win. He says that Cleve-
land has built up certain class of
voters in the East, an independent
class, the 'commuter' class who live
IN the small towns Of Jersey and all
Of whom have money and are the
pharisees, the holier-than thou Of
politics, and who will not vote for any
man who is identified with any pol
itical organization, and that those are
the men who are clamoring for the
denomination Of Mr.. Cleveland, and
that we will see the sentire East on
fire for Mr.. Cleveland before the next
convention meets. All this may be
so and it may not. found very lit
tie Of this sentiment among some OF
the other so-called "reorganizers" to
whom talked during my trip in the
state Of Jersey. Those men were
divided among several whose names
have been mentioned as the most
available man for the democratic
leader in the campaign Of 1904, all Of
them acceptable to the element which
left the party in those years when
the party needed them so badly, but
hardly a man acceptable to the men
who remained staunch and true to
the party, the great bulk Of the DEM
ocratic voters in those states. ! did
find, however, when visited the
city Of New York, that the statement
made to me by the distinguished
gentleman concerning the Cleveland
propaganda and its actively was alb
solutelv correct. ! found that Viii
liam G. Whitney was one Of the men
actively engaged in fostering the
thing, the Civic Federation, with
Mark Hanna at it's head and Ralph
Easley as secretary, was another Of
the forces that lwas pushing the
good thing along. They are nov
at work employing men to boom ant
boost the Cleveland game. One Of
those men is my personal friend ant
saw and talked to him, and he ad
mitted the whole thing. Now then
whether this Is ION the level ant
that they are really in earnest con
cerning Cleveland and so blinded b.
the glamour Of money that they can
not see the utter futility Of again try
ing to place bis name on democratic
ticket, or whether, as ! suggeste'
some time ago, this is simply an at
tempt to conjure with the name Q
Cleveland until the rank and file Q
the party, the true democrats Of tn
country, in disgust and desperation
cry out to the gilded leaders Of tn
East. Give us anybody but Cleve
land" and they then present to ther