The independent. [volume] (Lincoln, Neb.) 1902-1907, 1904-11-24
The referendum taken by The
Independent, at 12 o'clock noon, on
w ednesday stood:
For Peoples Party organization 1872
For cooperation with Democrats Isl

on common ground. They could bury
all past dinerences and join together
in favor OF those reforms on which
they all agree. They would have no
past political hatreds or bitterness in
their way. They would not only be
on an equal footing. but what is just
as important, they would all feel that
they were or an equal footing. To
those who are ambitious and desire to
serve the public in Office, there is
nothing deterrent in Jew party. In
new party, all would enter with an
equal chance for political preferment
The new party would be under no OBJ
legations to any man for past political
services; there would be no party debts
to pay; there would be no factions .as
result of past party differences.
Without this new party movement
we will not get the full benefit OF the
support of those who believe alike in
reforms. A new party would secure
the active support of all reformers our
ing the next four years. But it no
new movement is started, some will go
into the democratic party, some into
the socialist party and some into The
prohibition party.
Why any democrat should object to
thus forming a new party, | can not
understand The democrats are prac-
tically without any national organi-
zation or standing. They retain con-
troi OF rev southern states where The
negro question is the controlling one
in politics. But in the territory north
of the Mason and Dixon line. which
comprises the great bulk of industrial
America, there is practically no demo-
cratic organization. True, there are
many democratic voters. but they are
a disorganized body. 1t seems to me
that even under the leadership Of Bry-
an and Hearst, republicans will not en-
ter the democratic party as they would
enter a new party that stood for re-
forms in which they believed. be-
lieve that more than two-thirds of the
republicans cf Nebraska believe in the
government ownership of the rail-
roads, and very large number of
them would enter a new party. But
it is quite plain that they have no,
present intention of entering the dem
ocratic party. They remember the
fights of the past. In leir own COM
munities they have been lined up in
political battles on the republican side,
and the way that their assistance can
be most effectively secured for these
reforms is in new party where all
meet on common ground.
The people are all right. The vote
for George w. Berge in Nebraska
shows this. Except for the Roosevelt
landslide, which was occasioned by
disgust of Parker and the crowd
around him, Berge would have re-
ceived an overwhelming plurality.
In saying what have said here, it
is not through any prejudice against
the mere word democrat" If the is
sues were finally made up in the next
presidential election solely between a
democrat of the Bryan Or Hearst kind
and a rpublican, my vote would be
cast for the democratic candidate. But
the trouble is, that there is in the
democratic party today, quite an ele-
ment which is Just the same as the
crowd that controls the republican
party in the nation and state. The
republican party in both state and ma
tion is owned BODY, soul and patalools
by predatory wealth, and there is quite
an element in the democratic party
that belongs in the same class. In Ne
braska, James E. BOYD, Lee Herdman,
James E. Kelly, Lee Spratlin and
George L. Miller. still claim to be
democrats, and would no more think
of cooperating with these men in
politics than OF cooperating with John
H. Mickey, John Baldwin, Charles F.