New-York tribune., 1907-11-06
THE DEFEAT OF Fusion.

Incomplete election returns last night indi-
Gated that as a consequence of the fusion the
Republican support Of the ticket had been
brought down to the irreducible minimum of
thick -andthin Republican voters. Mr.. Hearsts
support of the ticket also declined to the ire
ducible minimum, and those two irreducible
minima were not enough TO beat Tammany If
everybody who votes the Republican ticket when
it has the right on its side and everybody who
voted for Hearst two years ago. when he seemed
to a vast number of people to have the right on
his sde-if all these had Joined heartily in
support Of the fusion ticket it would have won
a glorious victory. But who could expect any
such cooperation? The men who vote for prn
ciples stayed away from the polls or found other
ways of expressing their dsapproval of un-
natural alliance.
Before the county conventions, but after Mr..
ParsOns's programme had been pretty clearly
divuged, The Tribune said frankly and with full
conviction that it would be impossible TO per
suade the great mass of reputable Republicans
to enter into an alliance with Mr.. Hearst, and
that no arrangement of that character made by
the Republican organization in this county could
be successful. Human memories are short. but
they are not short enough for that. 4 year ago
the Republicans of New York were putting ali
their energies into campaign of which the
fundamental contention was that Hearstism en-
bodied the most obnoxious policies and infiu-
ences in American public life, 1t was utterly
irrational to suppose that twelve months later
they could be arrayed in support of combina-
tioE In which Mr.. Hearst. though standing in
the background, remained the principal figure.
As we have earnestly entreated Republicans
to remember throughout this singular campaign,
there We're many excellent men on the ant-Tam-
many ticket. We have urged all good citizens
not TO carry their resentment over the situation
in which they had been placed to an illogical
extreme. but to do everything in their power to
secure the election Of MeSsrs. Bruce Whitman,
Wadhams and other we'll approved candidates
on the judicial ticket. and to send to Albanysas
large a delegation possible of Assemblymen
pledged TO the support of Governor Hughes. We
deplore the defeat of all such deserving men.
but we are forced to acknowledge that we do
not wonder at it. It our opinion emphat-
cally expressed in advance. that a Republican,
Hearst fusion was not only an abandonment of
political morals, but was doomed 10 practical
failure. That judgment is verified in the de-
cisive victory of Tammany Hall.
The Importance of moral issues was never bet
ter shown than in this election. Last year Mr.
Hearst was in alliance with Tammany, and the
Republicans, standing alone with the right on
their side were defeated in this county by sixty
four thousand. This year Mr.. Hearst shifts his
fifty thousand votes from Tammany TO anti
Tammany, and the Republicans forfeting the
moral support they had last year are beaten
just about as badly then Mr.. Hearst's sup
port has dwindled even more from his constant
change Of alliances. Two years ago. running in
dependently. he represented TO many misguided
persons moral issue and received the impress
sive total OF more than one hundred and twenty
thousand votes in this county To-day, after al
liances first with Tammany, which he had de-
nounced and then with the Republican organi-
zatiOn, which he had denounced bitterly.
his candidates receive only fifty thousand votes.
There can he little comfort for him in the rev
elation of his weakness. Mr.. Murphy will never
again fear him enough to unite with him, as he
did last fall and the Republicans will hence
forth have more cause TO dread his support
than his opposition