The Washington herald., 1908-07-10

1HtIldS l. watson. OF ItoIBlhs - the
candidate Of the Populist party for Presi-
dent He was nominated months ago
electoral tickets have been placed in the
field in most OF the States. and Mr.. Wat
sou IS already announcing speaking dates
for the campaign. The Populist party In
the last Presidential election ranked far
below the Socialists and the Prohibition
lists, and In this campaign II is not likely
to advance above them The Independ-
ence League probably will outrank it.
also, and the Populists will rank fourth
among third parties. As an organization
] the party Is practically nil But the IN
fluence Of Populism lives and fourishes
In the platforms Of Denver and Chicago
The story Of the Populists is like unto
| that Of practically all the third parties OF
our history-it organization dies. but its
influence lives
The beginning Of this most important
third party movement since the civil
war was the Greenback agitation OF the
early '70's. Those who were most heartily
opposed to the resumption Of specie pay
ments. and who feared both Republicans
and Democrats, gathered in indianapolis
in 1874 and founded the American party
known always as the "Greenbacker par
ty" Two years later they nominated
Peter Cooper for President. and he pOlled
H,737 votes. At the same time a labor
party movement was working in New
England. Il had nominated Wendell
Phillips for governor of Massachusetts,
in 1870 and the next year tried TO help
Gen. Butler 20 the Republican guberna-
torial nomination. In 1872 this Labor par
~ held a convention in Columbus, Ohio.
and made a bid for the Liberal Repub-
lican vote. which was leaving the Repub-
lican party. David Davis, OF Illinois, was
nominated for President. and 1t was four
months before he declined the honor.
The Greenbackers and Laborites form
ed a coalition IN 1850. and nominated
James b. Weaver. OF Iowa, for President.
He polled over 10000 votes in the
election, and the third party movement
appeared TO be gaining ground Four
years later the exciting Cleveland Blaine
campaign brought the Greenbackers into
great prominence. They nominated Gen.
Benjamin F. Butler. Of Massachusetts.
for President. Gen. Butler enjoyed. with
Gen. John NJ. Palmer. OF Illinois. the
honor of having belonged to more DO
Nucal parties and more different kinds OF
political parties. than any other man
in history. Six weeks after his nonlna-
ton by the Greenbackers. Gen. Butler
was back in the Democratic party try
ing to get its nomination for President
by advocating Federal pensions for Con-
federate soldiers.
That was the great Mugwump year.
Republican Mugwumps could not stand
Tor Blaine, and they had their choice OF
going over 10 Cleveland, supporting the
Prohioiuonist' 81. John, or going 5-fish-
ing. The Democratic nugwumps had
their choice Of Blaine. Butler. or the tai
timber. The New York Sun. then under
the direction Of the immortal Dana, sup
ported Butler and the Greenbackers. II
was very friendly to ST John and the
Prohibitionists. 1t despised Blaine. II
hated Cleveland. or course, Its Butler sup
port was really in the interest OF Blaine.
but II added color 10 the campaign When
the votes came in there was woe in the
Greenbacker camp, for Buffers vote was
only l75.cC0. only a little more than half
or that polled by Weaver four years
before. In lSSS, under the name Of the
Union Labor Party" the movement
barely held its own.
During Mr.. Harrison's administration
there was a succession Of crop failures.
an era Of low prizes for farm products,
and general season OF hard times"
II resulted in a uuifcatlOn Of all sorts
OF farmers organizations left over from
the Granger agitation under the name OF
the Farmers Alliance. In the "off year
elections OF 1890 this organization jumped
into politics and conducted a whirlwind
campaign. They elected governors in
Georgia, Texas South Dakota, and South
Carolina; State tickets in Kansas and
Nebraska. County officers without num-
ber and a few Congressman were also
gained. In the South the Democrats be-
gan TO fear the new movement; in the
West the Republicans were panic-stricken.
There were various conferences and
conventions held by representatives OF the
old third party movement, the Laborites.
the Greenbackers. and the Farmers Al
lance. These resulted IN the formal or
ganization at Cincinnati In 1881 Of the
Peoples Party" Its adherents soon be-
came known as "Populists." which name
still sticks. The first NATIONAL nominat-
ing convention met at Omaha IN 1892 and
named James B. Weaver for President.
Populism was at high tide as an 0rganiza-
ton. Weaver conducted an active cam
paign, there was fusion with the Demo
Gratis In Western States where the Demo-
Gratis were hopelessly In the minority.
and the third party leaders saw national
success Just ahead OF them. They es-
poused the popular cause Of free silver.
which question both old parties had
"straddled"
When the votes were counted. Il was
found that Weaver had polled over a
million votes. nearly as many as Lincoln
received in 1860, and that he had twenty
two votes in the electoral college. It
was the frst time since the civil war that
the electoral vote had been divided be-
tween three tickets. The POpulists had
carried Colorado. Kansas. Nevada. Idaho.
and one elector in North Dakota and one
in Oregon. Two years later in the Con-
gressional elections the Populists polled
million and a half votes. They sent a
dozen men TO the House OF Representa-
tiv's and had four or five Senators.
The terrible panic in 1s9S the bad crops.
and the mortgage foreclosures were caus-
ing a condition OF unrest. The people
believed something was wrong with the
government and they wanted a change.
The Democratic landslide OF 1892 was re-
versed in a Republican tidal wave In 1894.
Mr.. Cleveland and his party were at outs.
while the Eastern and Western Repub-
licans were quarreling on every question
The repeal of the silver-purchase pro-
vision of the coinage laws made silver
the main issue. IL was by no means