The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1911-12-01
WHEN WAS THERE NOT A BOSS?

/ read with great interest your edi-
torials and the letters of your CORES
pondents in a recent issue on boss
rule in the state of New York. l
would like very much if the World
would inform its readers of any pc
riod for the last 10 years when there
has not been an absolute boss of each
political party in this state. Even
when so great a man as William H.
Seward was governor, Thurlow Weed
was as absolute a boss as We have
ever had since. When Thomas G.
Plat was reelected as our senator,
the good republicans of this city and
throughout the state organized for
the purpose of electing Joseph H.
Choate, and so strong was the boss
that even Mr.. Choate, with his emf
nent abilities, received only three
votes upon joint ballot of the legisla-
ture. At least the democratic party
had a long fight over the selection of
our United States senator last win
ter.
The trouble with the democratic
party in the state of New York is not
so much its boss as it is it's lack Of
conviction or intelligence on public
questions and its cowardliness in re
polling the attacks of it's opponents.
Gov. Eugene n. Foss was a few years
ago a republican congressman from
his district in Massachusetts. Being
large merchant and manufacturer in
Boston, he became interested in che
question of reciprocity between our
country and Canada From that he
came to believe that the interests Of
manufacturers required free raw ma
terial, and by and by he became the
candidate of the democratic party of
his district for congress and finally
the candidate of his party for govern
or, and has been reelected simply Je-
cause through his conviction and
courage he has convinced a majority
of the people of the state of Massa-
chusetts that our protective tariff
system is robbery.
The trouble with your proposed e.
formed democracy in New York state
is that the professional democratic re-
former of the league is absolutely in
different to national questions, and IS
a rule ignorant of their merits. He is
generally a protectionist without the
protectionist's courage, has no SYM
pathy with the masses of the people
and cares not bit how many bur-
dens are put upon the poor through
special legislation. The democratic
party will never be reformed in this
state until the democratic newspapers
of New ork City and the state lead
in an educational movement of the
people as to the merits of the tariff
controversy New York state can be
carried by 100000 majority against
the republican party and it's protect
i've tariff if the common people of the
state once come to appreciate the ter
rible injustice to protection and the
danger to their liberties of special leg
islation.
The World often strikes powerful
blows for democratic principles, but
the weakness of the democratic news
papers of the state is that they are
not partisan enough, have no clear
and strong conception of what demo
cratic principles are, and therefore
no fighting convictions that impel to
victory Gov Woodrow Wilson in
New Jersey talked of many good prin-
ciples to his people and lost. Gov.
Foss in Massachusetts talked upon
the tariff only and won. Grover
Cleveland alone among democrats in
our day won the presidency on the
tariff issue only, and we can win in
the coming campaign in this state if
we are loyal to the common people
and make the reform of the tariff the
sole issue.-Franklin Pierce, in New
York World.