The Alaska citizen., 1912-09-23
WHAT HAS HAPPENED
 ID THIRD PARTIES!

'" lHS pl llt .NtN loih Ieuho'lats' though they afterwards carried their fight into the nation. During the 'ederalist control of the govern ment. the method of granting bank charters and controlling banks was alleged to he rotten Change of ad- ministration did not improve condi- tions. and in 1885. radical New York Democrats formed the Equal Rights" party as opposed to special privilege in granting bank charters
 when the regular Democrats found themselves outnumbered. they put out the lights. leaving the hall in darkness The Equal Rights men produced candles and loco loco" matches. and went on with the meet ing. The opposition papers dubbed them loco focos' and the name stuck. This party was beaten at the elections. but it continued to exercise a considerable influence in national politics for several years.
 The Loco FoCos subsequent to dissolution, split up into two separ ate factions. which, while never winning recognition as real third parties nevertheless wielded consid erablc power. These were the Hunk CTS and the Barn Burners
 The IIunkers were the conserva i've Democrats of the North. who were willing to unite with the Southern Democrats in favor of the annexation of Texas They were branded by their opponents as numbering" for office.
 The Barn Burners were the anti slavery Democrats of New York They made no bones of an inten- ion 10 abandon the Democratic par ty if it stood for slavery. and for his reason were compared to the Dutch farmer who burned his barn in order to get rid of the rats.
 In 1S4S tho Barn Burners bolted from the Democratic party, and went in wish the Free Sellers and Abol- itionists on the nomination of eX- President Van Buren against Lewis Cass. They did not elect Van Bur en, to be sure. but their defevtion made Taylor president
 It was in 1S40 that the Liberal party first of the anti-slavery or ganizations- entered the national field In that year it nominated James G. Birney, Kentucky Abol itionist, as it's candidate for presi- dent, but only polled about 1000 votes. Four years later Birney. running again, boiled 62,0O0, which defeated Henry Clay by giving New York and Michigan to Polk. The Liberal party was a radical organiZa tion, fierce in it's theories and short on practice, and when the Free Soil CTS formed a third party in 1S4S, 1t absorbed the Liberal bunch. bag and baggage.
 The Free Sellers demanded d prac- tical nullification of the Fugitive Slave law. and in 1S4S, went in with the Barn Burners on the nomination of Van Buren. In 1852. having ab- sorbed the Liberal party and the Barn Burners, the Free Sellers nom mated Senator Hale of New Hamp shire against Franklin Pierce, the Democratic nominee and Winfield Scott. the Whig. But the great bulk of anti-slavery Democrats. while op, posed to the extension of slavery, felt that the Free Sellers were too radical, and they stayed with their party. Hale only received l75 900 votes.
 Of all the third parties in Ameri- can history. the most curious was the Know Nothings. In the quiet space that intervened betW cen the slavery agitation of 1850 and the crusade of 1854. there commenced a great hue and cry against the Cath olics
 A secret society was formed to keep Catholics out of office. for it was asserted that those of this faith were in plot to turn the United States over to the Papal sway. It's members, bound by all sorts of oaths, professed absolute ig- norance of their organization when questioned concerning it, and from this affectation of utter innocence came the name of Know Nothings" Americans should rule America was the slogan of the party. and it took for it's motto that old order of Washington's Put none but Americans on guard" The Know Nothinss went into politics, and spread rapidly from state to state At it's national convention in 1856 only four states were unrepresented Willard Fillmore, its candidate for president, boiled S74.000 votes to l. 340.000 for Fremont, and 1900 ,0OO for Buchanan. In 1860 the Know Nothings succeeded in defeating Sew ard for the presidential nomination