The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-03-06
WILSON REPLIES TO ATTACK ON
 HIM BY WALKER
Persuaded Donne|Iy To The Utmost Against Taking
 MayordI Nomination
Is Convinced that the Rank and File of Democratic Party Have No Use for Bosses.

Bosses.
 MT. Lynn W. Wilson was asked to- day if he cared to refer to the att tack made upon him by Alderman Daniel E. Walker Mr. Wilson re- piled that the attack made upon him by Alderman Walker was of itself of no particular importance, but that it was due the readers of this newspaper that his attitude toward MT. Donne ly's accepting the. nomination should be stated bX himself rather than by AL derman Walker. MT. Wilson said:
 T advised MT. Donnelly in the strongest language at my command, not to accept the nomination for may or.
 Alderman Walker is entirely cor rect therefore upon that point.
 My attitude was scarcely. a secret and pretty fully expressed on the f1oor of the last Democratic city conven- tion.
 q have been twice the candidate of my party for Congress, under adverse conditions, and expect to be its can- didate again when there is pros pect of being elected in this heavily Republican district.
 '"There are few in politics who do , who interfere least in the intrigues and machinations in which some poli- sticians and some powerful corporations unite
 "It was with reluctance that I took the stand did in the Democratic con- i vention, for it was certain to array against me with renewed vigor not only the corporations whom I had i compelled to reduce rates,s or to pay more taxes, but it arrayed against me the relatively few. but strong poll ticians in my own party who are ha- bitually allied with these corporations against measures of benefit to the peo- pie. 9t "'I do not assume that politicians of this type-those who array them selves with the Services-e 'ther Demo crats or Republicans. really under stand what they are doing. As Tar as I can see they do not in the least real ize that they are destroying public con- fidence in their parties, and that the continued loss of public. confidence mears the ultimate destruction of the parties,
 Already politicians of this type-and again speak of both Democrats and Administrative made it unpleasant, difficult, and at times almost 1mpos- Sible, for the standard bearers Of par ty faith to speak to mixed audiences of their fellow citizens upon the ques- tions of the day.
 .Things go we'll enough if the candi- date who faces the voters may speak in some hall, or theatre. where there are only the staunch adherents of the party present-tbose mainly who al- ways vote the ticket. right or wrong but it is different when open air au- diences have to be met.
 .sMy first experience in the Congress sionai campaign taught me that large numbers of the people were losing con- fidence in their political leaders.
 'sIn the campaign of 1910, I met in the open air, on street corners, m front of factories, on the farms thou sands of men, with whom, or to whom, ] talked of the political issues of the day.
 T found, regardless of party, gen. eral skep<icism regarding the value Of party pledges.
 esYou fellows do not mean what you say, you break your promises,s you are all liars,' were sentiments which I heard commonly expressed.
 1T think no member of an old par ty spoke in the last campaign in this city who did not have this chang1ng attitude of the voters brought home to him.
 .'The politicians of both parties in the legislature had broken promises made to the people.
 '"The politicians of both parties in the c1ty ndO uHll0Q lO UTSdh pTOiAiSCS made to the people.
 'sThe result was that the voters f1ocked eagerly to hear the candidates of a third party, hitherto of humble numbers in the state and city.
 '"The further result was expressed in the vote. Some thousands Of vot- ers-heartsick of lies-abandoned the parties with which they had been ac- customed to vote, to support strange political creed.
 When a party makes a pledge the candidates of the party-like myself, have the duty of going before the peo- pie to explain those pledges. We meet the people, face to face, and upon us, with greatest force, falls the burden of explanation when pledges made to the people have been sold or traded away for the benefit of a few.
 eff party pledges are to continue to be nothing but vote catching devices LIES-then- the disintegration of the Democratic and Republican parties will continue, and we will soon see the time when neither of them can elect mayor in Bridgeport without making a coalition, and a time when they will have difficulty in electing a mayor with a coalition.
 ''This is the situation that has been brought about by the buyers and sell CTS of legislation at home and abroad. stMy own party had promised for
 
 assisted to draft-direct primaries.
 'It had promised municipal owner ship.
 it had promised investigation of electric light works
 And every one of these promises had been nullified, quietly openly, not by the perfidy of the Democratic party, which is the rank and file of the Democratic voters, but by the sub- tie, treacherous underground and. l fear, hired efforts of limited number of leaders.
 ''So it was in the matter of the investigation of the electric light com pany which the Democratic party promised and which the Democratic party desired-and which was defeat ed by treachery within the Democratic party.
 Even so we'll an informed man, and as conservative a man as former May Or Mulvihill has expressed the idea that this result was brought about by the use of money.
 "And the impression prevails and is widely disseminated that there gre bosses who demand and get cash as a condition of lending their influence to office seekers.
 ''These are conditions as saw them on the edge of the last munich pal campaign.
 .I believed then and I believe now upon the evidence of a. multitude of circumstances which taken together
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