Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1920-06-29
AS TO THIRD PARTIES
They Have Always Been Failures.
Progressive Movement Was the
Greatest In American His
tory--Some Noted Old
Parties
BY GEORGE NOX MCCAIN
WITH Senator Hiram johnson hol


WITH Senator Hiram johnson hold
w ing secret session with himself
out in California, endeavoring to decide
whether or not he will lead or aid
new movement, and Senator LaFollette
on a sick bed trying to figure out how
he can revenge himself ON the Republi-
can party with the aid Of the Nonpar-
tisan League, the question Of third
party is enjoying siesta.
Pennsylvania has, somehow or other,
usually occupied a front pew in these
movements. she either furnished n
meeting place, or a candidate, or gave
the outsiders reassuring boost with
her vote,
Third parties have never been sue
cessful in national politics. Their
mission is to help some one else onto
the upholstered seat of power. Usually
they are the children of disappointed
ambition paraded in the garb of public
demand.
Tn 1898 Jackson's followers dropped
the word Republican from their title
and came out squarely as Democrats.
That was the beginning of the modern
Democratic party.
The first militant, real third politi-
cal party to appear in American poll
tics was the anti Masonic in 1927. In
1898 it held it's first state convention
and put ticket for governor of New
York in the field.
The party died lingering death and
finally joined the opposition to General
Jackson, which took the name of Wing.
This was during the period when jack
,on was making his vengeful campaign
against the United States Bank Of
Philadelphia.
THE Abolitionists were the successors
l. of the Anti Masons as a third party.
A handful Of anti slavery workers met
in 1880 in the village of Warsaw, n.
Y. and organized Liberal" party.
They demanded the abolition of slavery
and nominated for President James G.
Birney, and for Vice President Francis
lie Moyne. of Pennsylvania.
The ticket received nearly 100000
votes, split the electoral college, and
the Whig candidates, Taylor and Fill
more, won the prize.
Four years later this third party,
Pittsburgh and again put a national
| ticket in the field for President, John
p Hale; for Vice President, George w.
| Julian.
1t had shot its bolt, for it polled 100,-
| 600 votes less in the country than it had
done four years before.
A STEADY and increasing growth of
n immigration. particularly from Ire
| land and Germany. eliminated in New
York city in the organization of a polit-
ical party whose motto was, America
! for Americans. They opposed the
election to Office of any foreign born.
1t was strong enough to elect James
Harper one of the firm of publishers, as
mayor of New York and send several
members to Congress.
The movement seemed to be dying out
when there was n sudden recrudesccnce
in 1859. This time it assumed relig-
ious aspect. The members were or
ganized into lodges and had an elabo-
rate ritual. 1t was called the "Know-
| Nothing party, because its members
when questioned as to the movement
gave the invariable reply, II know
nothing" Its official name was the
American.
Again Philadelphia figured conspcu-
ously. The national convention of the
American, party was held here on Feb
ruary %, 1856. Maine, Vermont and
| South Carolina were the only states not
sending delegations.
While their ticket with Millard Fill
more, of New York, and Andrew J.
| Morrison, of Tennessee. for Vice Presi-
dent. was defeated that year, they Sc
cured five senators and about nineteen
representative votes in Congress.
! THE Civil War put an end to it and
L at its close there came what was
known as the Greeley, Brown and Buck
alew campaign in Pennsylvania.
1t was in 1872 that the Anything
to beat Grant movement crystallized
in political form. They called the hero
| of Appomattox Useless Silent" Grant.
They styled themselves Liberal Repub-
| licans or Democrats. rs best suited, and
nominated, Horace Greeley for Prcsi-
dent Il. Graft Brown. of Missouri. for
Vice President. and Charles II. Bucka
lew, a Democratic state senator from
Columbia county, for governor.
Greeley had long had an itch for the
presidency. His bolt of the Republican
organization induced the Democrats to
indorse him. The ticket got up a blind
| alley ana stayed there.
There were several other nondescript
tickets in the field that year. Charles
O'Conor was nominated for the presi-
denCy in this city with one of the Sauls
burys, of Delaware, for Vice President
under the caption Of Straight Demo =
cratic.
DiSgruntod Democrats who gagged
at tn" Grcclcy dose to the number OF
%, 600 swallowed the O'ConOr bait.
THE first appearance of Prohibition as
l. a third party was made in this same
wa when James Black, of Ppnnsyl-
vanta Temperance, pollCd 1852 votes
in the state. In 1876 Green Clay Smith
for President and r. II. Stewart, OF
Ohio, for Vice President, got in Penn
sylvania 1919 votes. The party made
consistent gains from this period.
The famous Grccnback party was tn,
Outgrowth OF the panic of 1873. 1T
leaders demanded an issue of paper cur
rrn'y aud lots of it. The only reserva
tion was that the issue would b,
based upon the resources of thu
country"
Then came in succession the Unior
Labor ticket. headed by Streeter, O
Illinois, in 1888, the frazzled remnants
Of Henry Georges party; the Farmers
Alliance, Populist, and the Socialis
Labor tickets. =
The banner year for "offSde" tickets
prior to 1912, when there were eight
was 1896, when no less than seven diff
fnrrnt ones, outside the regular Demo
t,rptir and RnDu uhlicon prpgantn1 oan