THE ALLIANCE -INDEPENDENT.
9
" A UNITED STATE'S SENATOR-
"Who will be the next United States
senator from Nebraska? From what
party will he come? What combina
tion will be formed to elect him?"
- Just now such questions are being
asked by thousands of politicians great
and small. The answers have yet to be
developed.
Q The situation is this: A senator must
be elected by the legislature which
assembles at Lincoln the first Tuesday
in next January. Three parties will
be represented in the next legislature,
but no one of them will have a majority.
A senator can only be elected in one of
two ways:
1. By a combination between two of
the parties.
2. By one party winning over enough
members from another by corruption or
persuasion to make a majority.
Undoubtedly the first move of the re
publicans will be to attempt to corrupt
enough independents to elect a republi
can. They will have thousands of dol
lars and the state patronage to use for
this purpose. But they will fail igno
miniously. To eay anything else would
be to insult the faithful, uoble men
chosen by the independents. They are
men who are making this fight for
principle, and the republican party has
not money enough to buy them.
The scheme of the democrats will be
to get the independents to assist them
in electing a democrat. They will be
able to offer a most alluring bait to the
independents. They have the federal
patronage of the state. They would
doubtless be willing to barter half the
federal patronage of Nebraska for a
senator. But they toD will fail. To
men who are in the reform movement
for office rather than principle, a post
office or a land office will be a big temp
tation. But if we understand the tem
per of the honest independents of this
state, there isn't federal patronage
enough in the United States to bribe
them into betraying their cause; and
the man who would propose such a
thing will be spotted by the people as a
weak stick if not a traitor. Such a
move as that would mean death to the
independent party.
This reform movement was not born
to die. It may receive defeats, and
set-backs, it may lose some of its mem
bers who joined its ranks for office, or
because they thought it was popular
But the great rank and file of the peo
ple's party consists of honest intelli
gent men who are in this fight for
principle, and for justice. "The dog
returneth to his vomit, and the sow to
her wallow," but such men never re
turn to the corrupt parties from which
they came.
Already the republicans boastfully
claim that they have "crushed out the
calamity party." And they will re
peat the claim in every nook and cor
ner of the state. They will use it for
all it is worth to win back the weak
kneed. But they misjudge the men
who are in this fight. If the demo
cratic party with no vital principle can
survive complete defeat for twenty
years in succession, surely the people's
party with all its intelligence, and de
votion to principle can out live three
partial defeats.
There is every reason why the inde
pendents should make a supreme effort
to electa United States senator from
Nebraska. The people's party will
hold the balance of power in the next
senate. They already have two sena
tors and will elect one in Kansas and
nother in Nevada. They may elect
senators in two or three other states.
It is certain at any rate that neither
of the old parties will have enough
senators to control that body. The in
depents will be in a position to dictate
the organization of the senate and to
control legislation to a large extent.
The independents in the coming Ne
braska legislature can either elect a
senator or force the two old parties to
combine for the election of a republi
can or a democrat. All that is neces
sary is for them to stand solidly and per
sistently together.
The independents will go into the
coming legislature under conditions
widely different from those which en
compassed them two years ago.
Then they were in a majority in both
houses. The work of reform they had
laid out was a stupendous undertaking.
They had a combination of desperate
and unscrupulous politicians to fight.
,They were held responsible for all
that was done. "
In the coming legislature they will
be in a minority. There is no hope for
the passage of any reform measures.
As a party, the independents cannot
be held responsible for what is done or
left undone. All that can or will be
expected of them is to stand together and
vote solidly for the principles of their
party whenever opportnnity offers.
Two years ago, when the legislature
met, "the contest" was the first thing
that came up. It stood in the way of
legislation. .The old party press and
the leaders of the demo-republican
combine immediately raised a terrible
howl that the independents were delay
ing legislation. They were in a des
perate hurry to begin the work of re
form. They couldn't wait to hear the
contest tried. This howl loudly and
persistently kept up did much to pre
vent the success of the contest. But
now the "tables are turned." It is now
the time of the independents to howl
about delay, and to clamor for good
legislation.
The election of a senator will be the
first thing to come up. It may take
one day, or it may take tne wnoie ses
sion. It matters not a whit to the in
dependents. They can rest assured
that no good legislation will be passed
anv wav. The corporations nave a
clear majority in both houses.
The election of a senator is the only
thing of any importance that will be
accomplished, so it matters very little
how much time it takes.
The independents may also rest as
sured of this fact: that the democratic
members will not assist in the election
of a republican senator. The whole
power of the national democratic orga
ni zation will be exerted to prevent that,
The democratic party has too much at
stake to permit such a thing if it can
be prevented. That the republicans
will help the independents to elect a
senator is but of the question. The
situation is thus reduced to two alter
natives: Either the republicans must
join with the democrats to elect a sena
tor, or the democrats must join with
the independents. Already a move is
on foot for the election of J. Sterling
Morton under the former alternative.
The assertion is made by some that a
bargain was entered into before election
that Morton was to be made Benator as
a reward for assisting in the defeat of
Van Wyck for governor.
The independents could ask nothing
better than the consummation of such
a deal. It would mean death to the re
publican party in this state. The rank
and file of the republican party are in
telligent men, and are sincerely devot
ed to their party. They will nover en
dure to be sold and turned over to the
democratic party. They would flock to
the independent standard by the thousand.
On the other hand if the democrats
see fit to combine with the Indepen
dents for the election of a senator un
der conditions that will not compromise
the independents in any respect, the
new party will have made an immense
gain and lost nothing.
These are the plain cold facts of the
situation, and the sooner they are un
derstood and realized by the indepen
dent members-elect, the better it will
be for the party.
HAND OF THE MONEY POWEB.
It is very difficult for the members of
either old party to explain the results
of the late election. At firat view they
seem surprising and incongruous. In
the eastern and central states there
was a regular land-slide toademocracy.
With a free-trade platform, democracy
triumphed in the strongholds of pro
tection. In Connecticut, New Jersy
and New York with their thousands of
factories; in Ohio, Indiana and Illinois
with factories and mines; in Wisconsin
and Michigan with mines and lumber,
all enjoying the benefits of protection,
the party of protection was signally defeated.
On the other hand in Minnesota and
Iowa, Nebraska the Dakotas and Kan
sas, agricultural states which have to
bear the burdens of protection while
they enjoy none of its blessings, the
party of protection was signally success
ful.
The politicians of both old parties
have been wont to explain all things
by means of the tariff. Whether
prosperity or adversity come to an In
dividual, a class, a section or a party,
the tariff was in some way made to re
ceive the credit or bear the blame. But
the result of this year's election is tax
ing their explaining power to the
utmost.
To the populists, the explanation is
easy, Tnelr persistent claim nas oeen
that there is a greater issue than the
tariff; that there is a force more potent
in affecting the prosperity of the
country and the success of political
parties than either the organized
forces of protection or free trade.
That force is known as the money
POWER. Like Providence, the money
power "moves in a mysterious way its
wonders to perform." But it moves
with such power and adriotness as to
accomplish just such results as we see
today.
There are many reasons why the
money power preferred to see Cleve
land elected instead of Harrison. He
is fully as radical an upholder of the
gold standard. His 'election means
that the "free coinage heresy"
will be effectually stamped
out of the democratic party. It
means a revival of interest in
the great sham battle over the tariff.
The money power probably did not
make any special effort to elect Grover
Cleveland. That wad not necessary,
It simply left Harrison to his fate. It
would have taken a supreme effort and
an immense sum of money to elect
Harrison.
For the money power to have made
this effort, and spent this money for
that purpose would have been a very
foolish and dangerous piece of business.
It would have arrayed the democratic
party solidly on the side of the people,
and that would have meant the over
throw of the gold standard.
nrVi a a sct fft.a rt t Via crnld
standard men to prevent the passage
of the Bland bill by the present con
gress, and to secure the nomination of
Cleveland at Chicago were exceedingly
significant. They indicated that the
money power was about to make a
change of tools. It feared longer to
trust its fortunes to tho republican
party. It desired to make sure us con-
. . . TT 1 Jl 4 V. I
ixoi oi aemocracy, uuviug uvuo
it left thi republicans to wage a hope
less warfare for continuation in power,
and to meet an overwhelming defeat.
On this theory the success of the re
publican party in the western states is
easily explained. Having dictated the
nominations and policies of both old
parties, the money power left them to
fight their battle In the older states,
while it turned its attention to the
states in the west and south where the
new party was a threatening factor.
In the south it assisted the democracy
to overthrow the rising people's party.
In the west the democratic
party was in a hopeless
minority, and could not be
used to advantage. Hence the money
power was constrained to use its old
tool, the republican party. But it used
every effort, and with a large degree of
success, to prevent the democrats from
falling in line with tho reform move
ment.
It should be borne in mind that the
plutocrats, the men who run this
country have no politics. They care
nothing for politics. At all times and
under all circumstances, their party is
the party they can use to the best ad
vantage. At the present time they can
use the democratic party to the best
advantage in tho nation, and the re
publican party to the best advantage
in Nebraska. Hence the, results of the
late election.' s
Such is American politics today, and
so will it continue till the people realize
its farcical character,
When the masses of the people see
that the democratic party is no longer
democratic, and the republican party
no longer republican, but that both old
parties are merely tools in the hands of
a rich, powerful and selgsh class, then
will there bo hope of a successful politi-
i
Renew your subscription.
No w is the time to begin the cam
paign for next year. ,
The democrats of Omaha had a grand
jollification Tuesday night.
Next year the independents will
greatly increase their strength in Ne
braska by gaining control of county
governments.
Editor Thompson of the Genoa
Banner was a caller at this office on
Tuesday. He says the independents of
Nance county are in the fight ta stay.
The populists have a very small ma
jority in th next Kansas legislature;
therefore Senator Peffer's colleague
after the 4th of next March will be a
populist.
The supreme council of the Farmers'
Alliance and Industrial Union meets at
Memphis, Tennessee, November 15.
The people of the north await with
much interest the explanation the
alliance men of the south will have to
make of the results of the election, and
the stand they will take for the future.