The Political Rings of Olympia

One of the most prominent native democratic politicians we ever knew wrote to us from the East: 'I approve of your new departure in politics. I broke the same several years ago—though I am still as much a Democrat as ever, but I have done working for the elevation of men whose course only tends to bring dishonor upon the term Democracy. To be a Democrat once was to be honest and patriotic; it is not so now, and the party in power is no better—controlled by downright cheats who care little for principles, but everything for the pap. The war made them all that they are.'

Take, for instance, the ring of spoils gatherers at Olympia. All that they possess has been drawn from the public treasury, directly or indirectly. This association of carpet-baggers and office-seekers have organized themselves into a joint-stock company, not only to control the Federal patronage, but to dictate the nominations which they expect to compel the people to support by party discipline. For this purpose, they have established a newspaper with an imported Bohemian editor, at a cost of not less than $5,000 to $10,000 a year, which is furnished to subscribers at rates which no paper on the Sound can compete as a legitimate business, thus hoping to starve out all other independent papers and make it the sole organ and arbiter of the party in Washington Territory. If the people of Washington Territory desire to be governed by a joint-stock company composed of scheming politicians from the States, they have only to support the ring.