Our Poorer Brother 235 



the acquaintance I made with the hardship of their 

 lives, gave me that profound sympathy for them 

 which I yet retain though I am no longer poor 

 myself. 



Pardon the liberty I take in intruding this letter 

 upon you. I have followed your work in New York 

 with admiring sympathy, and have frequently writ- 

 ten of it in my paper. While hundreds of miles sep- 

 arate us, and our tasks and methods have been widely 

 different, I must still believe that we have much in 

 common, and that the ruling force which actuates 

 us both is to challenge wrong and to fight the bat- 

 tles of good government. 



Very respectfully yours, 

 (Signed) THOS: E. WATSON. 

 THOMPSON, GA. 



August 30, 1896. 



I intended to draw a very sharp line between Mr. 

 Watson and many of those associated with him in 

 the same movement; and certain of the sentences 

 which he quotes as if they were meant to apply to 

 him were, on the contrar)', meant to apply generally 

 to the agitators who proclaimed both him and Mr. 

 Bryan as their champions, and especially to many of 

 the men who were running on the Populist tickets in 

 different States. To Mr. Watson's own sincerity 

 and courage I thought I had paid full tribute, and if 

 I failed in any way I wish to make good that failure. 

 I was in Washington when Mr. Watson was in Con- 

 gress, and I know how highly he was esteemed per- 



