On February 22, 1878, a Convention, attended by over 800 delegates, from twenty-eight states, was held at Toledo, Ohio, to which all the various organizations of labor and politics, opposed to the Republican resumption idea, were invited, to devise ways to make common cause against the old parties. Edward P. Allis and Elliot H. Benton, were Delegates-at-Large from Wisconsin. The Executive Committee of the Greenback Party of Wisconsin, and the Speaker and thirteen Greenback members of the Wisconsin Assembly, united in a letter to the President of the Convention requesting that Mr. Allis be invited to address it. The members of the Legislature in this letter also expressed their appreciation of the ability and merits of Mr. Allis, and spoke of his "purity, unselfish patriotism and prudent wisdom in council."

This speech was delivered and widely published, receiving favorable notice, from many directions, throughout the entire country.

A new party was organized at Toledo, the name "National" chosen, and a platform adopted which went further than the Greenbackers had hitherto gone into questions which represented "the cause of labor," that had loomed up large after the serious railway strikes of 1877, and while the word "Labor" was not officially incorporated in the name of the new party, it was commonly referred to as the "National or Greenback-Labor Party."

At Toledo, Mr. Allis was chosen a member of the National Executive Committee for Wisconsin, and came home to do his best with tongue, pen, and purse, and characteristic energy, for the principles which he believed to be vital to the welfare of the country. Immediately the following letter was issued, together with the new "National Party' Platform, and its endorsement by the Wisconsin State Central Committee, was a part of the document.

Milwaukee, February 24th, 1878. To the State Central Committee of the Greenback Party of Wisconsin: Gentlemen:

Having been chosen by the Executive Committee of your body, in connection with E. H. Benton, of Oakfield, Wis., to represent the State at Large, in the Toledo Convention, and also having been especially requested by the Greenback members of the Legislature to present the attitude of Wisconsin on this question, to that Convention, it is deemed proper that I should announce to your body the impression made by that Convention and its acts upon your entire delegation from Wisconsin.

The place of holding the Convention, Toledo, Ohio, was where the combined Labor and Greenback element overcame both the old parties in the last fall elections, and the Convention was for the purpose of nationalizing this combination that had previously been scattered and local. The fears entertained by many, and myself among the number, that the Convention would be controlled by the extreme wing of our people, and that sentiments of repudiation, or perhaps violence, would prevail, were unfounded and unjust. The elements gathered there were of all phases of belief, and from all parties and organizations, conservative, as well as radical, but were thoughtful, earnest and consistent men, with apparently but one end in view, viz: to unite all the scattered elements of opposition to the present financial management of our Government, upon a fair, just and honorable basis; and upon this basis to earnestly work for speedy reform.

The harmonious fusion of every shade of sentiment was complete and the Convention ended with apparently no point of contention between them, and with the earnest determination to go to their various homes and zealously strive for the speedy triumph of the principles there enunciated.

Whatever differences of opinion existed as to the name or minor details of the new organization, were met in a spirit of mutual concession, and the annexed platform was the unanimous result. This Convention and its actions remove entirely the fear that the movement would be the creature of either of the old parties, and now, whether destined for suceess or defeat, stands upon its own merits. For my own part I cannot see why every man who holds our general views, and loves his country better than party, should not at once rally around this standard. The basis of the old Republican Party, human rights, are here enunciated anew; and the foundation stone of the old Democratic Party, a people's government, is here crystalized. Previous to the knowledge of what the platform would be, I pledged the Convention that Wisconsin would largely endorse conservative Greenbackism, and I see no reason why that endorsement should not center upon this organization and platform.

Subject, therefore, to your superior wisdom, I raise my voice for the "NATIONAL" Party. Yours respectfully,

EDWARD P. ALLIS.

No better evidence is necessary of the wide demoralization of the Wisconsin Republicans, at that time, than the following set of resolutions, adopted by the Legislature of 1878:

RESOLVED, by the Assembly, the Senate concurring, That every consideration of public policy demands the immediate restoration of the silver dollar to its former rank, as a legal tender for all debts, public and private, as it existed prior to February 12, 1873, with detriment to no one, but of acknowledged benefit to the whole people, and our Senators in Congress are hereby instructed, and our Representatives in Congress are requested, to use all proper and honorable means to secure the passing of a bill so restoring the law.

RESOLVED, That all indebtedness, public or private, created prior to July 14th, 1870, and which was by its terms payable in coin, is payable either in gold or silver coin, at option, and all government bonds issued since July 14th, 1870, are payable as recited on the face of the bonds,

to-wit,: "This bond is issued in accordance with the provisions of an act of congress, entitled, 'An Act to authorize the refunding of the National Debt, approved July 14th, 1870, amended by an Act, approved January 20th, 1871, and is redeemable at the pleasure of the United States after the first day of September, A. D. 1891, in coin of the standard value of the United States on said July 14th, 1870, with interest in such coin from the day of date thereof," etc.

RESOLVED, That where the word "coin" is thus used, it meant gold and silver coin; a dollar of gold being 25.8 grains, and a silver dollar 412.5 grains, both nine-tenths fine, and it is the right of the people to discharge their obligations in the exact manner specified, in all contracts entered into.

RESOLVED, That if after the full and unconditional restoration of the law relating to the silver dollar, it should be found there was any considerable difference between the value of dollars in gold and silver, we should regard it as a wise policy to re-adjust the weight of the two coins, either by increasing the weight of silver, or decreasing the weight of gold, as proposed by the Honorable John Sherman in 1868, or both, so as to secure their harmonious circulation as the money of account of the United States; but in the opinion of this Legislature, it will be impossible to determine their relative value, until the two metals shall have been placed upon an equal footing, by a restoration of the law, in relation to the silver dollar, as it stood prior to February 12th, 1873.

Wisconsin held no election for State officers in 1878, but in the congressional elections the Greenbackers found a field for activity and their work spread genuine and great anxiety among the Wisconsin members of the House of Representatives who were seeking re-election. There were straight Greenback candidates nominated in four Wisconsin districts, and there was fusion with the Democrats in three others. In but one district were they unrepresented. The candidates who got the Greenback vote, received, in all, 57,530 of the 206,318 votes polled in the state for congressmen, but they were all unsuccessful.

In a published address "To the People of Wisconsin," in the December following the election of 1878, Mr. Allis stated that the party had grown, in Wisconsin, "from 1500 in 1876 to 30,000 in 1878," and the National Chairman claimed over 1, 260,000 votes in the whole country.

These figures, as future elections proved, were misleading. Frightened congressmen, both Republicans and Democrats, had made overtures to the Greenback voters, that were not sincere, and once re-elected their ardor for the principles of the Greenbackers and their Labor allies, visably cooled.

There was a State election in Wisconsin in 1879, and the Greenback ticket headed by Reuben May, received something less than 13,000 votes.

It is not unlikely that the prominence of Mark M. ("Brick") Pomeroy and his newspaper, then published in La Crosse, were distasteful to Mr. Allis, and to some other leaders who were more inconspicuous than he in this campaign. "Brick" was exploiting the Greenback Party for personal ends and noisily proclaiming himself as the organizer of Greenback Clubs, which were carefully attached to the subscription list of his paper, as a pre-requisite of orthodoxy.

The Republicans still felt in danger, and President Hayes and his Secretary of the Treasury recognized the importance to the country of the currency question, in their public utterances in the fall of 1879 and at the opening of the year 1880. The Secretary's report at the opening of Congress was devoted almost entirely to the financial question.

In the spring of 1880, E. H. Benton who had been on the ticket with Mr. Allis in 1877, as candidate for Lieutenant Governor, wrote, from Wells Mills, Nebraska, to the Oshkosh Standard, (Greenback), a letter proposing Mr. Allis's name for the presidency.

In this letter Mr. Benton predicted that the Greenback candidates would play any important part "in the coming struggle," and said:

The native modesty of Mr. Allis could count against him in a Convention of machine politicians, but among men of brain and principles he would win such consideration as would honor both him and those who would put him forward.

In all our acquaintance with public men we never met with his superior in unaffected sincerity, genuine friendliness and purity of motives. We are aware that such qualities are not the most in demand in the selfish, corrupt struggle for office that marks the old parties but we mean nothing and achieve nothing unless we utterly subvert the old and truly inaugurate a "new," that is new from cellar to garret, from root to topmost bough. Nothing should hinder the men who so gallantly and unselfishingly gave time and money without stint in the memorable campaign of 977 when Allis ran for Governor, from reorganizing and securing a majority, or at least a plurality of the votes in Wisconsin in 1880.

The letter was copied by the Chicago Sentinel, with the editorial comment that "So far there has been no man named who has been truer to the cause, or who possesses greater ability or fitness for the presidency than Mr. Allis."

This was early in May. On the 27th of May the State Convention met in Watertown, with a good attendance and a report of it contains the following: