The People's party paper. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1891-1898, March 05, 1897, Image 1

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O YOU WANT - - - - To read several reform papers every week and yet pay no more than the price of one? Watch_the club offers each week ! "iESjS ONE DOLLAR PER YEAR. VOL. VI. NUMBER 25. MRS. REED IN MEXICO. GRAPHICALLY DESCRIBESTHE GREAT SANITARIUM OF THAT COUNTRY. What the Wayfarer Has to Eat and How it is Cooked—How a Mexiean Kitchen Looks to an American —Other Pen Pie tures of Equal Interest. Cuantla, Mexico, Feb. 10, 1897. We left the City and Valley of Mex ico some ten days ago to seek the warm, dry air of the Valley of Morelos as a cure for one of the wretched ca tarrhal colds that Mexico City invaria bly inflicts on the unwary visitor. Any interference with the organs of respira tion at an altitude of nearly 8,000 feet, when the lungs are already severely taxed,'is not regarded lightly by the physician, and he is very apt to shift the responsibility of his patient’s re covery to a lower altitude and warmer air. Cuantla and Cuernavaca are each favorite sanitary resorts, being only a few kdometers from Mexico City, both well drained and with an altitude of only 3,500 feet Cuernavaca has the historical inter est of having been a chosen resort of the Emperor Maximillian and a coun try home of Cortez, but is yet several miles from the railroad. We selected Cuantla as our sanitarium, owing to its accsssibility. When one goes to live in the nineteenth century, with Mex ican indians, it is something to know that two steel rails lead back to civili zation, to friends and countrymen and to the good o d Saxon speech. An hour’s ride through water and marsh carried us through a gap in the mountains out of the Valley of Mexico, and we then began the descent of 4,000 feet to the town -of Cuantla. It was a charming ride of four hours doubling on our course in the bewil dering maze of mountain railway en gineering. The snowy peaks of Popo catapetl and Iztacuahett played hide and seek with us coquettishly as we rounded the mountain sides, and as we descended into the valley, both altitu dinally and latitudinally, the country blossomed into tropical life and color. Beds of wild poppies flashed in the sunshine, vines trailed their colors along the ground, and even the forest trees bloomed. * THE HOTEL MORELOS. At the depot of Cuantla was nothing that could speak English, but follow ing a path betw< en sacks of sugar piled up among the ruins of an old monastery we found a battery vehicle that looked as old as Cortez, and it brought us to our present home, the Hotel Morelos. My. limited Spanish was sufficient to secure us clean, large rooms on the sunny side of a quite ca , pacious hotel. The floors and stair ways are of red tiles made in the val furniture is of Mexican manu laeture: the mattresses and pillows of Mexican wool. The riming room is on the lower piazzi and looks out on a patio full of flowers and tropical fruits. A parrot talks Spanish to us while we eat and then sings a martial song, in which he fires much artillery at the French. The broad upper galler ies, on which all the bedrooms open, are delightful sitting rooms, though the-hotel boasts a parlor that is a per fect museum of the feather-work, nee dle-work and wax-work, in which the Indians of Mexico are so clever. In the hotel office well-to-do Mexicans spend their time gambling openly, though quietly. Our food is- happily free from any attempt at American cooking, such as afflicted us in the Mexican metropolis. In the morning we are served only with coffee and sweet rolls, but the coffee is the best I ever drank any where. It is from the berry grown here, is unadulterated, parched and ground fresh at each meal, made very strong and diluti d with boiling milk A MEXICAN MEAL. And to think that with such nectar before us, the doctors should tell us that at this high altitude coffee is bad for the nervous system! At noon we are served with an elaborate breakfast in courses. An omelet made to perfec tion, with a dish of rice cooked in a meat and tomato sauce, corn.es first; then beefsteak and fried potatoes, fol lowed by two other meat dishes whose identity is lost in a comcomitant of all kinds of known and unknown vegeta bles, berries, nuts, etc. A salad of the crisp valley lettuce and red tomatoes comes before the inevitable dish of their beloved frijoles (beans), and all is rounded off by a preserve of the na tive fruits and a cup of coffee fit for the gods. I omitted the bottle of pulque that all Mexicans take with this meal and with their evening dinner because Americans seldom learn to like it, despite its healthfulness and cheapness. It tastes a bit like sour whey and smells like rancid cheese, but is a cure forthe insomnia that often afflicts one in this climate, and is a promoter of digestion and a nerve quieter in what is a very nervous cli inate. The native fruits are served at meals and sold in the market place for a few pennies. The chirimoya has a Suggestion of acid that is “taking;” the mamal is rich and nourishing, the sapidillo not bad and the avocada pear a fine salad. Watermelons the size of small cocoanuts are always plentiful in the market, but rather sickly in taste; the muskmelons very good and homelike. THE MEXICAN KITCHEN. A Mexican kitchen is something of a ouriosity to an American. It con sists of a long brick table, in which are holes on top for holding charcoal, over which the kettles and frying pans are simmering. A closed compartment, with the receptacle for charcoal under neath, answers for an oven. There is neither heat, smoke nor chimney, and no light except from the open door. Many of the cooking uten sils are of native pottery, light as paper and extremely cheap. Since everything usefl here is of home production, living is very cheap. We pay, in Mexican money, $1.50 a day for board, .6 cents fora bottle of pulque and a few pennies to the servants for any extra service. The landlord and his family treat us with a friendly THE PEOPLE’S PARTY PAPEWi ’°o,/ courtesy that is fru. iart, ana the servants show a ches?4.9i activity and devotion that is very agreeable after the bad service in the hotels of the Mexiean capital. If there were nothing in life but to bask in the air of a perfect climate, to eat good food and be surrounded by cheerful faces, one might happily dream life away in Cuantla for a cen tury or so. Although Cuantla is more than four centuries old, the cemetery seems to have been needed for little else than as a resting place for heroes who yielded up their lives in battle. THE LAND OF MANANA. The guide books call Mexico “the land of manana” (tomorrow), but in this little, city it is the land of day after tomorrow. Telegrams are delivered at the convenience of the operator, and the mail, which arrives daily—about forty-five letters for a population of 10,000 —at Ip. m., is not distributed until 4 p. m. All Mexico goes behind barred doors and closed windows from 1 to 4 p. m. for a siesta, and gets up to 5 o’clock mass in the morning. The temperature of Cuantly is re markably even, varying little’froin 70 degrees night and day. There is a rushing little stream, fed by the snows of Popocatapetl, that furnishes water power for a corn mill and drainage for the town. A 20,000 acre sugar hacienda gives employment to 4.000 of the inhabitants, and the re mainder of them cultivate the soil, sell pulque and other merchandise or sit in the sun in the market-place. They are a quiet people,devoted to their families, pleasant to stringers, happy in their gnorance and piety. * NOISY CHURCH HELLS. Nothing is noisy in Cuantla except the church bells. The fierce old patri ot, Jaurez, who confiscated the wealth of the churches, suppressed their mon asteries and nunneries and laid the regulating hand of the law on the clergy, left the belfreys undisturbed, and the ponderous old Spanish bells, cracked and unmusical, disturb the serenity of the day and ni£ht with noises loud and discordant enough to shake the snow from the top of Popo catapetl. The quality of bell-metal the Spaniards brought to Mexico is not the least of the evils they inflicted on Mexico. As in all Mexican towns, a large proportion of Cuantla’s inhabi tants are the class of Indians who live in huts and eat only tortillas and frijoles, but their huts are buried in a forest of tropical fruit trees and look very picturesque They are a music-loving people, and music is furnished by all the munici palities. All Sundays are feast days, and the favorite Sunday tune of the orchestra here is Sousa’s Manhattan Beach March. They are not, however, a two step people, and the tune is apt to make an American, homesick. - • in:’. where m Hie Uirrreil ..... one find a perfect climate, a contented people, a bountiful nature, all the comforts of life, and feel superfluously rich on a dollar a day ? —Emma L. Heed, in Brunswick Times. national” reform press. Populist Editors at Their Memphis Meet ing Frown on Fusion. The seventh annual session of the National Reform Press Association is in session in Memphis for three days. President Paul Vandervoort in his address referred to Senator Marion Butler and Secretary Edgerton, thus: “Believing that the life and preserva tion and success of our principles de pend upon it. I hereby recommend that this association demand the resig nation of Marion Butler as national chairman and J. A. Edgerton as na tioal secretary, and if they do not im mediately respond that this association and the members of the general con ference depose them and elect new officers and call on all our people to recognize them. Many of our woes during the last four years are due to the fact that we did not depose our former national chairman, who led our party to the jaws of death. This is a supreme moment in our history. If we shirk our duty, millions will falter and faint and our meeting will avail noth ing. If we have not the power to pro tect ourselves we had better disband. Our party can never advance under fusion leadership, and these men be trayed us and our candidate, the gal lant Tom Watson, of Georgia.” Every sentence which declared against, any form of fusion with either of the old parties was the signal for a noisy demonstration. Hats were waved canes were flourished, and confusion reigned during that part of the address which demanded that Rozelle and But ler be thrust out of the ranks as trai tors to the cause of the people. After the report of the committee on credentials had been received and adopted, a committee of six, composed of Harry Tracy. Texas; L D. Reynolds, Illinois; C. Vincent, Indiana; Paul Dixon, Missouri; “Abe” Steinberger, and “Cyclone” Daviij, Texas; was ap pointed on address and resolutions. At the afternoon session Frank Bur kitt, of Mississippi, was elected presi dent, and pending the report of the committee on resolutions the conven tion adjourned until to-morrow morn ing at 10 o’clock. Before adjournment a committee will be appointed to secure names to a petition t 6 be presented to the national committee asking that they issue a call for a conference of thd people’s party of the United States to be held some time between May 1, and July 1. In the event the national committee de cline to call the conference this com mittee will, by the power to be grant ed by this convention, proceed to call a conference of the party, and dele gates will be regularly elected by mem bers in all the states where the party has an organization. George E. Washburn, who was in charge of the Chicago branch of the national executive committee during the presidential campaign, is in attend ance. When farming becomes profitable every other legitimate business will flourish.—Ex. OUK PARTY’S FUTURE. ■ HOW A PATRIOTIC GEORGIA EDITOR VIEWS THE PRESENT SITUATION. , Wilson of the Alliance Plow Hoy Reviews the History of the Fast and is Hopeful for the Party’s Future—Keep the Powder Dry and be Ready for Action. On this my 52nd birthday, I regret to see that some of our journals and some of our journalist friends seem to be dis turbed about the future of the “Third Party,” therefore I am constrained to add my mite in the way of encourage ment. Is it a mistake to assert that the or ganization of the People’s Party was a public necessity? Is it not true that corporate power was, and is yet, run ning, rough shod, over the liberties of the people of this free republic ? Is not every department of industry in charge of trusts, combines, corporations and heartless money mongers? Yea, is not the government itself, in a great meas ure, dominated by a class who seem to have no regard for the rights of others? Are not millions of our fellow-men without employment, consequently homeless, half-naked and hungry, in a land literally “flowing with milk and honey?” How about the suffering of innocent women and children? Have they the necessaries to keep their bodies comfortable? Does not igno rance and vice stalk, hand in hand, over this sun kissed land? Are not our almshouses being enlarged, insane asylums over-flowing, our jails and penitentiaries crowded? Murders and suicides are on the increase? These can’t be denied. Yet, it can be asserted without fear of successful dispute, that not a voice has been raised to attempt to stay the hand that brought this once free and happy country to this cursed “condition and not a- theory.” Then is it any wonder that patriotic hearts were touched—constrained forced to look to other sources than the old party organizations for relief? The powers of the oppressor must be cir cumvented. This could only be done through the formation of a new politi cal faith. Our western friends, whom .we had met in the Alliance, said: “We will not come into the democratic par ty,’’’and we of the south said: ‘We cannot go into the Republican party.” So we all agreed to meet “in the middle of the road” and form a new party.” This was done and named the People’s Party. But our western allies seem slow to believe what it cost us “old hayseeds” of the south to try to maintain our positions. The ground is literally strewn with the dead in Geor gia, to which little attention is paid. A slight retrospection of the battles for the last four years may interest them and encourage southern populists. TUB STORY OF THE PAST. It is useless tq repeat that the. Far mers Alliance and industrial' union, composed of the farmers and laborers of the country, had adopted a set of de mands, which they had urged before congress without attention from either old party. Not only so, but it is well known that they were scorned by both. Then came the convention at St. Louis Feb. 22, 1892, composed of the labor organizations of the nation, i This convention endorsed the former . demands of the alliance and entered i into a political compact to have them < legislated into law. Thqn it was that the fight was on; then it was that men showed their true colors; then it was that cowards “took to the woods.” The whole coun try, Georgia especially, is full of cow ardly deserters who fled at the first fire of the enemy. Deserters were not all, they took up arms against their former friends. Scores of loud-mouthed fire eaters, who literally flayed the life “out of” both old parties, are this minute ensconced in fat offices, procur ed through perfidy to their former allies. They have been rewarded for treason. HOW THB PATRIOTS FOUGHT. But the honest patriots, encouraged by promises of support from their western brethren made at St. Louis and conscious of the- justness of their .cause, pressed forward and attempted to stay the hand of tne oppressor. This first battle was fought in 1892 against great odds. A party, well or ganized, was met entrenched behind unlimited capital and led by unscrupu lous politicians. These were assisted bi’ a thou- and or more trained speak ers, as aides de-eamp. headed with free passes and tickets .to lunch counters, who had little regard for the truth and less for the proprieties. But they were backed by all the daily press and sus tained by over one hundred and fifty old established weekly papers in the state. These alone were enough to weaken the stoutest hearted But a reserve force had to be met consisting of the railroad corporations, banking institutions, manufacturers, big preach ers, and land owners, to say nothing of ward-heelers and cross road politi cians. Added to this array there were three counters at every precinct, back ed by the whole judiciary of the state. Against all these and a few stale eggs, thrown in for good measure now and then, the indomitable Col. Peek in the lead, the old “anarchist n gger equal izer” was allowed about 70,000 votes. “Faint heart never won fair lady,” so the fight was continued until 1894, with conditions little changed, when Judge Hines, the jurist, was placed in command, with every subterfuge known to a wily enemy thrown in his way. Intimidation, coercion, money, whis key, ballot-box stuffing, counting out, slander and abuse were continued without let or hinderance. In spite of all these 97,000 votes were counted for Judge Hines. And up to this time few fair-minded men will dare deny that Hines was fairly elected, though coun , ted out. TIJE ’96 BATTLE. The third and last battle, that of ’96, was fought on the same lines and under the same circumstances, with Seab. Wright in the lead, except the adop tion of prohibition brought the influ ence of the distillers of the nation to bear against the new party. True many good people came to the ranks » EQUAL RIGHTS 10 ALL ; SPECIAL PRIVILEGES TO NONE” ATLANTA, GEORGIA: FRIDAY MATCH 5, 1897. but some were driven away. But think, for an instant, of the barroom , influences acting as a battery throwing double charges of grape and canister into the ranks of an army for two months ! Is there any wonder that we lost 10,000. Added to all these, the enemy placed hunself behind “He pardoned—Adolphus Duncan -a-negro who-had-been-twice-convicted - of-rape on-a-white -woman—and-sentenced--to hang,” but lost over 12,000 himself, showing that the new party had not been organized in vain. We are al ready a very formidable opponent to plutocracy and ring rule, ’then why not press forward? Why be discouraged when the enemy is already disgusted. In Gwinnett, the banner county, many of the best element of the socalled dem ocratic party say they will not enter another primary, “too many pops and niggers were induced (?) to take part in the last one,” they say. keep the powder dry. Speaking nationally, the writer was in the last convention, and in his hum ble opinion, the western delegates didn’t understand what they had aided to bring on the South, or the ’southern delegates didn’t understand what they meant when they appeared to want to force us into the democratic party. Certain it is that the spirit engendered there must be allayed before another convention is held. How that is to be done is left for older and better inform ed men. Certainly no self respecting nopulist in Georgia will re-enter the democratic party. The republicans are soon to be on trial. Let us wait and see, but keep our “flints picked ana our powder dry.” W. W. Wilson. THEY 6 P PO SEFTJSIO N. The Resolutions Adopted at the Memphis Meeting. The Reform Press Association adopt ed the following: “Elections being but incidents in the life of the People's Party, this associa tion appeals to the Populists to con tinue the battle steadfastly for our principles until each and everyone are enacted into law and the peo'ple given justice and equal opportunity to enjoy the blessings of good government. “We congratulate the people of the United States upon the fact that the Populist education is bearing fruit,and that even now qur opponents jn many states are mak ng efforts to enact some of our principles into law. “The failure of the leaders of the Democratic party to carry out their promises, by which they secured the indorsement of their candidate for pres ident, places the responsibility for the defeat of the promised refermsupon the organized Democracy, and serves as a warning that no reliance should be placed in old party pledges. “We strenuously oppose all fusion or entangling alliance with any other po litical parly. ■ we call special attention to Hie fact that the great railroad corporations of , the country have been freely and open ly used during political campaigns by the money power of the two continents , as one of the most powerful and effect ive agercies for defeating promised financial reform. This active and per- , nicious conduct on the part of private , corporations, reveals a new danger that threatens the very existence of popular ( government. Therefore, the public ownership and operation of transporta tion of the country is not only necessa ry to secure lower and more equitable transportation rates, greater and bet ter facilities of transportation, but it is also absolutely essential to enable the people to secure financial reform and to preserve popular government “We point to the appalling conditions in which this country now finds itself, as the best evidence that the princi-' pies of our national platforms are right, wise and necessary. “With a firm reliance upon the pa triotism of our press and party associ ates, we emphasize the importance of an educational campaign carried on in ! a spirit of fraternity.” EDUCATE IS THE -CRY. Georgian Anxious to Secure Open Diseus cussions of the St. Louis Platform. Editor People’s Party Paper: I am still ruminating, and I believe our boys ought to educate themselves thoroughly on the several planks of our St. Louis platform. We don’t believe it is a time for “argufying” about the present financial policy of the old par ties. The “wave of prosperity” that i» now on us, and that is wrecking banks and divers business concerns almost every day, will furnish plenty of object lessons that will be far more convinc ing to the average mind than any argu ment that we might present. With most men seeing is believing, and they will not be convinced until they sei and feel—and they will realize fully, with these two senses, in the next few years that the gold standard is an un mitigated curse to the country and they will wonder why they ever allow ed political plaee hunters to make such dupes of them. Can’t our boys in everj county in the state organize clubs ami meet at some convenient point and dis cuss the several planks of our plat form in a friendly way, inviting mem- ' bers of other parties to participate in the discussion, thus bringing into closer fellowship our farmer friends. If we are going to send our farmers to our state and national legislatures they must be educated so that they may be 1 able to meet any class of men in de bate. Our young men must prepare themselves to step to the front and nie& the obligations that will certainly devolve upon them in the near future. There is an abundance of material for any demand with proper preparation. Suppose Senator Carter had had the advantages peculiar to those lawyers pitted against him on 'he “committee of investigation,” together with others who may haze helped, what might have been the remit we cannot tell. As it I was he succeeded in convincing the people—Populists and Democrats -that those judges are guilty. In addition to ! education we need integrity and the courage of conviction, like Hon. T. E. Watson, Yancy Carter, W. L. Peek and others. Let us know where Mr. Wat son is in every issue of your paper, if ' no more. Yours truly, Georgia. ) ‘ ‘REFORMS IN DETROIT. LI “ MAYOR PINGREE TELLS HOW THE r PEOPLE HAVE BACKED HIS PLANS. o e Street Car Company Fought Long and Hard, Bribing and Bulldozing Alter nately bnt it is Brought to the Feed Rack at Last by Competition. Detroit, Mich., a city of an estimated t population of about 300,000, owns - water-works, owns and operates an 3 electric plant, fixes the price of illumi jr nating gas at $1 and fuel gas at 80 cents 1 per thousand feet, and has secured a . three-cent street car fare during work s ing hours. Governor and Mayor Pin- - gree (his present term as mayor of r Detroit does not expire until next Jan -1 nary) became a national figure in his t fight for some of these reforms, and his successes in opposing corporations are considered responsible for his recent s elevation to the governorship by a - striking majority. s Mr. Pingree tells in the Outlook, 1 February 6, an exceedingly interesting i story of his fight for reforms. He says - that Detroit is.a city of home-owners, ) with a foreign population in the main . English-speaking. “The anti-monop- I oly measures of my administration,” • he says, “have been supported by all - classes, except what are called the best . citizens. The small property-owners - have supported them as zealously as ■ the wage-earners. A great many ■ among what are called the better elas l ses have voted tor me, but they are' generally careful not to let it be known. If we had to depend upon these classes for reforms, they could never be brought about.” the street, car fight. The chief fight, and one not yet ended, has been between the city and the street-car c.omnanies. This began during a street-car strike several years ago. Mr’ Pingree says that the com p mies were giving poor service and working their men from ten to four teen hours a day. He refused to call out the militia at the demand of offi cers of the company, and public sym pathy supported his request for arbi tration, which finally settled the dis pute in a day and a half. “In my opin ion,” says he, “no company ought to get a franchise unless it stipulates its readiness to submit to arbitration its disputes with its men. Both men and companies owe it to the public to keep the ueace.” He continues: “The public feeling against the com pany which this strike brought to a head made it possible- to keep up a fight for a better street-car service. At first most of the aidermen seemed to be bound hand and foot to the street car companies; but half of them are elected every year, and we tried to select-men who would stand by the people, and get them, if possible, to pledgil them selves. When once pledged‘ it was-prelty hard tor them to go back on their word, but of course some had their price. Not until the second year was the Board of Aidermen really out of the grip of the street-car company. All this time we were fighting the com pany in the courts in regard to its fran chise. It was a long, bitter fight, the ease being taken from court to court, and finally costing the city from $50,- 000 to $60,000. While this struggle was going on, with decisions some times in our favor and sometimes in theirs, they were trying to get a new franchise, but I kept vetoing their measures, and it was pretty hard to pass anything over my veto. I used to stir up the public by sending out notices, and tin people would pack the Council chamber and fairly terrify the aidermen who wished to go back on their campaign promises. We even told them that we had plenty of rope there and would hang them.” the press fought him. With one exception, a German paper, ' the newspapers were on tne side of the street-ear companies. Mr. Pingree says they misrepresented him, anc he had to resort t" posting notices on chained bulletin boards, to get a hearing. The fight in the -ourts was a.most as aiffi eult, to carry forward, he writes : “When I got a resolution passed in ' the Council giving me the power to retain two lawyers outside of those abeady paid by the city, I picked out one prominent Democrat and one prom inent Republican. These men accept ed the case, but the first thing I knew the company began to bring pressure to bear upon them The .prominent ! Democrat, who has held a Cabinet po sition, took a smooth way to get out of ' the fight He said that he was in na tional politics, and that this local struggle complicated his position. The prominent Republican did not drop out so quickly, but I found we were having a hard time to get the matter before the court. Finally I insisted that he must bring it to a head. A few morn- ' ings later I was surprised to have him come in to see me and state that he had been retained by the company and could no longer serve as our attorney. He said that he was poor and that they, bad offered him such an amount that be could not afford to let it go by. Os course 1 gave this to the papers, ami you can imagine the feeling it stirred up. LAWYERS IN THE STRUGGLE, “Then 1 started around to look for other attorneys, and found that every able lawyer in town had been retained 1 except Professor Kent, who was not a : jury lawyer but a good counsel. I re tained him, and also a strong lawyer from up the state. We carried the ease through the lower court, and it went i then from court to court until it came to the supreme court. Then in some way they managed to transfer it to the Federal court; It was to have been tried before a judge who owed his ap pointment to the largest stockholder in i the street car company. I took the po sition that that judge had no right to I try that case. I used some pretty strong language, and think they would have had me arrested if I had not been right. As a result of these protests, i the ease was transferred to a circuit i court in Ohio and tried before Judge Taft. He decided in our favor. Then V was appealed to the Court of Appeals i in Tennessee before Judge Jackson. Our lawyers went down there, and the . next day telegraphed back that the judge had his mind made up to decide against us, but he held the matter for six months before rendering his opin ion. About ten days before the decis ion came we learned that a New York firm had bought out the street-railway company. When the decision was handed down, it was in their favor. What reason the New York capitalists bad for thinking, the stock of a compa ny whose franchise had been declared void by the circuit court was a safe in vestment will possibly never be pub licly known. CORPORATION METHODS. “On the filing of the opinion of the Court of Appeals the new owners be gan to make overtures for peace on the basis of a thirty-year franchise and five-cent fares, but in the mean time another factor had entered into the problem. On the 20th of November, 1894, Messrs. Pack & Everett, of Cleve land, made application to the Common Council for a franchise to operate street ears on streets not, as a rule, used by the old company, and agreed to equip sheir system with modern appliances and sell eijjht tickets for a quarter, to be good from quarter before six in the morning until eight o’clock at night. When the ordinance granting this fran chise was pending before the Council, the rew managers of the old company exhibited the same short-sightedness as nad their predecessors. They not only refuse i to reduce fares themselves publicly admitting that to do so would have a bad effect upon their street-car properties in other cities—but violent ly opposed the granting of a franchise to the Packet-Everett syndicate. Their obstructive policy, however, went for naught, and the ordinance was adopt ed. The old company then announced its intention to contest in the courts the right of the new company to oper ate the lines, and applied for an in junction in that behalf. In this fight before the courts, however, the old company failed, and the citizens of Detroit have now access to a street-car system extending to nearly all parts of the city, with the fare during work ing hours practically three cents, and with universal transfers. During the last campaign there was, indeed, a practical consolidation of the new com pany with the old, but the combination is bound to operate the franchise of the new company upon the terms laid down in the charter. Mr. Everett, of the new company, was opposed to entering the combination. He told me when his company started that they would be satisfied if they made money in a year and a half, and afterward admitted that they had made money almost from the start His company at one time proposed to the Council to oper ate all the street-railway lines in the city at the rate of two and one-half cents per passenger, and pay the in i.erchl wpou Giv |>.i of tfie’ street-car tracks if these tracks were condemned by the authority of the leg islature and the purchase price decided by arbitrators. The fignt has not ended, and may not end until the fran chise of the old company expires. Fort unately, the Michigan legislature was long ago wise enough to provide against perpetual franchises. All franchises in this State are lor thirty yeears.” BRINGING GAS DOWN. In reducing the price of gas from $1.50, Mr. Pingree proved by statistics that gas could be profitably furnished at sl, and although failing to secure from the legislature the right of the city to regulate the rates, he says that the old company accepted a new fran chise to furnish gas at sl. The munici pal eh etric-light plant recently estab lished has reduced the cost of lighting the streets from $11.15 to $7.20 per are lamp. The waterworks have been owned by the city since 1852, and “no one dreams of such a thing as return to private ownership,” according to Mr. Pingree. He is in favor of genera, taxation to furnish free water as .well a> free schools, parks, etc. He believes in strict compliance with civil service reform principles to secure efficient administration. And from his experi ence he concludes: “The time is coming when municipal monopolies will oe owned by the peo ple. Detroit during my administration voted by a majority of four to one in favor of public ownership of street-car tracks. If the tracks were owned by the public, it would be easy to get the service performed at competitive and reasonable prices. We must not, how ever, wait for public ownership before putting an end to the extortion now practiced by private monopolies. We must, under the present system, com pel the corporations exercising public franchises to furnish their services at the reasonable rates contemplated in their charters. This can be done where ever the city government is intent upon accomplishing it, and the city govern ment will be intent upon accomplish ing it whenever the citizens wake up to the extent of the extortions now practiced upon them.”—Literary Di gest. If you can’t legislate a man rich or poor, why do the .corporations want legislation in their interests? Legisla tion has much to do with the prosperi ty of the people.—Truth. The People’s Party Paper of Atlanta, Ga., comes to us this week changed to a large 8 column folio with an entirely new dress. This is about the ablest Populist paper in the nation. Every true Populist who can, should sub scribe for it and read the able editori als of Thos. E. Watson. —Cleburne (Tex) Herald. We find on our exchange table, Vol. 1, No. 1, of the ’Granite City News, a seven column, eight page, populist paper, Messrs. Ed. L. Sutton and D. B. St John, editors. It takes no little i pluck to launch any new enterprise in these hard times. We trust that the people of Lithonia and of DeKalb county, will give the new paper liberal support. We feel sure that Messrs- Sutton and St John will do their ut most to deserve all patronage bestow ed. i NEWS OF THE NATION. . EX-PRESIDENT HARRISON THE FOND FATHER OF A GIRL BABY. , South Carolina Legislature Will Pass an Income Tax Bill —English Schemers at Work on a Brazilian Revolution-General Clay Applies for a Pension. The Mardi Gras carnival opened in New Orleans on March Ist. Ex-president Wm. H. Harrison, is the father of a girl baby in the 64th year of his age. Blondin, the famous tight rope walk er, the first man to walk a rope across Niagra falls, died near' London recent ly- _ H. C. Pendleton, a young Atlanta man was seriously if not fat ally beaten in Chattanooga for making improper remarks about a young woman. The notorious Princess de Chimay has < -ffered to fill an engagement at the Olympia Music Hall, New York, at $2,000 per week. If her offer is accept ed it is presumed that her g.vpsy para mour, Rigo, will come with her. Col. Carey W. Styles, the founder of the Atlanta Constitution, died at Steph ensville, Texas, on Thursday of last week. Col. Styles was a native Geor gian and a member of the Georgia Se cession Convention. He moved to Texas about 20 years ago. It is announced that Secretary of the Navy Herbert, will not return to Ala bama after his term expires. In be coming the pliant tool of Grover, he has lost the respect and confidence of his people at home. Miss Hulda Duestrow, sister of the millionaire hanged recently in Missouri for the murder of his wife and child, has declared her intention of becoming a catholic nun. She has an annuity ot $30,000 which will go to the church in case of her entering the convent. The approaching execution of Jack son and Walling for the murder of Pearl Bryan is the exciting topic of conversation in Covington, Ky. Mrs. Jackson has urged her son to make a full confession unless he is really inno cent At Soddy, Tenn., a negro, Charles Brown, attempted an assault upon Miss Lillie, Walker. Failing in his attempt he hid in a barn. When diseoveied by the sheriff's posse, he opened fi. e upon them, fatally shooting deputy sheriff Sadler. A mob quickly gathered and hanged him to a tree. The noted old Kentuckian, General Cashius M. Clay has applied for and received a pension of SSO per month. Two years ago General Clay married a fourteen year old girl whom he had taken under his protection. Believing .sb.e..WQuld uot.be eared for by his fami- Iv after his death, he applied for a pen-l sion to make sure of her future sup port. An income tax bill is before the South Carolina legislature. -The bill provides for a tax of 1 per cent on incomes between $2,500 and $5,000; per cent on incomes between $5,000 and $7,500; 2 per cent on incomes be tween $7,500 and $10,000; 2% per cent on incomes between SIO,OOO and sls 000 and 3 per cent on all incomes above $15,000. The bill will likely pass. Antonio Searwoski of Warsaw, Po land, and Marie. Denits of Venice, were fellow passengers on the steam ship Scythia. Ou arriving at Jersey City last week they sough, a justice of the,peace and announced through an interpreter that they wished to be mar ried. Neither could speak the language of the other but while crossing the Atlantic they had done their courting by looks and signs. Consul General Lee’s telegrams to Olney have been given to the public In the case of Scott who was confined for 14 days in a narrow cell with water standing on the floor. General Lee in sisted that war ships to baek up his demands, if necessary, should be sent to Havana or he would leave. Seott was most barbarously treated, being furnished with water to drink at inter vals of 12 to 24 hours, and the dis charges from his body were removed from the cell only at intervals of sev eral days. Olney’s replies to Lee are not given. A serious riot occurred on the streets of Knoxville; Tenn., on Monday mor - ing. At an early hour the Citizens Street Railway Co., sit two hundred negroes to tearing up the tracks on Depot street. The city police arrested the negroes and the Sheriff and his deputies began to arrest the policemen. The fire department was called out and ordered to disperse the crowd by turn ing their hose upon them. Serious trouble may yet result from the con flictof city and county officials. The allied powers have determined that Greece shall not take possession of Crete, but that atonomy shall be allowed the Cretans. It is recognized that unless Bulgaria, Servia and Mon tenegro actively supported Greeze. Turkey would be able to overcome and subjugate -Greeze and in the former ease the peace of Europe would be seriously threatened. Turkey is safe, no matter what enormities she may commit, until the great powers can < come to a satisfactory and amicable agreement as to how Iter territory may • be divided among them. The Sultan does not look upon such an agreement as possible, hence he feels safe in the • possession of his territory and his free- | dom to murder Christians. What seems to be a new chapter in the history of Richard Ashe, the Aus tralian murderer, has come to light. It is declared on good authority that the man of many countries and many ali ases, is a deserter from the United States army. So far as the police have made public the information in their possession, and so far as the murderer 1 himself has admitted, the man’s record < runs no further baek than September < 1, 1891, when he shipped on the Star of i Russia, at Newcastle, N. S. W., and ; started for this port. If this story as to i li is e.nl army and his deser may be thrown on another period of ' his history, It is claimed that he en listed at Ogdensburg, N. Y., about 1888, and was assigned to Company C. Fourth 1 Infantry, and soon after deserted. International News. Twenty tons of nitro-glycerine ex ploded in an English factory, killing six men. The shock of the explosion was so great as to break all the win dows in a passenger train twelve miles away. A great hole in the ground is all that ife left to mark the site of the factory. The wife of Genera. Rodriguez, the insurgent leqder who was arrested last January without charges and thrown into a prison among degraded and abandoned characters and without leave to communicate with her friends, has been released through the efforts of General Lee and has arrived at Key- West. Some people are disposed to censure Consul General Lee for not doing more, but it is impossible for any man to hold office immediately under Cleveland and still assert his full man hood. Even such strong- men as Gres ham and Carlisle were forced to go back on their previous record and lose their individuality when they accepted office under Grover. Since the Senate has made a preemp tory demand for the liberation of Julio . Sanquilly under sentence of death in a Cuban prison and Shown, at the elev enth hour, sufficient backbone, to override Cleveland and Olney, the Spanish minister, Senor De Lome, an nounces that Sanquilly was pardoned by the qneen a week ago. We fear that there is a secret understanding between Olney and DeLome, and that . the pardon has been ’just signed and dated back for a purpose—and but for the Senate’s energetic protest the par don would never have been heard of. The Herald’s correspondent in Rio Janeiro, Brazil, telegraphs that 8,000 fanatics are now concentrated in strong trenches, receiving from sources un known to the government great quan tities of arms, ammunition and provis ions. The chief of the federal troops has demanded reinforcements from the Brazillian government to make an at tack on the fanatics. There have been published in Rio Janeiro startling revelations of the in trigues of n en of a big European syn dicate now negotiating for the lease of railroads in Brazil. It is charged that attempts have been made to bribe many high officials. There was a b'g reception in the government palace in Rio Janeiro to celebrate the anniver sary of the adoption of the new consti tution. The Italians who were damaged dur ing the eeent troubles in Brazil have filed claims in court asking for the re tarded indemnity. OUT IN A Watson Elector Vigorously Denies that He Was a Sewall Man. Editor People’s Party Paper: I have just read the able letter of L. C. Bateman of Maine, in your issue of February sth, and while he strikes straight from the shoulder and drove center mostly-; he overshot tne mark in one instance as follows: . “In every doubtful state a portion of the electors were conceded to the Populists, but not a man went on that list who was not strictly pledged to vote against Watson. Not a solitary vote would Watson have received in the electoral college if by any possibility those votes could have elected Arthur Sewall.” I was a People’s party elector pledged to vote for Bryan and Watson and would not have voted for Sewall under any circumstances. I enclose a letter addressed to onr Secretary of State showing that I was under no obligation to the Democratic nominee for vice president and I protest now a?ainst being classed as one of those who could have been induced to vote for Sewall if I had been elected. W. H. Spaugh. MR. SPAUGH’S LETTER. “Florence. Or., Oct 16, 1896. ‘Hon. H. R. Kincaid, Secretary of S ate, Salem, Oregon: Sir —The ne» spapers inform me that in pieparing the ballots for the ap proaching election, you have certified me a cai didate of the Democratic par ty, People’s party and Silver Republi can party for Presidential Elector, and have so certified my name to the vari qus county clerks. This does not con form to the facts. I was duly nomi nated for elector by the People’s party and as their candidate I have accepted that nomination and tiled my accept ance, under the law in your office. I have never filed any other acceptance, and I hereby protest to you and through you to the county clerks of the various counties of the State, against being designated as either a Democrat or a Free-silver Republican on the official ballot. I cannot consent that the peo ple of the state shall be under any mis apprehension as to my political posi tion or party relations. “I therefore request that you give this letter out for publication, so that the people, if they choose to vote for me, may know exactly what my polit ical affiliations are. “W. H. Spaugh.” It will be seen that Mr. Bate, an has done Mr. Spaugh an unintentional in justice. D. N. S. Lost Brother. Any information as to the where abouts of one A. J. Barrett will be thani fully received, the last heard of him was at Knoxville, X enn - Three of us, brothers, served in Co. A. 11th Ga; Regiment during the late war. A. J. Barrett is a traveling machinist by oc cupation. Any information will be' thankfully received. Address, G. R. Barrett, Cedartown. Ga. T. W. Johnson, a young flagman of the Georgia road, was crushed to death on Sunday night, at Union Point while coupling cars. Safety car couplers cost money but there are lots of idle young men to take the place of the dead flagman.