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CREATOR OR CREATED.
WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE
HUNGER AND IDLENESS.
Is the Crime of Human or Divine Origin
Premature Dealli from Hunger. Cold
or Exposure In a Country Possessing
fnllmitcd Wealth Is Murder.
From the Si. Louis Evening Journal.
Presidents, senators, high muck-a
mucks in the social and political world
from home and abroad, including Scrof¬
ulous heiress huntres from run-down
estates in Europe, and upstart politi¬
cians recently promoted from the gutter
to the Judiciary for devoted syco
phantev to the vested interests—these
and others of their ilk are now inter¬
viewed and held up to public view by
the daily papers, and their every re¬
mark reported and every action noted
so assiduously that the millions—that is
the every day fellows like you and me
have almost forgotten lhat we exist.
We see the members of the official and
nodal ring quoted so often that we have
come to think that they arc the country,
the people, and when they say “we” or
"us” or "our,” we common people get
confused and think we are in it. They
do the talking, for they own the sources
of information. We the millions, have
no organs and are dumb, So when
when they are having a good time the
country is prosperous, when they gorge
themselves God Is good, when they get
into a senseless quarrel with the same
breed across the water our country
must prepare for war and when one of
their youngsters has the stomach ache
bad weather is prophesied. Hut wo.
(he people who havo been left out in
the cold have a mouth-piece now in
the Daily Journal, and we are going to
speak through It and lie interviewed
otirsel ves. Those of us who have sor¬
rows are going to loll how we think
they came upon us and give any advice
we wish, io others in danger of ills
that may be prevented.
A Journal man met an old soldier
coming out of the postolfice yesterday
and as he did not claim the title of col¬
onel interviewed him.
“Have I got anything to say to the
public?” lie ejaculated in answer to the
first inquiry. "I should think I have.
I have enough io say that if the peo¬
ple would listen to me and had hearts
instead of grisley Wood pumps they
would rise against tlieir present rulers
before tomorrow.
“I went to the war as a healthy smart
young man, from a pleasant home and
even left my sweetheart, to give my
life to save my country. I generously
laid my wiion all on the altar of patriotism
and i returned home wounded
and only a wreck of a man I fot*nd
that the country 1 thought 1 was saving
had been captured In the rear by a ba.'id
" f WAVaiV-eulter"
Sherman. l worked hard to make' a
living but because I would not become
a part ner to the rascals who looted t/he
public treasuiv to enrich national
banks, 1 was refused a pension.
"Last year my only daughter who all
her life has been devoted io me and
nursed mo like an angel through every
illness and who used to sit up nights
to make me delicacies she was forced
to work in a factory on Washington
avenue. The boss' son look a liking to
her and I don't blame him for she was
(lie loveliest creature you ever laid eyes
on. He told her how pretty she was
and she was fooled Into thinking he
was going io marry her. He came to
our house many times, and I knew he
meant to marry her. I knew he was a
good-intentloned follow and generous,
hut his grisly old dad said he would
disinherit him if he did. My daughter
used to tell me with her arms around
my neck all the filings she was going
to do for me when she married Fred.
But one day she came home as pale as
death. She said she was sick. I
knew she was sick in her mind and got
her to tell me that her sheewheart was
not going to marry her. I thought this
was all, poor child, but one week later
she did not return one night, and told
me in a note that she was not worthy
to live with me any more, and that I
would never see her again, The poor
youngster. 1 have been looking for her
ever since, but site is gone, I am
afraid, forever, 1 would not condemn
her 1 would forgive her 1 would for
give even the young man. Both are
angels beside the prostitute editors and
preachers who uphold a system of soci¬
ety that makes Christian marriage im¬
possible. and sells the love of both man
and woman for gold, The young man
had been sent away by his father for
fear 1 would kill him. No. I wouldn’t
hurt him: he was only weak; 1 know
he really loved my girl. But 1 would
not object to killing a few of the fellows
who have made it impossible for me to
get work and support my daughter, and
who make social laws against men mar
rving those they love when poor, 1
would not object to shouldering my rifle
the second time to abolish slavery, this
time of sixtv instead of four million
slaves, who^p sons are made drudges
or criminals, and whose daughters are
regarded as the natural game for the
sDort of the Idle classes. Oh. I just
wish thev would trv to count out the
people's choice for president this year,
if the poor people elect him. 1 would
just like to get one whack at them,
Curse their souls, if they keep on break
ing the laws and spitting on the people
they will find enough just such broken
hearted, simple-minded fallows of my
stripe to make short work of them. No.
1 ain’t got no more to say and if you
publish half I've told you you’ve got
more sp tunk than William Lloyd Gar
rison."
Muttering a few curses the old
wounded s> ldier walked away. He gave
his blood to save his country—to-day
his country d ies him the opportunity
to earn a Hvi ng and drives his daugh
ter to what is worse than death.
Walking into tlx?postoffice the Jour¬
nal man saw an old woman writing on
a postal card, but after she would write
each word she had to stop and wipe
the tears from her eyes. She first re¬
sented being asked the cause of her sor¬
row, but after being assured she was
talking to a friend explained that she
had raised a family of three bright
boys, but all were now dead, and that
although they once owned their own
homo and store, doing a prosperous
business, the millionaire's department
store had caused their failure, and now
she and her aged invalid husband were
about to be separated and sent to two
different charitable houses for the aged.
My youngest boy killed himself by over¬
work trying to make the business go
and when he saw we were all going
under in spite of his efforts, he lay
right down on his bed and died in de¬
lirious fever. And to think after los¬
ing all our children and working hard
all our lives we must now be separated
in our old age and be sent to different
institutions among strangers—! Oh!
My God it is too much! I wish I were
dead too!”
When asked if she thought God was
to blame for her misfortune she an¬
swered: "Oh, no; He made the world
big enough and rich enough for all,”
"Then why is this world filled with so
much pain and wretchedness?” con¬
tinued her interrogator. “I don’t know,”
she sobbed. “Is it not all the fault of
those who monopolize the world and
deny the poor the right to earn their
living?” The poor woman looked up in
blank amazement. She had been their
in a church led by Pharisees, who
had never suggested that God's King¬
dom was possible on this earth, or that
the present hell is the result of social
and political crimes, and so she only
shook her old aching head—she could
not understand, The idea that the
benefit of progress and invention be¬
longed to all alike, and that every man,
woman and child in the world migh:
enjoy an abundance of all the good
things of life had never occurred to her.
The poor thing had cried, "Oh, my
God!” in her misery, never realizing
that God had given her a world of un¬
limited beauty and delight, which had
forcibly been taken from her by the
ruling classes; that these people waste
enough in one brutal feast to save the
lives of a hundred hungry women and
children; that single families squandei
in useless ostentation weekly whal
would gtve comfort, peace and plenty
to a neighborhood and that these thing;
are crimes for which the pereptrator:
must not only answer to heaven bui
for which they shall very soon have to
answer to an enraged and determined
people.
The victims of social injustice will bo
interviewed from time to time by tin
Journal man and their suggestions pub
lished as to tiow existing social canni
bali.un can be abolished, how each in
‘I’sb* 1 *! eon he most^^fifiii, ’uench_
Ing the flames of our earthly hell ami
overcoming the two-legged devils who
now poison the stream of human life
Alleged nureputnliU’ Action.
The newspapers that believe that .
high tariff is the remedy for all oui
most important ills are berating the
Senate finance committee because it re
ported a free silver bill ns a substitut'
for the tariff bill. It is asserted thai
the substitute bill is not germane to
the original bill. Well, let us see. The
purpose of the tariff bill is to raisi
revenue, to get hold of some money
is it not? If it were passed it is al
together problematical whether ii
would answer the purpose or not. Im¬
portations depend upon a market foi
what is imported. When times art
good and everybody has money to spend
a tariff will produce revenue. When
nobody lias any money, importations
will necessarily be light and a revenue
from u tariff will not be heavy. The
government has asked congress to en
act some sort of legislation that will
relieve the financial necessities of the
treasury. The finance committee had
before it the simple question of how to
raise money and it very wisely con
eluded, in our judgment, that the
easiest and most certain way of raising
money was to provide for the coinage
of silver. It seems to us that it was the
most sensible thing that the senate
has done for ten years. It went about
accomplishing a purpose in a direct,
business-like, common sense way. The
majority of the senate is in favor of
free silver, The majority of the sen
ate next year will be in favor of free
silver: and to charge that the free sil
ver senators are obstructionists be
cause they provide a way for raising
revenue according to their financial
convictions, is as silly as would be the
charge that the house is an obstruc¬
tionist because it believes in the tariff
bill and not in the silver bill. When
a majority of such a straight-back in¬
stitution as the senate is in favor of
free silver, it looks to us as if the gold
men ought to pause and ascertain
where they are at.—Chicago voice.
' ”
—
Seeing that by taking , , in the honest , ,
elements of all parties the populists
can elect president and vice president,
the Wall street wolves (that is all that
will be left of the republican and dom
ocratic parties after July .21 are alreadj
planning to capture the presidency by
force. Wonder if they know; what such
a course would entail? We have tin
guns,' they say, the president is ours,
‘be navy is ours, the army is ours. Just
let them try and inaugurate a crazy
populist president of this country and
we 11 kill them like cattle. Gentle
reader, the above expression comes
from a third-term advocate of Mr.
Cleveland. He speaks for plutocracy.
Wall street has actually planned to steal
the presidency in March, next year,
--
Would not the "pitchfork" make a
good and attractive addition to the plow
and hammer as an emblem of the peo¬
ple’s party?
WHAT GENERAL GRAIT SAID:
“With Free and Unlimited Coinage of Gold and Silver
we will Clear Away our Public Debt Before the Close of
the Century.”
These Were Uttered by the President Just After He
had Signed the Bill Demonetizing Silver. In Other Words,
He did not Know that the Bill which He Signed had for
its Object the Destruction of Onedialf of the Debt-Paying
Money of the Country. Yet Wall Street Wolves Tell Us
the Demonetization Act was not Sneaked Through Con¬
gress by John Sherman and his Co-conspirators from
England. I
ITS THE PROGRAM.
SO THINKS A DEMOCRATIC
i
NEWSPAPER.
Says that Grover Cleveland and Jol d
Sherman Will Support the Same ( audit
date This Year—Next President Wil¬
lie a Populist.
(From the Chicago Opinion.)
National politics have been taking
such shape for the past few months
that the tariff question promises to be
largely eliminated from the coming
presidential campaign, through be
ing so completely overshadowed by
the financial issue embodying the re
monetization of silver at 16 to 1 and the
abolition of the national banks.
Many indications point to a general
smashing of party lines and the union
of men from all parties, who think alike
in the financial question, under a new
party banner. That the gold standard
leaders will control both the republic¬
an and democratic national conventions
loes not permit of a doubt, and whllp
• hey may attempt to deceive the people
is usual by a straddle, those old metl i
ods will no longer be effective, and
when the lines are fairly drawn It is
not improbable that Grover Cleveland
ind John Sherman will be found stand¬
ing upon the same platform and
porting Governor Morton of New'
for .president, who i« now .■o
Mire to receive the republican
Ion at the demand of Wall stro
the democratic party is liable i
orbed in the extreme west ana
iy the populist party. Since the l
ng, Jan. 22. at Washington, of the s> -
■ er man matters have made rapid prog
ess toward the fusion of all the eh
uents who believe in a genuine do tble
tnndard and oppose a surrender of this
■ountry to English domination in our
'inancial management under the popij
'ist banner. It was there decided to call
x national convention to meet June 22,
it the same time the populist party is to
’onvene, to select a presidential candi
late, when it is expected that confer
ence committees will arrange a plat
form and candidates that will easily
satisfy those two bodies and also all the
republicans and democrats, who will be
virtually driven out of their respective
national conventions, which will al¬
ready have made nominations and
adopted a gold platform in the face of
strong and bitter opposition. All west
ern republicans and democrats also
southern democrats, who are opposed
to reduction in value of the silver dol¬
lar will have no place to go but to the
new party, and in most cases will con¬
trol the party machinery west of the
Mississippi and south of Mason and
Dixon's line, Consequently, in those
states both of the old parties will be
placed in the attitude of bolters and
the populists assured of every electoral
vote in all of those states, thus making
it incumbent upon them only to carr.v
Indiana and Michigan in order to win
the election, both of which states have
always retained a strong greenback sen
timent. Republican and democratic
aid in those states will accomplish that
much. In Michigan Mayor Pingree, of
Detroit, an ardent free-silver man. will
undoubtedly secure the republican
nomination for governor, and the gold
standard republicans will be compelled
to bolt. A fusion of the Pingree men.
silver democrats and populists for elec¬
tors is assured, which means their elec
tion. in Indiana the democrats will
place themselves squarely upon the sil¬
ver platform, and a fusion with the<)op
ulists and silver republicans assure a
large majority in the state, In Illinois
the populists will hold their convention
first, and the program is now to nomi¬
nate Governor Altgeld and Attorney
General Moloney, with perhaps Hin
richsen. thus paving the way for a fu
sion of all the free silver men in the
state upon one ticket. The candidates
who are to lead this formidable party
comprised of men who have tired of the
double dealings of both old parties up
on the vital interests that more than all
others affect business prosperity to-day,
are Senators Henry M. Teller of Colo
rado. long a leading republican, for
president, and Senator Morgan of Ala
bama. Representative Crisp of Georgia.
or some such man for vice-president,
Mr. Teller has always been a loyal re
publican, but has never failed to place
the financial question above that of
tariff. Work on these lines has been
going on for mont '.s, and S.000 newspa
pers are already prepared to sustain
the silver party. T. H. Carter, chair¬
man of the republican national commit¬
tee, must naturally stand by his avowed
convictions and throw his influence in¬
to the scale for silver. Tom Reed has
never taken a position on the question
where he could be counted, while Mc¬
Kinley already scents the new arrange¬
ment of party lines, and is speaking up¬
on both sides of the issue. The nomi¬
nation of Governor Morton will make
many heart burnings, especially when
known to be at the dictation of
Wall street, with ten millions behind
‘t and double that amount If necessary,
a11 ° f which was made the syndicate
wbo sold Cleveland’s bonds. The head
quarters of the Bimetallic Union is in
this city and is in charge of Edward L.
Light, secretary, and Hon. H. I. Bar
Hne, editor of the National Bimetallist,
They are doing a vast amount of mis¬
sionary work and disseminating the
silver doctrine through an immense
volume of literature, with which they
are flooding Indiana, Illinois and Michi¬
gan and educating the people. At the
same time W. H. Harvey (Coin) is still
actively engaged in making converts
through his splendid organization of the
Patriots of America. Leading green
backers like General Weaver of Iowa,
Jed Spalding of Michigan, and Robert
Schilling of Wisconsin fully approve of
the movement, as do the populist lead
ers like Senator Peffer of Kansas. Poli
ti Mans may decry the issue and ma
chine men attempt to dodge and strad
die again, and once more fool the peo
i 1 Aft'eYA-JAW' t he ch ecker
board is forcing men who think alike
to bury all old prejudices and stand
together for their own interests and a
common country. Let the honest voter
take notice and govern himself ac
cordingly. The next president will be
populist.
NATIONAL LEGION.
CIRCULAR NO. 2.
The Legion is now rapidly growing
among the people; it is growing faster
than any organization in the nation.
The People's party must thoroughly
organize. If it will not, it will meet
with the fate of the Greenback and
Labor parties. If they want to preserve
the faith they have battled for on many
fields, it is of the highest importance
that they should unite at once in the
Legion and seek converts in a regular
systematic way. It is possible between
now- and July 22d to convert the great
mass of the people who are dissatisfied
with the two old parties. We must
provide a plan to educate and instruct
them in the faith we hold. If we had
a Legion in every state, county, pre¬
cinct and school district in the land,
as has been constantly recommended,
there would be no misunderstanding
about our platform and vital principles.
What we must do is to educate the peo¬
ple; and we should at once, without a
moment’s delay, organize. It is no use
quarreling with each other; no use re¬
viling at the faults and frailties and
mistakes that may be made. What we
want is perfect unity and organization.
It is useless to criticise the action at
St. Louis. We must without sacrifice
of principle hold out the olive-branch
to those who believe as we do on fun¬
damental questions, and keep our
"doors open to the North, South, East
and West” if we expect to win and re¬
lieve the oppressed people. I have ever
upheld the Omaha platform, and will
loyally do so until the St. Louis con¬
vention establishes its creed. I be¬
lieve that we will agree without the
loss of our self-respect or the abandon¬
ment of our principles. In order to
hold cur faith we should organize into
a compact, united band. And if the
two million who have voted our ticket,
and the loyal following associated with
them in their households, will organ
ize and individually and by force of
perfect organization go Into earnest
missionary work. we can convert
enough voters before July to win the
fight,
From every quarter come the glad
tidings of great accessions to our ranks,
In some localities it amounts to a land
slide. We can never gain in this grand
contest if we are divided ourselves. I
have had many grievances and have
been burdened with a heavy task, :
have resented bitterly unfair treat
rnent, but 1 am willing to bury it all
and labor to organize r victory in
1S96. The people should sustain theii
committees. They should build upland
encourage their newspapers, They
should cheer the overwor. ed. lily paid
editors. They should be willing, one
and all, to "divide their last blanket
and last crust” with each other, and re¬
member that no great cause has ever
triumphed unless martyrs trod the hot
plowshares and unselfishness was ever
uppermost. We have adopted a new
form of membership for those who de¬
sire it and who wish to swell the fund
for propaganda work.
We send the certificate of member¬
ship, a beautiful token, and Legion but¬
ton to all sending $1.00; and with it we
enclose a full set of supplies and com¬
mission as Legion Scout if desired; and
a sample copy of The Nation, which
prints all orders and circulars. There
is no red tape. Send for papers and
organize at once.
We want you in line now; and the
moment you read this go out and drum
up ten people and organize and send
for charter. Always enclose stamps for
supplies. W T e draw no salaries, and
labor as a freewill gift. We are al¬
ready burdened with a load of debt in¬
curred in this work. We want to es¬
tablish a lecture bureau, and we urge
your active co-operation. Our mail is
constantly increasing and we need a
typewriter for this great work. We do
not appeal to or beg of the people. It
is their work and they should help sus
fain it.
This is a great struggle for human
rights. No more sacred contest was
ever waged in all the ages. If we are
alive, if we will awake, if we will
arouse from slumber, and each one do
his whole duty—if we are a band of
united in fraternity—we caa
restore liberty'
perity. We are in the ruthless hands
of aliens and traitors to our nation who
sell our birthright daily. Our rulers!
worship the golden image, and bumil
iation and shame are the lot of our
patriotic people.
A new Declaration of Independence
is demanded, and on our shoulders
rests the sacred work.
PAUL VAN DERVOORT.
noyeottliiK the Populists.
The “Times-Eeho”of Eureka Springs,
Ark., says:
“There is one peculiarity about all
Populist papers that’s very noticeable—
they run practically no advertisements.
Perhaps advertisers think that a man
who will read a Populist paper hasn’t
money enough to buy goods that are
advertised.”
We can hear some old party merchant
chuckling to himself as he reads that
little squib.
The partisan merchant knows why
Pcpulist papers have very little adver¬
tising. It is a part of the organized
boycott against people who protest
against being robbed.
Populist papers have just as large
subscription lists, and often larger, than
any old party paper published in the
same counties. Their readers have just
as much money to buy goods as do the
farmers and laborers of the two old
parties, and they are more intelligent
and likely to see a good point in an
advertisement.
But Populist papers are boycotted
purely for partisan reasons.
Most Populist editors do not expect
any patronage from old party sources—
and some are so independent that they
fly at their masthead, “No advertisers
need apply.”
It requires courage to run a Populist
paper—but Populist newspaper men
are usually “built that way.”
In view of these facts Populists gen¬
erally are beginning to see the wisdom
of “tit for tat,” and patronizing only
those business men who consider their
trade worth asking for. By and by no
Populist will buy anything at all from
the merchant who boycotts his paper.
We must do it in self-defense.
A Don’t Care Citizen.
Don't care how the cotton sells—
Takin’ of my ease,
Where the music of the bells
Jingles on the breeze.
Don’t care how the country goes—
Roamin’ far an’ free;
In the woods there blooms a rose
Red an’ sweet for me!
Don't care how the cities roll—
Thundering along!
Streak o’ sunshine in my soul
Twinklin’ into song!
Don’t care where my life is led—
Still it's honey sweet.
Blue sky smilin’ overhead—
Green earth at my feet!
—Atlanta Constitution.
ANOTHER BREAK.
OUR FREE-SILVER FRIENDS ARE
TOO FRESH.
Populists Are Not As Easily Led by the
Nose as the Adherents of the Two Old
Parties—Will Not Concede Both Plat*
form and Condldates.
We clip from a Washington dispatch
dated Jan. 25, the following:
“It is not expected that anything will
be done about candidates for the silver
ticket until after the republican and
democratic national conventions. Then
a silver republican and a silver demo¬
crat will be selected from among the
most prominent members of the old
parties willing to accept places on the
ticket.”
In view of the contemplated union
with the Populists that is very re¬
freshing indeed. Where do the Popu¬
lists come in? They are expected to
furnish the votes and then sit cn the
fence and watch the procession go by,
I suppose.
It makes us tired.
Hatch said the Populists ought to
have voted the Democratic ticket la
Kentucky.
No doubt Teller thinks they ought
to have voted the Republican ticket
in Colorado.
There are some things doubtful and
some things are very plain.
It is doubtful if the rank and file of
the People’s party will ever consent
to make any concessions at all to the
silver people, if such talk as this con¬
tinues.
It is plain that they will not con¬
cede both the platform and the can¬
didates, under any circumstances, at
any time, or to avoid any kind of an
anticipated catastrophe. The Populists
would have more confidence in the sin¬
cerity of the free silver people if they
could hold one meeting that was not
made up almost wholly of politicians,
lawyers and place hunters.
We are willing to admit that the
action of some of our men who have
been clothed with authority is not cal¬
culated to inspire enthusiastic ad
miration for us in the breasts of our
free silver friends.
They have been approached, and per¬
haps bled, by an element that is not
representative of the integrity, sincer¬
ity, and inherent worth and strength,
of the Populist party. In time this will
be remedied by retiring some of those
men to private life. For the present
we have got to make the best of the 1
situation.
While we will make no predictions as
to the success of uniting the anti-gold,
bug elements on one presidential tick
et, we do say that if it fails it will be;
principally on account of trigger
mouthed Populists and free silverites
print with a lot of predictions, precon¬
certed plans, and balderdash that is
calculated to disgust the rank and file
of the People’s party,
If the so-called leaders (Populists
and free silver) are sincere and honest
in their efforts to bring about this un¬
ion, they should button up their lips,
eschew newspaper interviews and saw
wood.
Already too much has been said and
protests are coming from every part
of the country. This is unfortunate at
this time. Every Populist should be
actively at work organizing and edu¬
cating the masses. Instead of this,
doubt and discouragement comes from,
these silly interviews. It is not suffi¬
cient for the men whose interviews are
published to try to take refuge behind
the declaration that they are falsely
represented. They are always falsely
represented, to hear them tell it. Then
why in the name of consistency ever
submit to them? There is no reason
in the world to be given but that to
satisfy their inordinate egotism.
If the plutocratic papers would pub¬
lish the interviews correctly there
might be no harm in it. But they never
do. Then, we again ask, why submit
to being interviewed?
When the national committee is re¬
constructed, as it will be this year, each
candidate should be required to sub¬
mit to a cranial examination, and only
men who have the bump of self-es¬
teem ordinarly developed should be
placed in any’prominent position. We
say this in all seriousness.
It is not so much the weakness of
our national committee and the silver
men that is doing us harm as their in¬
ordinate vanity.
Vanity should never be mistaken for
self-reliance, nor stubbornness for
manly courage.
In the meantime, while the people
will necessarily doubt, they should not
relax their exertions. The harder they
work the more compact will become our
organization, and the better able we
will be to withstand the storms from
without and within.
We admonish the people to relax their
fears. Things are not half as bad as
they seem. Almost all this trouble
comes from a weakness to be inter¬
viewed. There is no serious danger
threatening the Populist ranks. Let
us go to work and have an effective
organization in every township and
county. Send your truest and best
men to all your conventions. Keep
ycur shirts on and your heads cool. See
that none but Populists are sent to the
national convention. “Trust in God
and keep your powder dry,” and the
gates of hell cannot prevail against
our cause.
W. S. MORGAN.
Municipal ownership of electric lights
is one populist idea that Fargo could
profit by adopting.—North Dakota In¬
dependent. There are others.