r FHE OMAHA DAILY BEE
TWENTY-FIRST YEAH. OMAHA , NEBRASKA , OCTOBER , 1891-SUPPLEMEJS T. NUMBER 100.
OPENING OF THE CAMPAIGN.
Exhaustive Review of the Problems of the
Hour in Nebraska.
PAUL VANDERVOORT AS Till- INDEPENDENT APOSTLE.
How the Railroads Have Tied a Stout String to
Candidate Edgerton.
PACTS ABOUT OUR LATE REFORM LEGISLATURE.
Some of the Promises it Failed to Keep and Why No Railroad
Measure Was Passed Fallacy of Free Coinage and
V/hei'ein it Affects the Farmer--
About the Candidate.
Coi.UMiitu , Nob. , Oct. 10. [ Special to TUB
HcK.J Tbo llrst republican rally of this
year's campaign was huld , thli afternoon in
tin * city , the homo of Judge Post. Tlio
meeting was hold In tbo opera liouso , which
had bean appropriately docorUoil for the oc-
'cnsion. Thcro win an attentive midland ) ,
composed of representative residents of
Platte county , among them being several
members of the farmers ulllunce , Mr.
Edward Uo.s - > cr , Colonel C. It. Scott ,
BX-CongressmuL 'nunoll of Oinnhu , Judge
Post , ex-Senator . . Mlistor and others.
The mooting was culled to order by Mr.
MuAllibtor , who introduced Mr. Kosowater
is the sponkerof the occasion.
Mr. Chairman , Ladies and Gentlemen :
For many years there bis : been deep-seated
Hid widespread discontent among the people
of Nebraska. As far bacu as IhTU the popu
lar dissatisfaction manifested itself In an
upon revolt In the ranks of the republican
party against the interference by federal
ofllccrs in coalition with railway employes
and railway managers with our state arid
congressional conventions. This feeling was
Intensllled from year to year by the issue of
railroad passes to public ofllciuls and poli
ticians , the discrimination in favor of certain
shippers and the excessive freight , rates and
hlrfli passenger tolls. A largo number ot the
furmorj republicans and democrats exas
perated ! > } the domination of monopolies ,
organized the NobrasKn farmers alliance in
1681. With this movement I myself , In com
mon with thousands of other republicans ,
wns in full accord. I fait then and 1 have
felt over since that ttio people of this state
should have the right to govern thom clvo3
untrammelled by interference from any cor
poration ; that our public servants
ihould regard an ulllco as a
publlu trust ; that our legislature
ihould not bo manipulated by corrupt lob
bies , that jobbery should bo banished from
legislative lialls , and that th" railroad com
panies of this state should bo made to charge
reasonable rates to their patrons. Tills view
I still hold today.
Formed n Third 1'nrty.
At the tlmo when the alliance was orgnn-
l/cd , and over since thai time , I have nlway.s
Insisted that the policy ol the alliance should
bo to exert its lulluonco within the parties
already established , and endeavor to right
the grievances of the producers by taking ac
tive part In the primary elections and con
ventions , and wroncb the mti'ihlnory of the
parlies from the hands of corporations.
There wore , however , from the outset in the
farmers alliance quite a number uf the old
greenbacliors , men who believed that the
government could grind out money by the
billion and distribute It to all tlio people and
make them rich , and of playoit out politicians
whom the old parties hud discarded. In
other words , men who had no party to return
to , and political adventurers wlio
wanted to organize an entirely now
party. This class of politicians obtained the
Upper hand in 1882 and issued a call for a
Kate convention of anti-monopolists. Be
lieving that a wholesome lesson might bo
taught , and that seine reforms might bo ac
complished In an oil year , I enlisted with
them and wo succeeded In electing Sturdo-
vunt state -treasurer and came very nearly
clouting two members til congress. Hut Mr.
Bturdovunt was no sooner In the state house
than ho entered the old ring and reform re
ceived a black eya
Alliance people ceased to manifest Interest
In ttio third party movement and gradually
Worked their way back again Into the old
parties and became n strong and important
factor In checking the Inroads of the corpora
tion managers. Hut their ambitious leaders
ind certain demagogues and Impostors who
aud worked their way Into the conlldenco of
; he farmer * persistently kept up the clamor
for a now party. The failure of crops and
the general depression In business naturallv
grouted dUcontent not only In all parts of our
ituto but in Kansas. Dakota and Minnesota.
The alliance was revived and recruited from
the ranks of the discontented In the north
western states. You all remember , how
ever , that up to within thirty days of ttio
time when the call was issued for the pee
ple's convention last year , the loaders and
the organs of the al'.iancn assured everybody
that they had no Intention of forming a * third
party , but that they promoted simply to hold
* club over existing parties , and If they
failed to place liv nomination mutt ulio were
In uccord and la sympathy with the produc
ing classes , then , and then onlv , would tliov
endeavor to right their wrongs in the politi
cal nrenn ns on independent political parly.
Hut wiille they wore giving out those ussur-
niires and hoodwinking their followers , they
wore secretly preparing a sobomo for forcing
Dlllanco men out of the old parties and foUt-
Inb upon them candidates that would do the
bidding of n Junta more unsciipulous and sel
fish tliun any that had manipu
lated the machinery of the old parties ,
Wlillo denouncing the machine and bo&slsm
they wore organizing n despotic dictatorship ,
inch an no party in this state had ever sub-
uuuuu : o. TIIOV juggico. tno npuoruoiiinoni
jf delegates to tm > people's state convention
10 counties with scarcely any population
ivero given tbo largest representation and
other counties unfriendly to the dictator were
ilmosl disfranchised.
Under Uncrown * Dictatorship.
It Is n notorious fact that Powers , who Is
in honust but very weak man , u m ro autom
aton in the hands of Dictator Burrows , was
foisted on the independents as candidate for
lovcmor over ( ienoral Van Wyck , and such
a nonentity as Joseph Edgerton , who could
aot ho elected justice of the peace In Strains-
burg , Polk county , whore he formerly lived ,
or In South OmuUn , where ho now lives , was
nominated for the olllco at attorney general
In place of General William Lcoso.
This mime bosslsm was carried on through
the entire campaign of 1MH ) , In manv places
alliance men were dragooned Into voting the
unscratched independent tickets by threats ,
They hud to show their ticket * to the
precinct dictators before they could
vote. I appeal to you , fellow cltlions ,
whether that Is any Improvement upon
the methods pursued by the old parties
Against which the people have revolted , In-
dqxnidont voting moans Individual freedom
to exercise your judgment in the selection of
candidate * nud to veto as your conscience
dictates. A people's party convention is not
Infallible. U a candidate is competent all
honest lumbers of hlj party are in honor
bound to suppou him. If he U kno\\n to he
OUhoncst or Is known to DO lncou > i > otout it
becomes the duty ot the Independent , jutt as
mucn as It would the duty of any other good
citucn , to refuse to give him his vote and to
lupport n candidate whom he ttnows to DO
honest nud capable.
Now , 1 have said all this preliminarily be
cause It bai been charged that I , in common
with many rum-monopoly republicans , have
cone back upon what vro have formerly ad
vocated uud are now In league with th * cor
porations to rivet .down the chains ot
alavery ut > on iho producers. As a matter of
fact. I realize that there are many grievances to
right BudlrecogaUe the necessity ot tUo people
i regulatine transportation rates ; but 1 simply
' oilier with other anti-monopolists as to the
most effective way to secure redress.
When the independents became a political
party they assumed the responsibility for the
cond'uct a'ud actions of their men. If the re
publican party of this state is to bo hold re-
sponslbli ] for" the nets of Its oftlcers durmtr
the past twenty odd years , certainly the In
dependents must bo held responsible for the
acts of their oftlcora and legislators. If they
have accomplished any good for the people
they are entitled to the proper credit. If
they Imvo failed to redeem the pledges they
have made , tiioy have forfeited popular con
fidence.
What have they ilono to earn the people's
gratltudol "Von all remember that every
candidate on the Independent ticket was
pledged to certain vital reforms. Candidates
for the legislature wore pledged to cut down
state expenses , to rcduco taxation , to do
away with supornumnries in the state of
fices' , to clean out the state house and give us
more econouilo government. They wore
pledged to pass stringent usury laws , laws to
prevent trusts and combinations among man-
utorturers und elevator men. laws to abolish
rnllioad nassc.s and laws to do away with the
' '
school bo'ok monopoly. How have'they kept
those pledges ?
One plank In their platform adopted at the
Hastings convention reads as follows :
Kesolvcd. That \\o heartily commend the
IndepiMiJont members of the legislature for
hiiviiu rudoi'iiiud every pledge made by the
people ( o enact their platform Into law.
Tim I Keform i.c iyliiture.
The most extiavngant legislature that this
i state had over had was that of 1SSO , two
years previous. During last year's campaign
the Independent leaders and their papers
denounced that body in Iho most scathing
manner. Now the independents organi/ed
both houses of tbo last legislature , elected
their speaker and their president of the
somite. They organized all tlio committees
in both houses und wore in absolute control
of the machinery of government so far as
appropriations wore concerned. What do wo
Hud ! The total appropriations in 18S9 were
{ y.ilbO.-lOS.SS. The total appropriations In
1891 by iho reform legislature were $2SJ > 0- ,
575,0 : ) . That is In round numbers more than
half a million In excess of the most reckless
nnd extravagant appropriations cvor made In
this state. Deduct , if you please , the $200-
000 voted for the roller or tno drotun sur-
forcrs , and deduct the $50,000 voted for the
World's fair , and wo still have $ -250,24 3.75
more appropriated In 1SU1 by iho reform
legislature than was appropriated two years
previous by legislature that has "been
denounced as the most recklessly extrava
gant body of law manors Nebraska over had.
In 18M the general fund tax In Nebraska
. was 4 fil 89 mills. In Iblll the
1 general fund tax was 5 mills. This is
economy and refcrin with n vongoancol
Let us look further at the record of the
reform legislature und what do wo Hud ? Mr.
Elder , the reform speaker of the house ,
elected by the independents , drew nay for
sixty days' service ns a member , the full $300
to which any member Is entitled. Ho was
nlso puld2 ! for mileage , although ho rode
back nnd forth to his homo on a puss. On the
top of all this Mr. Elder drew pay for
seventy-two days' service as speaker at the
rate of JJI per day , SJIO , mnhini ; in all $ . " > 3S.
The clerk of the house , Mr. Eric Johnson ,
who was Imported into this state at the In
stance of railroad politicians years ago to
help them defeat the alliance candidate for
congress in the Second district , made a
record of reform in the house by drawing pay
for 150 days during a session in which the
member * could drnw sixty days. At $4 per
day ho iccolved $1100 : but .this was only a
trivial aftalr , for Mr. Johiiaou also had him
self credited with 1,500 for compiling the
journal of the nouso , n job that ho could very
readily have done in ninety days. That after
drawing JiJOO lor two months' session , ho
pocketed $500 a , month for copying the house
journals. What do our tax-ridden farmers
think about that !
The assistant clerk of the house in the re
form legislature nlso put In a claim and drew
pay for 150 days ntl per day , which goes to
show that now brooms do not always sweep
clean. Mr Pirtle , the secretary of the sen
ate , after drawing pay for 15'J days' service
in the .session of sixty days , drew $ liiOO for
compiling the journals of the somite. Mr.
Walter Sooly , who is nou. considered n very
scrupulous man about drawing .salaries ,
only received $900 for the same work in 1SS9.
1 am creditably Informed that only two
members of the lust senate paid their faro
In going to and coming from the legislature.
Over half of the members of the house did
not disdain to accept pasteboard bribes by
which the railroad dromedary tlrst gets his
noso. afterwards his hump , nnd then his
whole body in when ho desires to manipu
late a legislature. Thu records show that
the members of the senate drew $7s7.50 In
mileage , and members of the house f''Jx'O.ICi.
Mr. Stevens ot Funms drew $ : i7.bO , which at
8 cents a mile represents l.'OO miles of
travel. Mr. btovons was the most loud
mouthed denunciator of republican extrava
gant , o ,
The Independent reform legislature , like
all the other predecessors , divided itself Into
commltteo for junketing tours. One of
these lunkcts was an excursion to Galvoston.
Tex. , for which the stntoof Nebraska paid
$450 , and all tbo state had to show for that
pleasure trip to Gnlvcston was two barrels
of oysters , dished up at independent head
quarters at the Llndcll hotel , in order that
the republican and democratic members ot
the loi-lsiaturo should not even get a smell of
the oysters. [ AppMuso and cries of "good. " !
In all candor and earnestness I would like to
know how any man or set of men can Justify
tin legislature in taking $ 150 out of the state
treasury in such hard times , when the west
ern liiilt ot the state was stricken with
drouth and the people of that section were
in iie-Hl of tucl and clothing.
Another little extravacanra , perhaps not
so flagrant AS the Investment in Texas
oysters , was an appropriation of f-V ) for
lunches served to the uniformed state mllltln
during the tlmo the boya were guarding the
governor's ofllce. I dura lay the state would
have been In great peril if they had loft the
state house long enough to Imvo got their
uicals at tholr regular boarding houses.
Amoug the Incidentals whlcn the reform
legislature plied upon the taxpayers was the
contest espouses which amounted to $ luH)0 ( ) ,
This expense was saddled on the state
without the remotest excuse , and I
maintain hero , and I know whereof I
speak , that the whole scheme was concoctoa
as A pltfco of revenge by the prohibition cam
paign manager * , who know they had been
defeated by over 50,000 majority la the state
of Nebraska , but wanted to trump up an excuse -
cuso In other state * whore the same Issue is
pending by charging that there had boon
grots frauds and noting In Omaha , South
Omaha and other towns lu the Male , Every
rational man must admit that ttioro was uo
excuse whatever for contesting the elections
of our state oftlrcrs from tho' governor down
to laud commissioner , Ur tbo face of the re
turns , which show that they nad been elected
by pluralities ranglui ; from 1'JOO to over
y.OOO , lu Itsl the r pulllcau ) party turncU
over tbo government of the United States to
democrats , after twenty-four years of rule ,
on a majority of 100 in the city of Now
York , where Tammany has supreme control.
Ours Is a government of the people. Majori
ties must rule so long ns the principles that
underlie our form of government prevail.
The republican party stepped down from
power , nnd with It nn armv of more than
100,000 federal oftlclals. Hero In Nebraska
tbo state was torn up for months by u base
less contest , and nearly $11,000 , of the people's
money spent on lawyers , notaries and stenog
raphers. For the contest made by Governor
Thayer there may tiavo been an OXCUKO. At
any rate the expense Incurred to the state
was trivial. There was no foundation for
the contest made by the independent candi
dates for stuta ofllces and certainly no
grounds for the claim of Mr. Edgerton who
was defeated by more than ! ) ,000 , plurality
nnd ran away behind his tlckat and yet
Edgerton came to Lincoln to bcslcgo the
legislature under pretense that ho had beer
elected attorney general. Now that legisla
ture had n duty to perform when It mot.
Every man in Nebraska expected that
within six days at least after the session had
commenced an appropriation would ] have
"
been made for the" relief of the sufTeror.In
the western part of the stale. Helmblo
reports hud been published of the Intense
suffering , want nnd destitution prevailing
on onr frontier counties , north and south ,
nnd If at wiy llmo during January or In the
early part of February n bll/zard had oc
curred , hundreds of people would have boon
frozen to death and any number of thorn
would have starved tnd the railroads been
blockaded by snow. Yet what did the legis
lature do I They were wrangling nnd
Jangling over the bones tholr leaders wanted
to pick. They were In session more than
live weeks before they would touch the
relief bill , which did not pass until the nth
of February , They did not care anything
about the sufferers so long as a lot of giccdy
ofllco hunters and shyster law
yers who wanted to got their
hands Into the state treasury
were pressing their bogus claims. Thov
broucht in bills for something like M0,000 , o'r
$50,000 , and if it had not boon for Governor
I3oyd thov would have boon successful in
'
rob'bing the taxpayers of $10,000 or $50,000
more than they did when they made the
appropriation of SIO.OOJ. [ Applause. |
Lost n Uoldcn Opportunity.
Twenty years ago when the republican
party hud burely taken possession of the
state house at Lincoln , n legislature , throe-
fourths republican , discovered that there hod
been corruption in the management of state
lands und funds. They cleaned the state
house by thoroughly investigating every
ofllcer. They Impeached the governor and
removed the auditor. Last winter a golden
opportunity presented Itself to the independ
ents. Their , leaders charged tnat thousands
of dollars had boon fraudulently taken out ot
the state treasury , that there were deficien
cies and defalcations in various state insti
tutions. The reform legislature had tbo best
opportunity on earth , and it was its duty to
have investigated nil the state ofllces nnd put
all its time In to thoroughly fumigate the
state house If thcro was anything unclean in
it. What did it del It did not touch any of
those things. They contented tl > cmselves
by standing guard over each other the llrst
tlmo that any party had to station men at the
capital to watch Its own members and to put
upon the pay roll of this state a dozen
deputy sergeants employed chiefly in spying
upon members of the legislature to see that
they should not sell out their constituents.
But instead of cleaning the state nouso the
reform legislature voted awuy the people's '
money for supernumeraries and for supplies
and conveniences thnt are not needed. "Thoy
voted thousands nnd thousands of dollars for
supplies and improvements in state institu
tions that are an absolute waste of money.
They voted for nn Iron fence around the
State university $14,400 ; for a sidewalk
around the university , $5,500. They voted
fiiULHj ; tor tno Foundation aim ncgmiing or n
university library building , which before it
is finished may cost four times as much , at n
time wlicri the people of this state are groanIng -
Ing under the burden of taxation and when
the Improvements are not needed. Thov
voted $ . ' 0,000 Tor fuel and lights at the Asy
lum for the Insane at Lincoln , $5.000 moro
than for the same Institution at Norfolk or
Hastings , and certainly $10,000 moro than if
nn honest expenditure of the money If prop
erly enforced would warrant. The Deaf and
Dumb Institute nt Omaha gets along with
$8,000. and certainly If $3,000 are enough for
thorn $ JO,000 is too much for the Institu
tion at Lincoln. They voted the State Hoard
of Transportation $1,000 for traveling
expenses , when everybody knows that the
board can travel whorovcr it pleases without ,
a dollar of expense outside of sleeping berths
and hotel bills , which ought not to cost over
$100 per year.
How Tlioy Kept Tlioir Pledges.
And what had Iho legislature done to
redeem the pledges of the people ! The stuto
senate did puss a usui'y bill introduced by
Mr. Shumway , now candidate for rebuilt on
the republican state ticket. It was very
moderate , to bo sure , but u great Improve
ment on the present law , but the independ
ents voted It down just because It hud come
from republicans , and they foiled to pass any
other. They had promised to pass a law making
the acceptance of railroad passes by public
oniccrs a bribe. They failed to redeem this
pledge because they were carrying passes in
their pockets , and asking for moro railroad
favors. They promised to regulate Insurance
companies , nnd give the people cheaper
school books. Have they redeemed tholr
pledges ) Who is responsible for the defeat
of the good bills Unit wore Introduced in the
lust legislature ) They wore checked off by
the lobby. There was the lobby of the rail
roads , the lobby ot the telephone nnd tele
graph monopolies , the insurance lobby , the
book trust , and every trust and every
corporation interested in defeating
legislation. These lobbies had formed
a pec ) , and that pool hud several
strings tied to the speaker of the houso.
Towards tbo last of the session , when the
speaker was called upon to appoint n .sifting
committee which was to decide which of the
billn were to bo shelved and which wore to
bo submitted to the house nnd considered ,
the speaker appointed a committee made up
principally 01 members that had boon worked
uv the lobby. 1'hls siftingcommlltce plccon
holed the bills which the people de-
deslrcd passed. So the corporators and Job
bers handled the reform legislature just as
they bad manipulated that of Ihj'.l. '
Another plunk of this year's platform of
the Independent ! reads as follows :
licsolviMl , Tlmte denounce tlif > present
system ot contract labor as maintained und
fostered liy thn republican party In tins stato.
'I'Mat na hollovn Unit llio rontrnet > rns fraud
ulently obtained and that contract conditions
hoe not been cimipltod with , and that UK
porputuutlon at each session of iho legislature
U u source uf constant corruption , and that It
supports n cuii ; ; of lioodlors who In any way
at tlio lust ttCssumiif the lo lsluiro nought to
rmerxe lliu wilt uf rhu poonlc.
Now , who hud tbo majority In the last
legislature ! Why did not the members who
are commended for their fidelity to the people
abrogate the ponltontl.iry contract on the
ground that it was procured by bribery and
fraud ( It is a mutter of record that the con
tract with William II. I ) . Stout for the Icaso
of the penitentiary provided that the con
tractor should build -MO cells by the end of
Ibs' * at his own expense. That contract was
extended In 1S > 7 , with all the obligations ,
and transferred to the present contractor.
What did this legislature do I In thofncoot
this contract they passed nil appropriation ot
f 10,000 for n new cell house , and yet the in
dependent convention commends this legis
lature to the taxpayers of the state. On the
morning when the approurlntlon for that
t-W.OOi ) cell house was pending 1 wout to the
Llndcll hotel and called the attention of the
Independent members ot the penitentiary
commutes to the fact that this contract ob
ligated the contractor to build that cell house
and that the state should not inako this
appropriation , but they paid nonttcntlon to
my remonstrance and voted away ? 40OQO to
help out the contractor. Can .any hottest
farmer or worklngmau endorse this conduct !
About Itnilrond Legislation.
Hut , say the Independents , Iho legislature
at the last session did pass one railroad hill.
Ttioy have endeavored to give us relief.but
the governor vetoed the bill had the repub
licans and dqmociuU refused to unite with
the independents to pass this * bill over the
veto. Now I have for yean advocated and
do now advocate regulation of railways by
legislation. I have opposed the commissioner -
or * and transportation boards because J huvu
uo faith lu a transportation beara or a com- ,
uliMou doing iti duty , and 1 believe tLit
there should bo upon the statute books some
law.s establishing maximum freight rates
Just as wo now have n l w tlxlng the rate for
passengers ; but I belleyo that these lawn
should bo so framed a-s to bo practicable and
reasonable. I do not dcllavo the rational
people of this state want n law upon the
statute books that would bo a dc.rl letter , or
u law that would have to bo sot aside by the
supreme court.
What was this bill that the legislature
passed at the last scsslcni It was framed ,
ns they say , In exact accordance with the
rates that now prevail , ! or rather that then
prevailed in the < state of Iowa.
This gives nut the impression that the
state of lowu has irtilly got a maxi
mum rate law. Tbereislno such thing on
tlio Iowa statute nooltx. Iowa simply has
n railroad commission , nnd that com
mission has from time V ) tlmo regulated iho
rates of freight In Iowa and adjusted thorn to
suit the circumstances nnd conditions of the
different roads. They have classified the
railroads of Iowa according to the amount of
tonnage nnd business dune on thorn and ac-
cordlnc to the cost of o.ch railroad. If such
n law had been oimctc'd In Nebraska , with
due regard ns to the trafllc of the dlfforint
roads , and the actual investment In the
roads , It would have boiln just nnd reason
able am ! would have sUed the test of the
court" . Hut this legislature simply wont to
work ns u matter of buncombe
to humbug the people of our
state nnd make t'lom believe that
they sincerely had carried out their pledges
nnd passed a law that they know would bo
pronounced unreasonable by the courts because -
cause It made Inflexible rates on nil the mil-
roads , branches und tmiln lines , short roads
nnd long roads , for nil bommodltics accord
ing to the lowoit rates that are charged upon
the longest nnd best pajing roads In Iowa.
On the very /nee ll lho bill there were
provisions which made it void nnd would
have compelled the supreme court to set It
nsldo. Tiioy provided that if the court
found thnt the rates fixed by the bill were
too low , that is unreasomiblc , then the courts
should II v the rnto. 1'nnt would make the
court n State Board of Transportation. No
court has ever done that. If you bring a
complaint and charge railroad company
with charging exorbitant rates , the court
might leave it to a jury ( o say how much the
overcharge was , but the court would not undertake -
dortako to say how muci per car load , ton or
hundred noumls the railroad company Is en
titled to nnd how much ; t should chargo. So
then what was the object of tins bill ! It was
simply a scheme .o delude tlio' people of this
state and make them bfellovo that the inde
pendents in the legislature had done all in
their power to give then ; relief , nnd thnt the
responsibility for failure rested upon a re
publican supreme court , or upon a democratic
governor. This bill In isolf was unconstitu
tional nnd void by roasol , of having failed to
take into ncceu'nt the fact that ttio state
of Iowa bus nearly double the population ,
and moro than double tno tonnage of No-
braka , that the trunk line roads In Iowa haul
not only the products of Iowa but nlso the
products of Nebraska th.it are exported nnd
the bulk of all morchundlso for Nebraska ,
nnd consequently they uuVo a better earning
capacity and are thoro'oro in better condi
tion to give lower rates than ours.
What is the history of railroad legislation
introduced by Senator Stevens hist winter !
That bill was carefully drawn by un export
who has elven this mut'er ' careful attention ,
nnd that bill was so drawn as , to simply give
the people ofNebraska ] owu rates with about
from 10 to 13 per cent added , that is to say it
recognized the difference between railroad
traftlc in Iowa and Nobraslca and made the
rates so reasonable that the courts could not
decently have sot It m Ido. Now. I realize
that the railroad managers and tholr lobby
would have been just as much opposed to the
Stevens bill as tiioy waiv to the Nowborry
Dill. Ttioy are opposed , o all maximum rate
legislation ; but nearly < ! ! republicans , and I
believe quite a number > lir democrats in the
legislature , would haj fl ot-il r-r that bi'l
had It only been piveir'J > ; Uiuoo for passage.
Such n bill would hrf ( biru signed by
Governor Boya if it h.ul passed und if ho
had veined It moro than .three-fourths of the
members would have vc'cd ' to pass it , over
his veto. I called on Soi.ator Stevens several
times and urged him to push his bill but for
some reason hodllly dallied nnd never torccd
it to the front. After Mo Newborry bill had
been defeated the Indexudcuts still had nn
opportunity to pass this bill , and
test the sincerity ot the republicans
and democrats in the legislature who wcto
pledged to its support by passing it and thus
giving the producers tha bonollt of from 10
to i5 ! per cent reduction on the present
charges. But no , they si "d " outright that they
did not propose to puss.uiothor bill , they did
not propose to do uny'Mng but put the re-
sponsiollltv upon u doiiueratlo governor and
the republican members that did not vote to
pass it , over his veto ana to go Into the next
camuulgn nnd make potTTfcal capital out of It.
What do the Indcpoii'lcntH ' want then f Is
it relief for the people , Is it a reduction of
rates , is it usury laws , or is it simply that
they want grievances lo go with before the
people ! I know some ot tholr leaders , und I
rcull/o that it really U tide thatquitoa num
ber of ttiom hu < o no desire for
any anti-monopoly legislation , that they
simply wanted the lugislaturo to enable
them to go before the | joplo and claim that
they had no chance Jvat us they are doing
now with the usury blU. Tnoy bad a splen
did chance to pass the Shumway usury bill ,
und I personally appealed to them several
times to pasIt. . They said they would pass
tholr own bills or pass robody else's bills.
Why is It , then , tha : the people of Ne
braska today have no maximum rate law ! Is
It because ttio domocru lo governor refused
to sign n bill which ho wns advised Dy the
attorney general nnu ! > other legal authori
ties was unconstitutlonr.l , nud which ho him
self could sea would be set aside because it
wns not on its fnco reasonable , and could
never bo applied > o the railroads
under the present condition , or Is It because
republicans refused to vote that bill over the
veto nnd democrats refit ed to vote that bill
over the veto when tlun- see the bill was In
jurious ami unfair , or hn't It a fact that It is
because the indeponde/ t leaders In that leg
islature refused point Uiink to enact maxi
mum freight loasonabJu. bill ! Such u bill
could have commandorM'oto.s enough to go
over any veto , ana w ( . , ! have passed the
legislature. -
Lot us now candidly discuss the proposi
tions upon which the twrtv asks support for
its stale tlokqt this tall The llrst plank of
their platform reads us 'ollows :
\\o dninnnd the ubolUlon of national hunks
nnd bunks uf issue , nndi'su substitute , for na
tional bank nutcs di > m > iul that loical tender
treasury nujt'sho nmdqlii sutllclonl volume to
transnet the Inislnev ) ] iho country un a cash
lmsU\\ltlmiitdaniatfoo > si > ecial advantiiise to
any class or calling , sue ! to bo Icgnl tender In
pay moiit of all douu nsTTIIo nnd pi I vale. Such
nines when demanded itv the people ttlmll be
limned to tiirni nteoittilisiio upon adequate
security In nmouht.s tol'.rh individual nut ex-
I'oodliiKf-.WW.
Hero is n prooosiilta that cverv railonal
man should consider 04 * fully. 1'hoy uomand
that thogovernmontah i a abolish thn national
tanks and substitute , 'ir the national bank
notes a currency that , will bo legal tender
for all uobts , nna they demand
that wo stirdl add to it ifn unlimited amount
of greenbacks snfilclcnllo carry on tno busi
ness of the country ami then that wo should
add to It any amount ttnrt might bo required
for the roll f of people vho want to borrow
money without Interest 'or the moro cost of
priming the notes , not cxeociUnR fi.VX ) tor
each loan. Let any of-4hc so llnnnclers toll
mo how much currency. * required to transact
n given amount ot hiHlnoss. How much
actual money does uuujtorln farm machinery
need to carry on the safri of ro.ipors , thresh-
ins machines and ploxvVT How much actual
cash must a dealer In pMccrles and provisions
and hardware have wb .o sales aggregate
say 1100,000 a year lujralor to carry on his
business I Do those mortitanu need iho actual
cash In tholr money dnuvcn or banks to bo
able lo carry on busing ) Dooi not credit ,
which Is only another w mo for conlldeucw.
take the place of eapluWu nine-tenths of all
our commurvtnl transvilonst These people
propose , as thov nay , < \ utvu us as much
money as is needed to dry on the butlneu
of the country. WhciVU there any proof at
this day that tboro is MV enough money to
buy or cell ail the procyicls of our farms ,
mills and factorial Ifvu bavopol any hay
out here In the Platte viJlcv , or nv corn or
grain or cattle or other roducti of the farm
are you not able to gel -i.onov for then l I *
there any ovlJenco any inhere Ihatlnero I * not
money enough to tnororCu crop * ot any eo
lion of the country , nor \soutli , cast or west I
f not it a fact that it Is credit that Is calkIng -
Ing r
rTho
The banks of the United States have ns
ranch money now In them ns they ever had
before , There has been some gold exported
from this country , but the aggregate circula
tion today In the United States Is larger than
It has been for any year since the war. Now ,
then , Is not it true that it Is the luck of con
fidence , and tbo shortage of crops nud the
overproduction of manufactured articles and
the lack of employment for labor that causes
the depression from uhlch wo have been
sufferlnc ! Is it riot n fact that money Is
plentiful , provided you have something
marketable to sell or providing you have
securities that will assure the lomler that ho
will get his pay when your note matures )
This Is really the cause. I Imvo myself
realized that the government might with
propriety issue notes directly to the people In
place of the notes which have been Issued by
tlio national banks , but how Is this money to
got Into circulation arid who can say how
much the government shall Issue ! As n mnt-
tcrof fautthe national banks have withdrawn
a very largo amount of their circulating notes
within the past few years. It has nlwnys
been charged that the national bankers were
able to make double Interest upon the money
which they have Invested , llrst upon tha
bonds which uro the security for the notes
that they issue , nnd then upon the notes
themselves when loaned out. This Is In part ,
of course , fallacious , bccuuad if they had
enough money to buy the bonds they hud
originally as much money as they get and 10
pur cent more , oven If the bonds were only
purchased nt par , but the bonds very often
Imvo been purchased nt n very much higher
rate than par. Tlio moro fact that the na
tional banks am giving up their circulation
and I presume that nine tenths of them
would bo willing to give up nit their circu
lation if they could retain the other
privileges that the government has vested in
a national bunk. That would seem to indi
cate that they were not sutlstled with the
prollts they make out of the notes. . The
very fact trial they are glvlne up their cur
rency would seem to indicate one of two
things , either that it was not profitable to
keep bonds on fllo in the national treasury ,
and that they could do better by selling
those bonds nud taking their money directly
and loaning It or else that there was such a
largo amount of money hoarded now In the
banks which tiioy do not dare to loan out ,
beciiuso of the lack of confidence nnd the
lack of securities that they find It unprollt-
nble to keep those notes out and pay 1 per
cent of tax upon them to the national govern
ment.
So then wo have the two contradictions.
Upon the one side it is charged that the
national batiks make enormous amounts out
of the notes thov issue. On the otnorsldo
it is shown they are trying to contract tbo
currency by surrendering the notes. And wo
are brought to the question of whether or
not this Is really a conspiracy against the
money borrowers nnd the debtor class or
whether It Is Hlmply bccuuso in the ordinary
course of buslness'thoy Und it more proll-
table not to have to pay the 1
per cent tax and because they
can sell their bonds which now form the
basis of their notes to a good advantage ,
and loan the proceeds of the bonds. 'Every
body who has pivcn any attention to the
question of monov will realize that the banks
rnauo most money when mouoy Is plentiful ,
thnts , when times ore prosperous nnd people
ple hove un abundance of products to sell ,
nnd when property of every description
brings a good price , speculation Is most
active and Investors and stock gamblers arc
willing to pay high interest , because they
can turn the money rapidly. In prospousy
times deposits are coming in from evordicr-
roctlon from people who have got products
to sell , and banks can loan out other people's
money to great advantage and turn It around
six ot oicht or ten times in n year , but when
money is scarce , when the nooplo Imvo noth
ing to soil , when the people have no products
to turn Into cash , and when tbo Banks ilnd
llnhA-deposits from .ln.J merchants , bccauRO
they have not been able to dispose of their
goods , when the deposits run low
and money Is scare , then the
banks make the least money , because
they dnro not trust tholr money that is held
in reserve for fear that tboro would bo n run
upon their banks. They must have a reserve
to strengthen themselves and dare not loan
out money indiscriminately to everybody ,
even upon good security , for fear there
might bo n demand made by the depositors
which must bo mot promptly At their count
ers. That Is the real truth. The talk about
bunkers conspiring to make money scarce Is
therefore the sheerest nonsense.
t'oiiKiiliM'Inir tlio Loan Proposition.
Lot us examine the consequences of the
proposition to loan people money upon land ,
under $2,500. In 1871 the state of Nebraska
had a lot of money in tier school fund und the
covornor nnu state ollicer * win constituted
the Board of I'ubllo Lunds woroantliorlzod
to loan the money out upon landed security.
And what was the result ! Wo had to
impeach the governor ami remove the auditor
because they had loaned out the 11101103' upon
property that was not worth half the amount
ol tlio loan. They hud taken wild hinds and
town lots at appraisements away above tholr
value and the state had to carry on law suits
for years to recover its monoy. U lint would
bo the consequence if you attempted to carry
out this land loan scheino on n larger
scale f Suppose this government with
tbo power to print billions of
bunk notes nnd with probably two
or three , millions of farmers and two < / three
millions of lot owners In the towns , each
wanting to borrow $3,500 , should uuthori/o
Indiscriminate loaning of this paper money ,
which simply means a irovornmont "I owe
you. " What would bo the result ! Why ,
thousands upon thousands of worthless
ploce.i of land would bo transferred to the
government under mortgage amounting to
twice as much as the land was worth , and in
n short tlmo the government would own all
this land and tno people would have a worth
less currency , just as thov had down in the
Argentine Uepublic. Thcro the same
experiment was tried only n few
years ngo , nnd the outcome has
boon the bankruptcy of the entire people
of Argentine. But how could a man who
has now got his farm under u mortgugo gut
this money from the government ! Suppose
Una the government actually could lend him
$7,000 or $2,500 , how Is ho going to pay his
mortgage nnd clear up his property no as to
enable the government lo ! eau htm the
money I The government would Hlmply any.
"you give mo a clean title to the property
nnd I will advance you u certain amount upon
it ; " but the government could not nav off
Ins mortgage , and so ho would bo In * n hole
the snino ns now. TUO wnoio scuomo is wiui
nnd visionary and is simply calculated to
Impose upon credulous people who believe
Uncle Sam can make us nil rich by Issuing
un unlimited amount of paper money.
What .Mouoy Hi-ally IN.
Lot us discuss this question of monoy.
Under the constitution congress has tlio
l > oxvor to coin money nnd declra-o the vnluo
thereof. Mark you , to com money ; that Is
to say to take pieces of metal that have un
Intrinsic vnluo nnd by n stamp declare upon
tholr faro the quantity , quullly uud exchange
vnluo of that melnl , The government of the
United Slates has exorcised that power and
coined the.so pieces of silver and gold to
represent ns nearly ns possible their actual
value independent of the stamp. The object
of nil coinage is to make each coin
represent the exchnnuo value ot the molal
whatever It would brim ; In the worlds'
market , even If there was no stamp upon it ,
B.v reason of Iho overproduction of one
metal nnd the underproduction uf tha other
and other causes divergencies have existed
from lima la time , so that the one metal nmy
not be worth as much ns Its faoo value , hut
In uny event the money coined by Uui gov *
urnment repnvsenit nbsclulo wealth , dug
out of the earth , that could bo convert
ed Into ot exchanged fer other articles ot
value into other wo.Uih. In other words the
money , whether it bo cjon skins , louacoo ,
cold , silver or ropp r , Is the urodurtot labor
Is nciual wealth Pup r money is debt. On
the one sld gold and silver ropnuom vnluo
absolute and intrinsic , on Iho other sldo
i > aHr | ! moiioy of ovoty description , no matter
byhom Uiuod and \ > hon limed , ropro-
sonls simply n promise lo pay , nn "I owe
you" from the govonmHHit rcdcomablo at
some tlmo or redeemable at no lime , but
alwaya n debt.
The government cannot create oua dollar
ot wealth Uy law , but It can create any
amount of debt ,
U the fovernm nl of tha I'nitod Suto *
were to liuio au unlimited amo.inl ot "I owe
you i , ' which were never redeemable , or
which were rcJcetuabto at a remote verlad ,
nnd for whoso redemption no provision has
been made , does it stand to reason that those
Who have coin money that has nn Intrinsic
value would be willing to accept piper money
for it nt the face value t It never has been
done ana never will bo done. Thn very fact
that during the war the people of the United
States were compelled to l sue at cry largo
amount of these "I ' "
owe you'd , which the
government was In no condition
to redeem. and which the people
in tbu nnd nil other countries
realized could not bo redeemed fer an In-
dollnlto period , because the depreciation of
our greenbacks down to something like 55
cents on the dollar , nud the .same thing would
happen if the government should Ventura to
issue nn Irredeemable and unlimited amount
of paper currency. Intelligent people every
where understand fully that the scheme of
sub-treasuries and money loans upon laud nnd
thoschomo of Issuing unlimited quantities
of paper Is not such .tone us would conduce
to the welfare of the producers or uny other
class of our people. As n striking Illustra
tion lot mo compare the financial
condition of this country with
thnt of the leading European nations ,
Franco , Germany , Hussla and Great
Britain. FYuuce , with u population of ! ) S-
UIS.W ) . ' ! , has a national debt of $ t,107.0t,45 ) : ) ( > ,
nnd she levies annually a tax of ? < 17i'ii,177 ' ; ;
the German omulrc has n population of 40-
857,7or > , a national debt of only $ . ' 104,117,817 ,
and levies n tax annually of f.lOI,7tl7,5ii8 ;
Great Britain has a population of H3COO,500 ,
levies n tax annually of $ t.'il'J12,010 , nnd has
n national debt of $300,0'J7,1M5 ; ! ( ;
Hussln has a population of 11'-
yjl.CW , n national debt of $ .1l,0i4.094lXX ; , )
and a revenue or n tax of f.X'tJ.UI 1,0110 ; the
United States have n population of 02,000,000 , ,
nnd our annual tax Is $ lt)3'tH,03l ) , or rather
the revenue In this country , and wo have n
national debt or did have on the 1st of Janu
ary of the present year of 51,025,072,11.11.
Till ? lias since been reduced by something
like $100,000,000
Whnt does this exhibit show ) It shows
this , thnt Franco , the country about which
wo hear so mucn from men who talk flat fin
ance and unlimited coinage has the largest
debt of any country on earth , that she has n
debt twice as largo as thatof Great , Britain
nnd moro than eight tlmos as largo us that/
of tlio United States ; she has a national debt
of (150.75 for every man , woman and child.
and levies taxes of $17.80 for every man ,
woman and child to meet their
interest nud running expenses , Thu
German empire has only got a debt
amountineto $0.50 lo each man , woman nnd
child , nnd her running expenses nro 87.77
against the French of $159.75. < Jroat Britain
has a national debt amounting to $87.011 per
capita , und levies n tax of 511.20. Russia bus
a national debt amounting to $ . ' ! ' . ' . 18 percapita
and levies a tax of $1.08. The United States
has a national debt which amounts to about
$11 per capita and levies n tax of $7.11. So
thnt against Franco , which has been boasted
about so much , the United States
levies n tax upon her population of $7.41
against $17.80 , nearly thrco times that of our
country.
How Franco Is Taxed.
Now , then , wo want to show another
thing. The total active circulation of
money , motnllo nnd paper , In the world is
computed by McCarty In the Annual Statis
tician for 1891 is represented by $9,500,000-
000. The United States has $1,241VJ.'l.tbl , , or
ono-sevonth of the entire stock ot money in
circulation of the whole world. The only
country ahead of the United States is
Franco , which baa $13 per capita ; but with
her enormous debt and her enormous tax her
people are nowhere ns well off as ours.QI
was"over there only two months ago and I
find that there are taxes upon almost every
food product , nnd oven upon the rent which
you nay. If a man rents a house for $1,000
ho is' obliged to pay something like 20 per
cent of the amount of thn rent , in addition to
the rent to the government. They
pay taxes upon the windows of the houses.
You cannot 10 out nf Pnrla nnd t.rnvnl
twerty miles out In the country without
going through four or five custom house
gates , and at each gate If you have n package
of any kind they will tax you for it. If the
farmer goes to Paris to market his eggs ,
butter , , vegetables or grain he Is compelled to
pay a customs tax. At every village there
nro customs gates , and everywhere taxes are
levied right and loft. But the farmers o (
Franco are a very thrifty people. They culti
vate every Inch of the soil to the highest per
fection nud maaiiRo to make ends meet and
save up something besides. They are accus
tomed to stainn duties and custom tolls upon
everything. That Is the boasted condition of
the people of Franco at the present timi\
Wo have forgotten the fact that twenty-
live yours ago every man in the United States
had to pay taxes upon every paper that he
signed. If you signed u iccclpt there was n
stamp. 11' you went to the bank with a check
you had to put a stamp upon It. [ f you sold
a piece of property you had to put a stamp
upon the deed. If you had your picture taken
you had to put n stamp upon every photo
graph. If you wanted to got married you had
to put a stump upon your marriage certltlcato ,
and from the cradle to the grave there was
nothlmr that wns not Btampod. That would ,
in my honest Judgment , bo the condition
which wo would again roach If wo adopted
the wild cat scheme of Issuing money or running
*
ning ourselves headlong In debt by reckless
cans on wild lands nud reckless speculation
and extravagance that is sure to follow un
era of Inflation. You can see how Inflation
works In Cuoa , whore thov have 17 in money
per capita and nn American dollar can bo
exchanged for Ji.Cu In Cuban currency.
I'roo anil Unlimited Coliiao.
Tlio second plank of the Independent plat
form reads ns follows : "Wo demand tno
free and unlimited colnngoof silver. "
The republican party stands on the plat
form of the honest dollar , the dollar that
will exchange a silver dollar or n paper dollar
lar , or the gold dollar one for the other nt
lee cents. Unlimited silver coinage would
eventually place the United States"on n sti
ver basis with ( Jlilna , Mexico and India ,
whoso money is quoted nt the mere mnrket
vnluo of tdlvcr coin. It would drive gold out
of circulation and muko gold a mere com
modity , Just as it was during the war , nnd
just us It Is today in Austria , In Argentine ,
in Cuba and other countries whore specie
payments have boon suspended.
There has been so mucn said nbout the
crisis of Is7l ; nnd the demonetisation uf the
dollar by it conspiracy which is miegcd to
have been hatched oi-'tho ; other Mdo of the
ocean and which was carried out at Wnsh-
Ington by members nf our congress. It has
boon shewn very fully In tbu discussions
110 f ere congress nnd in the records that there
never was any such conspiracy. Democrats
nnd republicans , the representatives from
Nevada nnd tlio roprcsoiDatives rroin uuu-
fornlu und all the mining states voted for tlio
bill. But oven If the discontinuance of the
coinage of standard silver dollars In 187.1 had
boon the net of n combination In the Interest
of foreign money syndicates , the net of 1878
restored the silver dollar to the position it
now occupies. Although the standard sliver
dollar has been upon the coinage of the
United titutas from the foundation of our
government , there had only been I'Jo.iHM )
of ilicso silver dollars coined from the time
ot George Washington down to the adminis
tration of llutherford B. Hayes. The 10-
mouctUutlon act of 1 73 provided that the
United States treasurer shall cause tlio
coinage of ' . . ' ,000,000 silver dollars
| > er month. From that time on wo
began Iho enormous coinage of silver ,
and In iho ihlrteen years slnco that period
wo have coined over 400,000.000 as ugalnst
S.OOJ.ui'i in the lint eighty -six yean of our
government , and of Iho 400,000,000 of silver
dollars that have been coined two Uilnls uro
lying dead In iho treasury , simply because
the people prefer paper money that Is ex
changeable Into gold or silver to the sllvor
dollar Itself , Now , what use has the Upllod
Stales for further coinage of silver dollars ?
Wasn't It mucn moro rational to store the
silver bullion lu the vaults of the treasury
and Issue silver corllllcaies for Its market
vnluo and lot the people of the United States
have the bonollt uf the diT ) roncn buiwoon
the market vwluaof the slltcr and lu face
value I
This la notv the declared policy ot the
United States , Under It wo will have u con-
stttiitly Incrtmiiiitf volume of currency ubso-
lutoly aftfii. und uny profit derived from the
purchase of sliver bullion und coming it will
Inure to the bonoUl uf the people of the
Unlit * ! State * . Tim tondmivy of this policy ,
It U AdnilltoO , hat luxm and Will b > 10 gradu
ally advance iho value of sllvur bullion lu Its
Iu nl ratio wlUi gold , and when Ibis Is
reached both ico'd ' ami llver would oo conn J
at the mint un equal term * and conditloni.
I'udcr tbu policy we have tucrcated the
volume uf inouejr by oror
slnco January 1 , 1891. Will anvbod/
tell mo bow the farmers nnd labor
ers of Nebraska are to bo benefited by free >
and unlimited coinngol Do they own any
shares of mining stock , or have they M\f
silver plate to convert free of charge into sli
ver dollars ! Do they wrtnl to enrich tha
bulllonalrc.s of Colorado. Montana and Cali
fornia at tno expense of the whole country t
Senator Stewart of Nevada , In n letter to
the western congress that held its session la
Denver In May , charged that the demonetiza
tion of sihor In 187 ! ) and the re <
fusnl to give the country trco nnd unlimited
coinage had resulted In n general depression
of the mining Industry and had caused great
loss to the people of the United States , nnd
particularly to tbo people west of the
Kocltloj. What nro the fnct ? And by tha
way , I want to rmnark that Senator Stewart
himself voted for the bill that the republican
congress passed nt its last session for tha
pt > rchuso of 4,500,000 ounces of silver nt IU
market value as the best measure and
the only measure that was pracllca-
bio. In 1S70 the total production
of silver In the states and torrltorltios west
of the Missouri river was fl7i'0,000. : In 1880
the production of silver had gonuun to iW- ;
O.'l.'lo.Vi , or double the amount , notwithstand
ing the fact that wo had nn free coinage , and
In 1890 wo mined $ tVJ.KK.sl ) : ) worth of sllvof
In tho.sd western mli < us , notwithstanding all
this talk that we have paralyzed tha mining
Industry. The fact is wo have mined four
times aa much silver In the last year na waa
mined twenty years ngo before the .silver1
dollar was demonetised. THIS fact affords
conclusive proof that mining under the
present conditions Is very proll table ;
that the product everywhere hn.i boon In
creased ana that the mines uro In n vcrjr
nourishing' condition , but speculating m
mines , selling options to members of con
gress nnd nu'inhors of the United Stnte.s son-
nto to pull n bill through to put million ! ) Into
the pockets of billionaires luu not received
much encouragement. It is nn open secret
that those speculators unit gmnblnrs around
congress largely Influenced the action of that
body , nnd although the congress of the
Unitud States by n whitewashing Investiga
tion , assured tno people that there wns no
foundation in the reports. I assert that
hundreds of thousands cf dollars uf mining
outiens were nlaced where tliov n-nnlil iln ilm
most good. I hnve no personal knowledge , but
people who were in Washington niul
watched the method by which the bill
wns boomed to i | vo us free mid unlimited
coinage assert that there was nn option lobby
to push the bill. Do not rolled on any man
who voted for it. Our congressmen nnd
senators voted for it because there wns n
general clamor out here , but I suspect that
some congressmen and some senators from
states where there was no clamor for frao
and unlimited coinage voted for It because
they expected there would bo a big ndvunco
in mining stocks , und they had an option to
tuko these stocks lit n given price. I repout
our mining industries uro just as flourishlnir
ns tliov could bo burring the luck
of conlldenco among Investors nnd
capitalists In this country nnd abroad ,
About the instability of our money .system.
Onr business depression Is largely duo to the
withdrawal of credits from America and wo
cannot hope to induce foreign capitalists to
Invest or loan money In America so long as
this wildcat agitation continues. If you
were to loan n man 100 bushels of wheat ,
what would you think of it If you would hear
thnt ho was prepariutr to pay you back 100
bushels ot oiitsl The intrinsic vnluo
of silver has gene down simply for
the reason thnt Instead of produc
ing ? l 7,000,000 of silver ti year , and
Ji ; 1,000,000 ot gold , as wo did twenty odd
years ago , the relative quantities of the two
moinls have been reversed. Wo uro now
mining ? 'IO,000,000 of gold annually nnd sixty
odd millions of silver. Last year's output of
silver Is estimated in the United States to bo
over $05,000,000 , and when a commodity is
cheapened by the reduced cost of production
for f\rini * fill Imth ( nlil ntitl tl ni n nnm-
modifies of their kind U stands to reason
they will not continue to exchange at tha
sumo ratio. You can niino thrco pounds of
silver now for the price that It cost to miii
two pounds twenty year * ngo.
How It All'eclH thu Farm or.
It has been said that tlio American farmer
would gain by free .silver because It would
increase the value of his product , be would
soil his grain for a higher price uud therefore
ho could also pay his debts much moro
readily. That , I believe , Is Iho true Inwardness -
ness of the wnolo thing. But this Is nlso A
delusion. 'J bo prlco of grain consumed in
America is regulated by the price which the
surplus ot grain exported to Europe
commands In the Liverpool mar
ket. Snpposo wheat Is worth 100
cents u bucliel in Liverpool , wheat In
America for homo consumption \\I11 sell for
$1 n bushel less the cost of transporting a
bushel of wneat across Hie Atlantic ocean
nnd the commission which ' .l.o middlemen get
tor handling it. Wow , with free silver the
American farmer would only bo able to sell
his wheat in America for the Liverpool prlco
in a depreciated 80-ecnt dollar. The depre
ciated silver dollar would bo n legal tender
In America , nnd ttint is the Ulnd of money In
silver or pauor exchangeable for sliver be
would get for his products. On the
other bund every commodity the farmer
has to buy would bo advanced , because -
cause prices of merchandise nro regu
lated by the cost of labor and produc
tion. If the prlco of all commodities la
America advances then lumber , coal , cloth
ing , furniture , farm machiimrv nnd every
thing the farmer has to purchase would cost
20 per cent moro timn it does now. But the
dinner would only got Liverpool prices for
his grain In American monoy. if you dopre-
cmtt ! tlio dollar do you gain anything by it )
If you open to nil Iho world the chance ot
coming to the American mint mid lot thorn
dump their silver that is worth only 75 cenu
or Ml cents In exchange for evidences of In
debtedness against the government for $1 ,
you uro bound to depreciate the currency of
the country , drive out ttio metal ilmt can bo
exchanged abroad dollar for dollar , und da-
piccialoyoiir own products , rabo the prlco
of everything you have to buy and you gain
nnthiiiL' In return. Not oven the men em
ployed in llio tnlnc.s would grim anything.
The mine owner * alone would pocket tlio
bonus ,
The ordinary laboring man certainly hut
nothing to gain by free and unlimited coinage -
ago , The laboring man wants a dollar thnt
has thu largest purchasing power. His Inter
est Is not to have n dollar that will buy less
hut thnt will buy mnro , because wages do not
a'iumcoin proportion to other things. Wniros
und real ostiito are the last thltigs to advance ,
and tin' first thing to no down. Thnt Is the
economic , well established fact , and the
laborer who has saved up u dollar ought to
Imvo the benelll of buying ns largo u quan
tity of cinnmodltlc.s , or wearing apparel , fur-
nlturo nnd carpets , or anything that ha
needs , with that dollar , as he possibly could
get. When that dollar goes down in Its pur
chasing power no loses part of hit saving *
and Is compelled to pay moro for
ovurytUIng he needs for lilnnelf and family.
Oltlun and llio Oiuididato.
Lot us now turn from the platform to
candlJutes in the present campaign , The
oftlrii uf supreme juduo Is one of the moil Im
portant within thu gltt of thu people. Every
intnlliccnl culion ruco nUi-i thnt the man
whu occupies thu highest judicial tribunal lu
our ntato should bo n lawyer
well versed In law , and a man
whoso career Inspires popular rospoot
and conlldenco. The republican party bus
placed In nomination for tno position of supreme
premo Judge n man who is not only a very
competent and successful lawyer , but a man
who lias nerved uK | > n the bench of your dis
trict for over ten years acceptably to thu
people , and whoso reputation as a clllzon U
ubuvo reproach , The Independent parly has
nominated Mr. Jaioph Kdircrlon , not b -
cause ho Is qualified for a place on the nu-
promo bench , hut because Mr. Edgerton Is it
good mump lulker nnd has munui.'ed no in-
grutlato himself Into thn ennflduucu of n ! ct
of credulous farmers who trust film nud
Wtinl to honor him with nn uvullou posi
tion for which liu U totally unlit.
When I lint heard of him Edgorton wan n
republic/in olllco tucker lu 1'oik county.
After llio alliance carried that county ho he-
cumti n rampant nntl-iiionopollit. When he
lundod In f-outh Omaha lx or aevou yeura
ngo he ngulu proposed in bo a republican , but
wli-n he found thu town overwhelmingly
doim > crutlihu bwamo a democrat , and \va *
hnuoivd uv the tollit dounx-ratlo town council
ttitiiu.u 'i out'iioiil | uf city lollfltor. Ills
i , . . i tu t' ' | < < > , ion , i ho Highest oflloo h
t'i : 11 , , i , to . . luild Uncage , decidedly
< as. As Iho legal uJvUur ot taf