Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1874-03-05
Class LEGISLATION.

Sifo sAcAn sAo SO-oy VII all OSSooAoAo.
Class Legislation.
Extract from the Speech of Judge Randall at
Morris, Ill.
Glass legislation is among the crying
evils of the times. 1t is well named as
the starting point of grievances in the
Decuatur Convention. By it capital
has been very rapidly and very insidi-
ously stealing from the hands of the
many to the few. It has reached far
beyond the halls of legislation, and be-
come the corrupter of courts, and filed
political parties with debaucheries. 1t
has listened to the grasping intriguer,
and has persistently overlooked the cries
of the industrious millions for relief. 1t
has opened the avenues through which
the scheming and dishonest plunderers
can fitch from the farmers his crops, and
from the laborer his honest earnings.
It has kept the farmer and laborer poor,
while it has built up the financial, the
mercantile, the manufacturing and the
transporting interests, until they have
been enabled to monopolize the wealth
of the country-to make money scarce
at their beck-to control the market and
bring about those ruinCus fluctuations
which palsy the arm of industry and
paralyze its hopes-to manipulate trans
portation and commerce in such man.
ner as to throw all the burdens and all
the hazards back upon the industries
to take tho just burdens of taxation, in
great measure, from the capital of the
country, and cast them upon the over
burdened shoulders of labor The most
arrogant demand of the Southern slave
holder, for the extension of his peculiar
institution, was not more repugnant to
our reason and our manhood than the
present demand of the office-holders'
party to cling to its corruptions, and
grow rich out of the oxactions unjustly
forced upon the laboring population. I
need not detail the manner in which it
has been accomplished but the facts
are clearly before the whole country
that labor is poorly fed and poorly
clothed, while the aristocracy which has
gathered around the party in power is
rolling III wealth and splendor, and votes
to itself double salaries while it laughs
the protests of a tax-ridden people to
derision and scorn. They look con-
temptuously upon reasonable CON-
plants, and in the insolent language of
the villainous Tweed inquire, I" What
are you going to do about it ?"
This convention and the conventions
being held throughout the country are
preparing to answer this very insinuating
question. First, we are going to organize
in the interest of labor. We are going
to call the sons of toll together in DELHI
crate and thoughtful counsel We are
going to throw old party prejudices to
the four winds of heaven, and unite in a
mass to oppose this class legislation,
which has filled our country with injus-
tice and misrule, and demand equality
of rights and benefits in the administra-
ton of this Government. We are going
to insist that the Tweeds, and Cages,
and Towards. and the other countless
horde of public defaulters, be driven
from their places of plumber. We are
going to denounce with fearless voice
the system of high and double salaries.
We are going to insist that all those
who have taken part in the system of
public plumber, whether they be Presi-
dents, Vice Presidents, members of Con-
gress, or whatever position they may
hold, shall take their places back in the
ranks of the people, where they will find
less opportunity to plumber. We are
going to maintain that all transportation
lines are public highways, which belong
to the world and are liable to the just
control of the laws. That the franchises
of corporations consist in the right to
hold and operate them according to law,
and not according to their schemes of
personal aggrandizement. We are going
to try to stop the domination of rings, in
the form of boards of trade, and cammis-
sion merchants, and warehouse opera
tors. and the other cunningly devised
contrivances by which they pilfer from
the products of labor from the moment
they are started on their way to market.
We are going to insist upon an increase
OF the currency, to be in paper of the
Government, based upon its public
debt, and made legal tender, to take
the place of bonds bearing interest
which the people now have to pay. We
are going to insist that the farming
interest has at least one-half the right
to fix the price upon the necessaries of
life which they produce. Thus far we
are now pretty well agreed. If the fu-
ture shall develop other objects claim
ing our attention, the same determined
purpose which has stimulated us to
confront these great principles will also
enable us to embrace others.
We have organized party because
many of our objects can only be effected
by united party action. If We desire to
have measures carried out, we must
select men with view to such meas
ures. If We desire reform, we must
have men who are earnestly in favor of
reform. If we want reduction of ex-
penses, we cannot depend upon men
who have doubled up expenses until
they are compelled to tax our tea and
coffee. If we desire to stop class legis-
lation, we cannot depend upon men who
are placed In power by the action of
corrupt and seheming rings, or who
lend patient ear to tempting lobby.
Thus party action becomes a necessity.
Old issues belong to the past. The ext
gencies of the country demand action
upon the emergencies of the immediate