The daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1873-1877, 1876-10-28
NON, LEWIS STEWARD.
The Farmer Candidate for aovernoi
He Makes a Speech that Shakes up the
Chicago Grain Gamblers,

delivered q speech IN the Chicago Trans |
portation Convention. held not long ago,
that shook up the dry bones of Chicago
that it was suppressed in all the papers;
but the Western Rural would not down. and
gave il to the public. The Rural folks
presented a memorial from the producing
classes, showing the enormous charges for
handling grain, and other matters of COM
plant, The memorial raised storm of ex
element, when member of the convention,
who is now president ofthe Board of Trade.
moved that the memorial be thrown under
the table, as it was an infamous he, Mr.
Irus Coy, of Chicago, defended the memoir
al in a telling speech and called upon
Steward, at its conclusion, who had more ex-
perience in agricultural pursuits than any
other man 10 the state, las his speech will
verify TO answer. The excitement here
was at its height: Steward Steward"
was all that could be heard. Finally he was
forced to come on the platform, place
that no one had occupied except Gov.
Beverage, as Ill other speakers spoke
from their places. Mr.. Steward, in his
plain, unassuming, but energetic and logi-
cal way. soon riveted the attention of his
audience, and was cheered and congratu-
lated by all on the conclusion of his re-
marks. He said:
Mr. President and Gentlemen of the Con-
ventiou.
am no speech maker, as you will find
by listening very few minutes, and ! do
not understand why / should be called
upon when there are so many present
much more capable of handling the sub
ject than myself. But when l see the
only communication presented to this body
from the class to which l am proud to
belong branded as lie, and proposition
made to throw il under the liable, and
knowing as l do that some of the state
ments made therein which have been
pointed out as lies, are true, l feel like
saying what | can in defense Of this com
muncation, and ask for il at the hands
OF this convention a careful consideration
l helped TO harvest and deliver to this
city some of the first grain that ever went
into the hold Of vessel in this harbor,
have carried grain up long fight of stairs
on my pack and poured il on top of high
bin. 1 well remember the first spout in
troduced into the side of building through
which we would empty our grain into a
weighing hopper. | remember the first
horse elevator erected in this city; the
first introduction of steam elevators for
handling grain from wagons; then the
erection OF hugh elevator for receiving
grain from cars and delivering it aboard
vessels 10 the river, each and every one of
which hailed with Joy
/ have hauled as nice winter wheat as
God ever allowed to grow upon our pra
ries, fifty FIVE miles to this city upon a
wagon, and sold it for thirty eight cents
per bushel, and delivered il by backing il
up stairs 10 the manner mentioned, there
by gaining, l think, realizing sense OF
what constitutes cheap produc ion and
transportation. ...----.
/ saw with delight the first train of cars
ever ran ont Of this city, and commenced
TO use the railroad as soon as ten miles
we're completed, and continued 10 do so by
unloading grain from our wagons into cars
in sacks, until the car reached our place,
when we erected grain elevators for raising
it from wagons and delivering on trucks in
car loads in bulk. We then adopted at
once aud continued to use every facility for
Transporting and handling grain, from the
establishing of the Chicago grain market
until the present time, and ought, and be-
lieve we do know what the usual charges
are for getting car OF grain through
this city iu the usual way. | have never
been a fault finder and don't wish to be
considered party with grievance"
and while / believe a majority of the
members Of the board OF trade and
middlemen Of this city to be honorable
men, and men with whom would trust all
the grain ever grew, expecting they
would dispose of it to the best advan-
tage and account TO me for every dollar,
yet there are some facts connected with
the transfer of grain through the city
which we cauOoi ignore. acd think ought
not TO exist. When the FIRST steam eleva
tors for receiving grain from cars were
y erected, they commenced handling and
storing grain for about one-halt the pres
ent price, and in naking careful test with
10000 bushels of corn, our shortage Was
but eleven bushels. Since tie combina.
ton made the advance OF charges, we
Ind by the same test shortage OF over
one hundred bushelsL. | had occasion to
receive through this city car of white
winter wheat last week, for milling pur.
poses, aud found it over eight bushels
short; received about the same time cal
load from Nebraska, and found it only one
bushel short.
AS to the charges Of twenty dollars pei