The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1882-09-13
REV. DR.. T. DEWITT TALMAGE
ON MONOPOLY.
An Ipcisive Sermon Against Grow
ing Abuse.

Iannounce as my text this, from Isaiah
lxii 41-eThy land shall be married" /"
Now, since our Republic, our land is L
be married, it is well to inspect the lover
who court her, propose to name some o
the suitors who are claiming the hand o
this Republic. In the first place there is
| greedy, all-grasping monster who comes as
suitor, seeking the hand of this Republic
and that monster is mdDopoly. His sceptrt
is made of the iron of the rail track and the
| iron of telegraphy. He does everything for
his own advantage and for the rOhbery OF
| the people. Things have gone on of on bad
to worse, until in the three Legislatures of
New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania
for the most part monopoly decides every
thing. If monopoly favors a law it is
passed if monopoly opposes law it is
rejected. Monopoly stands in the railroad
depot putting into its pockets in one
year 5000, ,000,000 in excess of all rea-
sonable charges for service. Monopoly
holds in its one hand, the steam power
Of locomotion, and 10 the other the electric
ity of swift communication.
Monopoly has the Republican party in
one pocket and the Democratic party in the
other. Monopoly decides nominations and
elections-city elections, State elections,
national elections. With brides it takes
the votes of legislators, Agiving them free
passes, giving appointments to needy rela-
tiFes of lucrative positions, employing them
az attorneys if they are lawyers, carrying
their goods at a large percentage less if they
are merchants, and if it finds a case very
stubborn as well as very important, puts
down before him the hard cash of bribery
LEGISLATURE BOUGHT OUTRIGHT.
But monopoly is not so easily caught now
and captured and arrested as when DUR
ing the term of Mr.. Buchanan, the Legisla-
ture Committee in one Of our States ex-
plored the manner in which certain rail- |
way company had obtained donation of |
public land. 1t was found out that thirteen |
of the Senators of that State received $175,- |
600 among them, sixty members of the |
Legislature of that State received between |
$4,000 and $4,000 each, the Governor of /
that State received $4,000, his clerk re
ceived $4,000, the Lieutenant Governor re-
ceived $4,000, while $4,000 were divided
among the lobby agents. That thing on a
arger or smaller scale is all the time going
IN in some of the States of the Union, but
t is not so easy laundering as it used to be,
.nd therefore not so easily exposed and ar
ested. tell you that the overshadowing
.urse of the United States to-day is monop. E
,y. 1t puts its hand on every bushel Of
wheat, upon every sack oil salt, upon every
on Of coal, and every man, woman and
hid in the United States feels the touch of
hat moneyed despotism. rejoice that I
n twenty-four States of the Union already :
leagues have been established. !
rod speed them in the work of liberation
wish this question might be the question |
tbn II 1Io I
ween this and that time we can compel the t
olitical parties to recognize it in their O
latforms. | have nothing to say against /
lpltalists. i man has q right to make all c
le money he can make honestly.
| have nothing TO say against corpora
ons as such. Without theIe no great en-
,rprise would be possible; but what / do h
y is that the same principles are to be 4
1plied to capitalists and corporations that D
re applied to the poorest man and the n
ainest laborer. What is wrong for me is ;,
rong for the Vanderbilts and the Goulds :
I'D the elevated railway companies of New ,,
ork and Brooklyn. Monopoly in Eng u
md has ground hundreds of thousands of a.
ar best people into semi-starvation, and in "
eland has driven multitudinous tenants G
most to madness, and in the United States q
opposes to take the wealth of fifty or sixty :;
illions of people and put it in few silken y
allets. Monopoly, brazen faced, iron a
lgered, vultured hearted monopoly, pro- n
,ses his hand, offers his hand to this Re fr
lblic. Let the millions of the people h
orth, South, East and West-forbid the fc
ms of that marriage, forbid them at the r
Hot box, forbid them by great organiza- l
Dns, forbid them by the overwhelming =
ntiment OF an outraged nation, forbid them II
the protest of the Church of God, forbid W
EN- by the prayer to high heaven, that h
erod shall not have this Abigail Il
T. DEWITT TALMAGE, D. D. a,