The Labor enquirer., 1883-03-31
Tbe Fundamental Evil.

change in government and society are
two articles in the last number of the
North American Review. The, articles
referred to are by Mr.. George. on the
v enalitv of voters and elections, and by
Mr.. George NJ. Julian, on the enormous
rapine of the great railroads and their
incredible injustice and cruelty.
For us to follow Mr. Julian through
the corruptionS and the cruelties pe"pe-
trated by the great undamnables would
be an ugly and interminable task. 1t is
not pleasant sight to see corporation
and court and congress playing into one
another's hands, to divide among them
selves-frst, the present earnings Of the
people in the shape Of United States
bonds, and second, the patrimOny-the
inheritance of ourselves and our pos
terity.
The alternate sections all along the
roads, from twenty to one hundred and
twenty miles wide; the patents issued,
vacated and doubtful; the settler yainIy
fighting for his home reclaimed twenty
wears before under grant from the United
States, and now "reserved' from him
by the ruffian railroads; the evictiOns-
the slaughter even Of the eviCted, which
last Mr.. Julian does not notice; the Pa
ciiC robbery and the Santa Fe grab; the
California outrage and all over the en-
tire lines; what Judge. Davis and the
Supreme court said and what 'the De-
partment" did in direct opposition to
them; the status of old Mexican grants;
the suits and the dismisSals and the in
IDENTITIES and the lands patented before
the roads commenced; the number Of
harpies that from all quarters flew down
upon the lands; the aggregating up Of
20O,OOO,OOO of acres; the enormous. swim
dies of first mortgages made into second;
the endless difficulties in front Of the
settlers; the "opening to cultivation
changed into the shutting off of Cultiya,
ton, except on payment or mortgage Of
Sc for unimproyed to $50 an acre for the
improved homestead-and Mr.. Julian
here sticks in a fact appalling, almost in
credible in its magnitude, cruelty and
yilIainy: THE rights Of settlers are de-
MED The law is openly dehed, and
thousands Of settlers have lost their lands
and imDrovements"-th homes lost,
their families scattered. This last sen
tence of Mr. Julian's congresses into it
all that is necessary for us to know, and
forces on us the question of what We are
going to do about it. What must be
done? Must-or the republic is lost.
After so searchingly enumerating the
gigantic frauds that have taken posses
sion of the peoples money and the peO-
pies inheritance, and the ruthless, muir
derous, mad cruelties of those undamn-
able men, Mr.. Julian comes to that ever
recurring question, "What are you going
to do about it," and this is his answer
or his no answer-to it;
"What is wanted, says Mr.. Julian, lis
a thorough reorganization Of the ma
chinery and working force in the Land
Department. such addition to that force
as shall be adequate to the work to be
performed, and such compensation as
will bring into the service the highest
grade Of capacity and integrity"
But how he is to discriminate and find
out this Integrity" and how it would
be able to set aside the evil laws Of con-
greSs and the foul decisions of the courts
he makes no attempt to tell US. His
grave statement of "what is wanted, ," how
much grasp has it, how much cure does
it carry with it? How much is it worth?
1t is almost diScouraging to find a man
Of such research, penetration, aye, and
devotion to the right (which We know
ne isl as Mr.. Julian presenting to our
thought such lame and impotent con-
clusion"
What them There the corporation
hydra stands a8traddIe over the lands
with his ten thousand legs stuck into the
soil in all directions. How are We to get
him off? The work to be done is tc
tumble him off, but We must proceed tC
the work cooIIy, carefully, and examine
every inch of the ground as we pro
ceed
Years ago Abram S. Hewitt thus an
nounced the presence of their vanguard
; and the approach of their main body