The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1884-07-23
Farmers as Lawmakers.


to rule the country or TO control the policy
of the states Not 80. The language is
The Wdtchman's, not ours. What we dis
claimed was any participation in the foolish
talk about farmers ruling this country,
the world, etc., remarking, perhaps rather
unnecessarily, that we were willing that
people in other occupations should have
share. 1t is very narrow and absurd to
set up the occupation, whatever that may
be, as an exclusive qualification for office
but, if we were to consider so nonsensical
proposition as that all, or nearly all public
offices, should be filled with persons taken
from one class OF occupations, the country
could not be better served than by honest.
educated and intelligent farmers. 1t still
takes eternal vigilance to maintain the
equal rights of all the people, and we do
not quite do it, except in theory. In the
farming population this fundamental doc
trine of the republic has its strongest hold.
Horace Greeley used to say that the saliva
ton of the country was in the virtue and
honesty of the voters of the rural districts.
If we had fewer representatives of the
aristocracy of wealth in our legislative
bodies, particularly in the United States
senate, and more true representatives of
the rural districts, the rights of the mass
of the people would be better assured"
We have not preserved the article re-
ferred to, but we certainly did not intend
to mistake the position of the PhGnir
editor, in which, as we did state it, we en-
tirely concur. Even if the farmers did
still constitute majority of the voters,
we should strongly Oppose any effort to
form a " farmers party" with the view
of governing the country exclusively from
the point of view of the agricultural
interest, though it would be hard to do
this intelligently without fair consider
alton of other interests. What we do
favor Cor would, if there were any chance
of it) is that farmers should take an in.
telligent interest in all public questions,
and, by reading and study, endeavor to
form an independent opinion in regard to
the bearing of every public measure upon
their interests, both as farmers and as
citizens. This, however, cannot be gen.
orally the case among us until farmers, as
class, have better school training, and
more independence of thought AS it
now is, the question substantially resolves
itself into this I" What do the leaders of
my party think about this question "
and the farmer constituent is often good
deal like the character in one of Dickens
novels, who used to tell his wife, Betsey,
you tell him what think about it," On
some questions Of public policy Chat of
protection or free trade, for instance), the
wisest heads differ, but at any rate every
good citizen should read both sides and
judge for himself while upon many of
the pressing issues the choice of the good
and honest citizen should be plain enough.
Take civil.service reform, the control of
corporations, sound currency, the DISPOSE
tion of the public lands, governmental aid
to education, the regulation of the liquor
traffic, the prompt payment of the public
debt, fair and free elections, honesty and
economy of public administration, and
many other such questions. If the farm
ers generally would study these things so
as to be able to understand their bearings,
they never would be divided blindly in
about equal numbers between two parties.
On plain issues-so plain that even the
illiterate citizen has no chance to mistake
like that of union against disunion, or
some single question of railroad admins
tration greatly injurious to our interests
the farmers will promptly mass them.
selves on the right side, and by so doing
decide it. Now what we hope for in the
future is that farmers will in time become
sufficiently advanced in culture to be
equally influential on questions less ele
mentary, so as to throw their strength
promptly on the right side, and make Their
will effective. This watchfulness, with
the determination not to be blindly led
by party politicians, would be Thousand
times more effective for good than any
farmers party" which would very soor
become the prey of demagogues.
As a rule we do not think the farmers
have taken any particular interest in the
reform of the civil-service, and it is prob
able that only small minority really
know what is meant by the phrase. Doel
anybody believe that if the mass of tn,
voters were alive to, and informed about
this most important subject, any part,
convention would have the "cheek " t,
favor civilservice reform in its platform
and then nominate as candidates men VIII,
openly despise and reject it AS long a
this lack of intelligent interest in grea
public questions prevails in the com
munity, wire-pullers and demagogues rul
things to suit themselves, and the peopl
blindly cheer on the very men who ar
ready to sacrifice our most important in
terests to their own lust for power AM
plumber. Greeley said truly that 18th
salvation of the country is in the virtu
and honesty of the voters of the rural di'
tricts," but until to virtue and honesty W
add the capacity to judge with intell
gence on public questions, which can onl