The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-08-19


That all the great woes of our country have
come because Of imported labor That America
ought never to be lazarh house for the reeep-
ton of the pauper labor Of other countries sent
here through governmental aid, or brought here
under contract by capital, for the purpose of de-
basing American workingmen and women, by
competing with them through imported or con-
vict labor.
That labor has right to demand a just share
of the profits of its own production
That the future of the country unites with the
laboring men in demanding a liberal support by
the United States of common-school education
IN the States 50 that all citizens shall be sur
fciently instructed in their duties as freemen
and electors.
All of which, one after another, were voted
down l also presented resolution declaring
that the legaltender currency, under the decls-
ion of the Supreme Court was now the constltu-
tional currency of the country, and should not
be in terfered with; and that business interests
should not be disturbed by financial discussion
That, also, was voted down in the committee,
and q resolution passed that the Democracy were
in favor of honest money" This was intended
to be, and is an insult to every friend of consti
tutional currency, and was presented by one of
the most narrow minded of capitalists.
/ also offered a resolution that all monopolies,
as they tend to make two classes, the very rich
and the very poor were hurtful to the people of
the republic Voted down.
also offered resolution that the agents of
the government, whether State or national, in
servants of the people, and should be regulated
by the power that created them.
This resolution seemed necessary because the
contrary had lately been enunciated from a high
source as proposition of constitutional law, to
which cannot agree.
That was voted down.
Another resolution that it was the duty of
Congress TO provide by law that railroads should
not make discriminating rates SO as to enhance
the price of the necessaries of life between the
producer and consumer.
That suffered the same fate
Again, a resolution declaring the public lands
to be the heritage of the people, and that they
ought to be held in small quantities for that
purpose only, and another resolution that public
lands were held in trust by the government for
those who became citizens of the United States,
and ought not to be permitted to be monopolized
in large areas by corporations and the aristoc-
racy of Europe.
Both voted down
Again, a resolution that the United States
will not permit a ship-canal to be built across
the Isthmus of Panama without its consent,
except that it will exercise the right to take
possession of it whenever the necessity of the
country demands.
That, too, was voted down.
also offered resolution that the various
offices of the government belong to the people
thereof, and that frequent changes of federal
officials were necessary to counterfeit the grow
ing aristocratic tendencies to life office, well
as for the discovery and punishment of frauds
ana 0mDeZZlemenGS OF puDlc money.
This was voted down.
Again, | offered, in subcommittee resolutions
defining the duty of the United States to pro
tect every citizen everywhere, and also that no
American citizen should be tried for any act
done in this country except under its own laws,
and on it's own soil, and that there was no power
in the government to send citizen elsewhere to
be tried therefor.
These resolutions were voted down in the sub.
committee but when offered in the general
/ hn in fhn nile
deemed by that committee to be substantial
equivalent they were adopted although there
were some namby- PANTY statements reported
by the subcommittee on the same subject.
This will account, to those curious in such
matters for two sets of resolutions upon the
same subject in the platform, to which l call at
tention and designate for convenience as the
American" and the English" resolutions as to
the rights of American citizens to protection by
their government.
1 These declarations of principles seem to cover
most of the live questions in politics in which
the people are interested.
FULL CONSIDERATION NOT PERMITTED
Through the courtesy of the chairman of the
committee and by personal intercession, OBJ
tanned the boon of thirty minutes to present and
discuss charter of the peoples rights, at an
hour crowding on midnight, but before it could
be printed and laid before the convention, and
with the refusal of the convention to adjourn to
the morning before vote was taken upon them,
so eager were the members to get at their work
of predestined nomination.
And such convention has been called a delib-
erative body!
It's true that it spent DAYS upon the unit rule.
which required mans vote to be cast against
his conscience and Judgment in spite Of his pro-
test by others, and days IN trying to settle the
internal dissensions of the machine politics of q
single State; but it could give thirty minutes
e..
eminent of the Nation. therefore could sub
stantially present but one plank, the most i'm
portant of all, the protection of the American
laborer and producer without which, in my
Judgment, there can be no prosperity to this
country
And this was voted down in the convention
by vote of 1924 to 971
felt it but right to warn the convention,
however unimportant such warning might seem,
of the course of my duty if such a vote was
passed against the working men and women of
the country, for whose welfare it was well known
had stood from my earliest manhood. The
notice was in this emphatic language, IF you
refuse to stand by the working men, God help
you, cannot" In this there was no mistake
Mr. Watterson of Kentucky, who followed me,
took warning, saying the party would look to
God for help but the Scripture saith, ''the
prayer Of the wicked availeth not 1t was due
to myself not to adopt the course which certain
pure minded and upright and highly moral pol
iticians deem it proper to pursue, take part in
the proceedings of convention to its end, and
then, without giving any notice to anybody,
and without protesting, refuse to support its
doings.
have thus given suceinct as it must be-
but faithful account of my connection with the
Chicago convention and its action on the mat
ters which was charged to present to it by the
National Greenback Labor party, the Antimo-
nopoly organization, and the Democracy of Mas
sachusetts
PLATFORM ONE OF ExPEDIENTs.
will not omit the fact that in the platform
adopted there were certain sweet phrases used
toward the foreign-born citizens. There were
certain honeyed words over and over repeated,
in order that their repetition might seem like
earnest advocacy put in favor Of labor, and upon
some Of the topics of our platform. But / do