The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1886-03-05
Public Corruption.

The perplexing question in regard
to the bottomless chasm through which
the financial current flows, dividing in
its course the populace into two une-
quail classes, and finally depositing its
contents into the gulf of favored treas
ury vaults, has agitated the mind OF
the unfortunate classes for many years.
Reform has been the battle cry in every
campaign, but suffering and want have
not been alleviated Is there no per
manent redress for the aggrievanees OF
the destitute Let echo answer. With
time, events and circumstances have
followed long trains IF corruption that
sapped the bone and sinew of the land
Labor and toll can no longer be re-
warded with honest, remunerative
compensation. Starving millions can
only look with vacant stare over desert
wastes of heretofore rich fields, abound
ing with treasures in which their hearts
rejoice with hope and gladness. Cor
ruption has CLEANED all their fruits and
blasted their future prospects Collos-
sal fortunes have sprung up as it were
ia a single night, mushroom like, in
the fertile field of boosted liberty which
proud Americans honor as the ''laud of
the brave and the home of the free"
Milllonaires have multiplied on every
hand. Does all this result from honest
endeavsr Does all this wealth ac.
cumulate TO the welfare of the people ?
Whence are the sources and channels
through which "mammon" flows into
boarding treasures Whose great
losses are these great gains :? If the
circulating medium (money) is the
blood of the body Financial system),
how could these leeches and suckers
fasten on its vitals and suck the very
life out of it Perhaps these questions
are more easily esked than answered.
1t is no doubt, justly charged that lob
bies infest Washington who through
constant importantly and bribes secure
immense appropriations for the benefit
of jobbers in subsidies without stint, in
all departments of the government.
But all this most directly affects the
general government in the depletion of
the public treasury, and the people are
only affected incidentally through the
luxuries. The public domain has been
bartered away to railroad monopolies
without proper returns or compcnsa-
ton, but the people have not suffered
thus far from that source. 1t is true
that all these things belong to the pub
lie, and though robbed and stolen, thus
far, the present distress and depression
have not resulted therefrom. 1t seems
to me that there are other causes which
most directly and effectually effect the
people.
In 1862 there were 3217 patents
granted as per report OF the commits
sioner of patents, and the grand total
to end of that year was 372G3 since
which time we had no report. Allow
ing each year for the last "a years or
since 1862, ,hcre have been no less
than ll4370 patents granted in this
country. 1t does seem that the Patent
Office Department has brought about
this state of affairs as much, or more
than any other cause, and probably is
the foundation of all consequential cor
ruption. Perhaps no department is so
much besieged as the Patent Office De
partment. If you examine every form
aud variety of ingeniously constructed
labor saving machinery, you will find
with every one follows an obvious cum
ningly devised conspiracy to rob labor
of its just dues. Many patentees have
formed syndicates and monopolies
whose power is greater than that of
the common populaoe-hence many are
designated money kings. When we
consider the exorbitant prices farmers
have paid for patent mowers, reapers,
drills and all other impliments in pro-
portion to their actual cost-the same
may be said of the sewing machine
that enters nearly every household, and
of the thousands of other patents
adapted to all known uses, most of
which have displaced certain number
of laborers, then wonder where the
peoples money has gone. Now be-
hold the unparalleled line between the
common populace and the money aris-
tocracy, The people have poured their
money into their laps like water. We
assert without fear of successful con-
tradicticn that patent rights have
taxed, swindled and robbed the people
out of thousands of millions, not in.
cidentally, but by direct extortion from
the individual whole. We believe that
reform in this department is paramount
to all other reforms. Talk of equal
rights so long as the common people
are barred against their rights through
the patent Office department Talk OF
a great country so long as monopoly
employs patent labor and locks the
shops against suffering want. Talk of
the great American ASYLUM for the
oppressed of all nations so long as
teeming millions of her own noble sons
are destitute and without renumerative
employment. j.