The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1889-09-28
Profitable Ideas for Thinking Men,

Profitable Ideas for Thinking Men.
"Oul PARIAHs,' or "Among the Trsmps,''
BY Uncle Tim; published By Belford,
Clarke & Co., Chicago and New York.
This Is an exceedingly we'll written book
Of less that 200 pages, and treats ON some OF
the problems Of political economy. especially
such as come homo to the farmer who Is
obliged to sell his os's ct 10 to IL cents par
bushel. his corn :. 20 cents. his cattle ct "a
cents per pound, and SO on, while his Coffee
sugar, clothing, salt, lumber and oil the
common necessities Of life which he has to
buy, costs him the enormous prices OF war
times. It also offers wholesome food for
reflection TO the laborcr, skilled or otherwise,
and all who we're won't 10 earn their bread
BY lsboripg in western glass factories, WOODEN
mills and the like, who find these factories
perhaps permanently closed and themselves
turned adrift without employment and the
esunt wolf Of famine prowling about the
very doors Of their humble homes, and that
too ct the beginning Of winterl Its aim is to
attract the attention Of the tax burdened
masses who are daily, hourly and momentar-
lily robbed by q protective tariff tariff
which protects the rich only, and makers
trusts, not only possible but profitable to
those who are in them. Let as give few
extracts from this quaint little messenger Of
truth. The author begins by introducing
four tramps, not respectable company for
the trust bosses, the coal barons, the iron
mine Nsbob, the salt monarch or the lumber
duke and the railway kings, and yet by this
humble testimony, some one has been con-
victed of monster wrongs against the lsborer
and his family.
Slim Jim is one of the tramps; he says:
"Since the war every working man in the
land is compelled by law to work so many
hours every day for the benefit of certain
protected masters that couldn't thrive other
wise, they say. Whoever buys anything,
except, perhaps diamonds, silks, ottar Of
roses and such absolute necessaries Of life!
is required to contribute from 80 cents to
81 or even more for every dollars worth he
purchases to help some smart yankee to
make living
The more this sort Of slave works, the
richer the master; the richer the master, the
poorer the slave! II is unjust, but absolute.
ly true, capital builds factories, or shuts
them up. 1t employs hands to work. The
more they work, the more they produce;
the more they produce, the cheaper the
goods; the cheap r the goods the lower the
wages, till the work is suspended and the
workmen starve.
Jim continues: II am republican. Its
notions and principles comes nearest to mine,
Before the advent of that party there was
hardly single tramp in the lan1, siace then
we have grown and multiplied wonderfully.
The republican party, in every great emer-
gency, finds and uses measures Of necessity,
80 do we, the tramps. 1t is not over mind
full of the rights Of property, and we loyalty
follow It's example.
at lives sometimes upon plumber; so do
We.
at hvors subsidies, bounties and PEN
sions without limit; so are we, but it don Z
90 far enough. Not only sailors and soldiers
but every poor man and every tramp ought
to be pensioned. Do you suppose we created
the Grand Army for nothing? Since we are
all on the take, pray is soldier or sailor
truly better or more useful than tramp, or
q farmer, butcher, a baker, or any other
man? Is the man that shoots his fellow
men, eats and destroys, serving his coun-
try better than he that tolls and produces,
creates and preserves food, provisions, ami
mails. and pays the taxes? While he that
is toiling to feed, clothe, house and educate
the whole nation and also to earn those
eighty millions Of dollars every year, may be
manned for life, killed by machinery, rail-
way accident, and nobody dreams Of giving
him or his q pension.
GAS true republican, am in favor Of
high tariff, heavy taxes upon all kinds Of
property, the more the merrier. And We
tramps agree with our party, and the rspub-
licsn senstor'who said: III had my way
about It l would put the manufacturers Of
Pennsylvania under the fire and fry the fat
out of them Protective tariffs we're made
for their benefit by the republican party and
they must stand by u.s.
Pat Shorty, another tramp, was a coal
miner IN Pennsylvania. lie tells how the
coal barons reduced bis wages at first 10 per
cents, followed by four other reductions,
till his family starved to death and at last
received in midwinter, one dellar and fifteen
cents per day, all for protection to the Amer.
lean laborer. He shows how monopoies
cause strikes, lockouts, starvation and anar-
chism. When the Lehigh Valley coal kings
had reduced the wages of their old miners to
$l.l5 they made further reduction and