The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1889-11-07
ALLIANCE DAY At ATLANTA.
Col. L. L. Folks Ringing Words to the
Georgia Farmers.

ALLIANCE DAY At, ATLANTA.
Col. L. L. Folks Ringing Words to the
Georgia Farmers.
At the recent celebration of Alliance
day at the Atlanta Exposition Col. L, l..
Polk, editor of the Progressive Farmer,
Raleigh, N. G., was the orator. In the
course ofhis speech Col. Polk said:
Among the many seductive considers
lions presented in the cordial and cour-
teous letter of invitation from my gifted
friend, Mr.. Grady, was the fact that
this is the Alliance and Farmers day Of
your Exposition. This recognition of
the great agricultural interest is as just
and considerate as it is graceful and ap.
propriate, for in the South it represents
II per cent of our population and SS per
cent of the entire agricultural population
of the United States. 1t represents
Sl2,000,O00, in lands; 81, $780, 100000
in live stock; s5oo,ooo, 900 in implements
aud machinery, and $4,000, 100000 in the
annual products of its labor. 1t supplies
over 62 per cent of our domestic exports
and pays four 6fths Of the taxes of the
country. The entire human family is
dependent on it for raiment and daily
food. The great ptopelling power which
freights and drives our ponderous trains
to and fro over our $50, 900 miles Of rail.
way, which sends our ships of commerce
to the ports of the world, which keeps
in motion the vast machinery Of all our
industries, is the muscle of The strong and
brawny arm of the American farmer.
We rejoice at the wonderful and mar
vellous progress in the arts and sciences,
in transportation facilities, in mining and
manufacturing, in the growth Of towns
and cities, as developed within the past
two decades, and which was so graphical
ly described last week by your distin.
guished guest and speaker, Governor
Hill, of New York.
The growth of the country under
aggressive American enterprise has ex-
cited the wonder and admiration Of the
world. Steam and electricity, those twin
giants of power, have been harnessed to
the blazing chariot of American progress,
and have startled and staggered the
human mind by their marvellous achieve.
ments. The nations Of the earth now sit
down in family conference. Steel rails,
electricity, the steamship, the steam
power press and the locomotive have
revolutionized the industries and com.
merce of the world.
Twenty FIVE years ago here stood the
wreck of a country town. The genius
of ruin and desolation waved his black
sceptre in fendish triumph over these
hills and plains, while they trembled and
quivered under the giant tramp.of the
war.gods and the reverberation of thun-
deripg cannon. To day We behold with
pride your beautiful and fourishiDg city.
The grand rumbling of your trains,
the inspiring scream of whistles, the
ringing clatter of hammer and trowel,
the musical hum of looms and spindlea,
the swelling din Of workshops and fac.
tories, the tramp of our busy thousands,
the linkling ring ofhammer and anvil,
all join to swell the grand chorus of the
worlds happy song ofindustrial progress.
In all this, say, the farmers and patriots
ofthe land most heartily rejoice.
But in this rapid development of our
civilization forces have been evolved,
socially, industrially, morally and politi-
cally, which are dangerous alike 10 the
liberty of the citizen and to the life Of
the Republic, and the contemplation of
which must arouse serious apprehension,
if not alarm, with every rejecting patriot
in our land.
Mighty problems confront US and must
be net in spirit of fairness, of justice
and of equity. We stand in the crucial
erea of our free institutions, of our Re.
publican form of Government and of our
Christian civilization. equal rights to
all and special privileges to none" is one
of the fundamental principles of our
Government, and must be observed and
maintained if we would preserve q Vigor.
Gus and healtful condition in our econo.
mic systems, and perpetuate aud advance
our civilization. In our astounding
development and almost bewildering
progress let us strive against the domina-
tion Of one element over another. A
just and safe equipoise between the great
industries or material element of our
civilization must be maintained.
And on this day itmay be appropriate
and profitable for the thousands of repre-
sentatives of the great agricultural inter-
ests here assembled to take brief but
faithful survey ofthe situation. Retro.
gression in American agriculture means
national decline, national decay aud
ultimate and inevitable ruin.
The glory Of our civilization cannot
survive the neglect of our agriculture,
the power and grandeur of our country
cannot survive the degradation of the
American farmer.
Railroads, villages, towns, cities.
manufacturing enterprise in all its de-
partments, mercantile and speculative
enterprise and corporations, flourish and
prosper as never before in our history
and yet there are hundreds of thousands
of farmers-honest, economical farmers
who have titled good lands, have worked
hard and lived hard, and are in worse