The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1889-08-20

VerY much TO Cu0 SUAOnSOh O1' TO-
tional organization and>wiH enable it
to accomplish work that it has been
too weak to do heretofore. I believe
other farmers and laborers' organiza.
tons will Join us at our next national
meeting at st. Louis, and also a better
understanding will be arrived at with
other labor organizations. These
organizations we're brought into exis,
tence by monopoly and as long as mo-
nopoly shapes our laws to rob the PEG,
ple the war must go on until monopoly
is dethroned or the people crushed.
ALLIANCE DEMANDS.
The "demands" made at our last
meeting for certain legislation have not
been granted, andsI would respectful
ly and earnestly recommend that you
determine at this meeting, to either
abandon making political demands or
take such action as will ensure your
demands being complied with. If
you resolve on the latter course I
suggest that hereafter all demands be
submitted to the Sub-Alliances for rat
ifcation and when three fourths of the
Sub-AlIiances ratify a demand, have
your President issue a proclamation
setting it forth as the demand of the
State Alliance. The discussion in the
Sub-Alliances will inform the mem,
bers as to the necessity and propriety
of the demands, and the members
knowing that they made the demands
will see that they are enforced and
then "taffy" and Glove" for the
farmers and laborers will give way
for measures of real benefit. I would
also suggest that you send no petitions
after a demand has been made. De
mands and petitions are incompatible.
If we r to beg let us do it IN the
approved style, and not demand one
moment and beg the next.
ALLIANCE CHARTER.
With the approval of your Execu-
tive Committee [ had a charter pre-.
pared incorporating the State ALI
ance and each county and Sub-Alli-
ance provided only those Alliances
that should accept it should be incor-
porated.) 1t is a liberal charter and
[ commend it to your favorable con
sideration. One very important e c
ton of the charter was stricken out
by the Senate, and I will bring it to
your attention at another time. This
action of the Senate and the contempt
with which it treated your demands,
and petitions clearly shows that it was
hostile to us. We had a few friends
there and they deserve our thanks.
An inspection of the Senate journals
will show you who were for us and
who against us. ~
STATE BUSINESS AGENCY.
The State Business Agency has not
proved the success we anticipated and
l urge you to give this department
every thing you can to make it what
it oughtto be. 1t is the right arm of
the Alliance, and if you do nothing
else at this meeting but perfect this
department you will deserve well of
the Alliance. Its failure to do what
is expected of it creates a desire for
cooperative stores. This is to be re-
GREETED, for cooperative stores haYe
no place in the plan of the Alliance.
The Alliance was brought into exis-
tence to protect the agricultural and
laboring classes against monopoly
not to make merchants-and it's
agency system is the only one I have
ever seen that suits the present con
dition of the farmers and laborers of
our country. Let US keep it within
its sphere and not form entangling
alliances that will effect our credit
and weaken our order.
THE LECTURERS DEPARTMENT.
The strength of the Alliance con-
sists in the individual intelligence of
its membership. This fact makes the
Lecturers department of more i'm
portance than any of the others. l
recommend that you give the Lee
turer more assistants and define their
duties SO they (the lecturer and as
sistants) alone will be held response
BILE for their work. They should be
made the authorized agents of our
National and State Organs and for
such other Alliance literature as will
benefit the order. If we can get our
membership to read our paper, and
other literature, to keep them in
formed of our progress, to better
understand our purposes, we will be
able to accomplish whatever we
undertake-without it, we will fail,
for no people can act together
without understanding the questions
that confront them and the measures
demanded for their relief. An in
telligent membership is more to be
desired than numbers, for open enc
mics r few in comparison to those
of the advisory family" many of
-rh@~o 49, ~-.-z - Ill.