The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1890-06-01
SEEKING
INFORMATION.
Carlisle CritiCizeS a Farmers
Alliance Scheme.
The Senator Expresses His Views 10 a
Southern Democrat.
The Snb- Treasury and Warehouse Plan
Opposed as Being Likely to In
crease Taxation.
Special by the California Associated Press.

WASHINGTON, May Ex-senator Carlisle
has written letter to member of the
Farmers Alliance of Alabama He says:
Your favor stating that you are men,
ber of the Farmers Alliance of Alabama,
and requesting me TO give my views
ON the "Sub-Treasury' plan, was duly
received. You state that you have
been a Democrat for fifty years and you and
your associates favor equal justice to all
and special fayors to none This is sound
Democratic doctrine, and if it had
been strictly adhered to in Congress
during the last quarter Of century, the
evils of which the farmers and other classes
of our people justly complain would have
been avoided and the whole country would
now be prosperous and contented.
CONGRESS ATTACKED.
But unfortunately the paternal theory of
government, which owes its origin in this
country to the advocates of the present
system of taxation, and which makes
unjust discrimination against part of
the people for the purpose of in
creasing the profits OF another part,
has been SO frequently embodied in our
legislation during the last 25 years that
our people, instead of recognizing their
common interests in the general welfare Of
the country, have been divided into war
ring classes, each striving to secure for it
self some peculiar advantages at the ex-
pense of all the others.
THE PREVAILING THEORY.
The prevailing theory is that the individ-
ual citizen must not rely on his own efforts
in the transaction of his own private busi-
ness, but he has the right to appeal to the
Government for financial assistance in
every emergency, forgetting that the Gov
ernment has not and never can have any
money except what is realized by taxation
in some form upon the people Of the United
States.
The farmers of the country have been
taxed so long for the benefit of other classes
and have seen so much legislation for the
aggrand iZement Of corporations and syndi-
Gates that their patience is exhausted,
time being at least. to abolish the
system which has oppre ssed and
despoiled the greatest industrial interest of
the country, they are now demanding that
the very policy which they have heretofore
denounced as unjust and ruinous shall be
applied to them, or rather part Of them, for
no scheme has yet been suggested that
would operate alike upon all farmers.
OPPRESSED AND DEsPoILED.
That they have been oppressed and de-
spoiled by unjust legislation must be ad-
mitted by all who have given any attention
to the subject, and when they see measures
favorably reported to Congress to
tax them still further for the purpose
OF raising money to pay subsidies ana b0un-
ties TO wealthy steamship corporations and
to the producers of sugar and silk, which
tt,a raoo ir,r, atto of our 1N-
nestle products, it is not at all strange they
should become more dissatisfied than ever
and more urgent in their demands for re-
lief.
But no evil can be corrected, no wrong
can be righted by increasing Its magnitude
and extending the scope of its operations.
There is but one effectual remedy for the
evil which undoubtedly exists, and that is
to reverse the policy which produced it,
BILLS FOR RELIEF.
The demands made by the farmers in
some parts of the country have been formu-
.t;;s-.e9. ard at their request bills have been
presented iSa Congress which many of them
think will afforuNthe necessary relief. l
need not undertake to>-State all the details of
these plans, for whateVoec partlcular pro-
visions or measures they may be .estsAShoP<
scheme in its general form and design "a
vicious in principle, and il adopted would
prove in practice ruinous to every interest
it Is intended to benefit
AN IMPRACTICABLE PLAN.
The plan to which you allude in your
letter is to establish "sub-treaSuries" and
erect public warehouses in every county in
the United States which produces and
sells annually more than $500, 900 worth
of wheat, corn, oats, cotton and
tobacco and permit the owners of these
products, whether farmers or not, to de-
posit them in the warehouses and receive
from the Government in Treasury notes, to
be issued expressly for that purpose, so per
cent of the market value of the products.
WOULD INCREASE THE BURDEN.
Carlisle then says the compensation of so
many warehouse subtreasury" officers,
and the appropriation Of many million
dollars for buildings. would have to be
derived by Government taxation. The
farmers themselves, under the present
system, would have to pay much more than
their share. de says not many farmers
will be willing to incur the expense of
transporting products to such warehouses
unless they are in debt and
absolutely need the money which
the Government is to advance
and il they are in that unfortunate con-
dition, from what source will they after
ward acquire the means to redeem their
products by returning the money and in
terest aud paying the warehouse charges?
He argues that the plan would incur the
danger of the initiation of currency as soon
as the farmers deposited their products.
but the very moment they withdrew their
products there would follow dangerous
contraction of currency.
BUSINESS DISTURBED.
The entire business of the country would
be thrown into the most profound con-
fusion twice yearly, and some would be
bankrupted while others would be en-
richcd. 1t would. no doubt, though, be a
great boon to speculators. Farmers cannot
combine to keep prices up, because they are
too widely scattered. The ''sub-treasury"
plan would be the longest step yet taken to
consolidate power into the hands of the
Federal Government. The fundamental
propositions of the Democratic party can
not be abandoned without repudiating the
distinction between constitutional govern
ments and paternal despotsm.
TIE TARIFF.
Tha Conata E;napno r,mvitfaa Gtrun r1iuo