Daily tobacco leaf-chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1890-1895, 1890-03-18
KANSAS FARMERS
Address an Open Letter to Their
Delegation in Congress
Demanding Legislation for
Their Relief,

And Showing the Dire state OF Affairs of
the Agricultural Interests Of the state.
Hundreds of Farms of Industrious
Farmers Now in the Hands of Unseru-
,..Ous Capitalists.
rorEKA, Kan, March 1S. The Farm
ers Alliance has addressed an open let
ter to the Kansas delegation in CON
gress, demanding the legislation for the
relief of the agricultural interests of the
state. The letter SAYS:
1--WE call attention to the fact that q
single law firm in one city in southern
Kansas now has the contract for the
foreclosure of 1900 mortgages, This
means 1,SU0 homesteads transferred
from the hands of so many industrious
families to the hands of capitalists,
either domestic or foreign.
"The foreclosure Of these mortgages is
in accordance with a preconceived pur-
pose to gain possession of these farms,
and people them with q more servile
tenantry imported from foreign lands
for this especial purpose. Foreclosure
and evictions are taking place in very
many parts of the state, and we need
not 90 all the way to Europe to witness
scenes of cruelty in matters of this kind
All over the state the homes of our peo-
pie are imperiled. They are struggling
against adverse circumstances, and
almost against hope to sustain them
selves until relief shall come,
THE people believe that these condi-
tio1s are largely due to vicious legisla-
ton. They have been promised by each
of the political parties that something
would be done for their relief, but both
parties have been tried and both have
thus far failed even to attempt any
measure contemplating a betterment of
the condition of the industrial masses
They have seen that while they have
been compelled to sacrifice their products
in many instances absolutely be-
low cost Of production, in order to pro
cure the common necessities of life, and
i'll the effort, in many cases unsuccessful,
to keep the sheriff from invading their
homes, their representatives in congress
are engaged in the consideration of
every imaginable question except such
questions as contemplated relief to the
distress of their constituents There are
measures which the farmers demand
shall have immediate attention. These
relate to questions of money, of trans
portation. and of the ownership of Amer
lean lands
The letter then goes on to say: "The
distress OF the people is crying aloud for
relief. They believe that very many of
the questions that are receiving the at
tention of congress are far less urgent
than those upon which the safety of
their homes and the welfare of their
families depend. They believe that the
white citizens of Kansas have some
rights as well as the colored citizens Of
the south. They believe that fallen
heroes, both white and black, in past
struggles for liberty and the perpetuity
of our institutions can afford to wait for
one moment until the rights of living
heroes in the present struggle for Amer
ican homes receive some recognition by
the men who have been chosen to repre-
sent them in congress Behind these
demands are more than 100000 ballots
in the state of Kansas, and the time is
coming and is not far distant when leg
islators will heed the voice Of their con-
stituents"