The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1890-12-04
What farmers Desire.

TIE new political force which has be. |
slowed victory upon the Democrats in
several Western States claims to control
about fifty memhersof the next House
While casting less than 100000 votes in
Western States tor separate tickets 1t
has shown possibilities of greater power
in the future, so that men of all parties
seek to know what this body of voters
most strongly desire. Published plat
forms never make this clear, They show
what the the trainers think voters will
approve, and therefore include many
points about which the organized BODY
really care little or nothing. To deter
mine which of dozen resolutions ex-
presses the especial purpose OF the
organization, and which are merely
formal and perfunctory, or intended as
bait to catch voters, is often difficult
Neither can the statements OF news
papers or prominent men in the differ
ent States be always relied upon, first,
because these st tements are also in
tended to attract voters, and second,
because most of the writers or speakers
have their private purposes, which they
are anxious to make prominent, and
thus to force upon the organization.
The official papers and utterances OF
the Farmers Alliance set forth with
earnestness certain objects which the
farmers apparently have at heart. These
are prohibition of option trading, free
coinage of silver and Treasury loans on
farm lands. By the issue of paper cur.
rency it is claimed that the Treasury
can lend money to farmers at low rate
of interest, and enable them to escape
from the burden of mortgage indebted
ness. Silver coinage is expected to raise
the prices of farm products by making
money plenty, and if the dollar cesses
to be worth more than 80 or 80 cents in
gold, still it will pay off mortgages, 80
that thousand bushels of wheat at q
silver dollar per bushel may clear off q
debt where thousand bushels at 80
cents in gold would fail. Hence there
are some Western farmers who want
free coinage all the more because they
are told that it will make the dollar
worth no more than 80 cents in gold,
while many others simply disbelieve
that any separation between gold and
silver coinage is possible.
The prohibition of gambling in grain
and other products has long been
generally desired by the farmers OF the
West, who believe that speculators are
thereby enabled to control prices to the
disadvantage of the consumers. An act
to prohibit option trading was passed
years ago by the Illinois Legislature
but has never been effectually enforced
and one great cause OF dissatisfaction
among Western farmers is that public
officials have not been willing or able to
enforce it. The farmer believes thai
this is because the officials, or the party
they represent, will not offend the
traders in cities. Hence there is strong
hope of legislation by the United States
which farmers believe United States
officials can be brought to enforce. A
bill of that nature was pending in the
last Congress, and would probably have
passed if other measures had not crowd
ed it aside. Atthe coming session it will
. doubtless be pressed with earnestness
No mention has been made OF the
wishes of the Farmers Alliance regard
ing the tariff, though most of the pub
lished platforms include more or less
distinct declaration that duties on manu-
factured products should be reduced
1t is impossible to say how far this ii
merely the the result of Democratic
scheming to use the organization as
tool. Some newspapers, which search
anxiously for evidence of popular ap
proval of their position, have been de-
claring for years that the farmers o.
Kansas, Minnesota and Iowa were
hostile to protection. But on a peculiar
ly distinct protective platform, and with
frequent speeches strongly emphasizing
his attachment to the protective policy
President Harrison received $4,000 ma.
iority in Kansas, $4,000 in Minnesota
and 80, 900 in Iowa. 1t will need some.
thing besides the assertions of free trade
journals to make it certain that the
farmers who voted for Harrison and pro-
lection in 1888 are now especially Of
Tended by tariff which puts higher
protective duties on wool and other farm
products. When they come to choose
between those duties with free sugar
and Democratic tariff which means
free wool and taxed sugar, the decision
of the farmers may not be what Fret
Traders expect.-N. Y. Tribune.
PRICKLY POINTS.