The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1890-03-20
.FONDLING THE FARMER.
Voorhees, Pictures the Alleged
Depression in Agriculture
IN Observation-Disclosures A
iic Alludcs to tho Carnegie Banquet
ns a Parallel with Bclshazzur's '
Fcnst-liis rhetorical ,Plow a
Strikes n Stump.

Strikes n Stump.
WASHINGTON, D. O., March 19.-vic'
President Morton having returned to th,
city after two weeks absence. occupied
the chair ut the opening Of to.day's ses
sion OF the Senate. The resolution OF
fered by Mr.. Voorhees, last Monday, a.
to agricultural depression, was taken u1
and Mr.. Voorhees, addressed tho Senate
in relation to 1t. He spoke Of the deep
strong current OF anxiety, discomfort and
alarm prevailing in the farming commu
mites, and said that he proposed to aid
them In tue inquiry as to the causes ol
the existing depression.
II was now nearly thirty years since
the close OF terrible war had given "a
unhallowcd avarico m opportunity Ia
prey upon the self sacrificing patriots o!
tho country, such rs had never before
been presented to the basest passions
and tho most sordid and odious vice.
The measures then resorted to for the
taxation OF one class Of citizens and for
the entrenchment Of another class had
been the legislation by which the burden
OF tho public debt had been doubled, sil.
yer demonetized and u high protective
tariff established. lie characterized
the protective tariff as curse
and not n blessing. Ho was
dealing not with theory but with Il
condition which even 4 blind man
could look at and draw from it IN uner.
ring conclusion. The farmers OF the
United States did not receive on an aver.
age more than 10 cents bnshel for their
corn, 30 cents for their wheat and from
. to 8 cents pound for their hogs. The
time would come, Mt no distant day,
when tho farmer would look on the
proposition to tax him and his wife and
for the protection aud benetit
OF other people besides himself, as he
would look on law OF Congress to es.
tablish the army worm and weeyil on
his wheat, to infect his cattle with mur-
ran and his hogs with cholera.
TIE HOME MARKET.
Every pretence Of home market for
tho farmer was fraud, and every pre-
tence OF taxing wheat and oats aud po.
tatoes for his benefit was cheat and a
sham. 1t was notorious and selkevi-
dent truth that the tariff, as it now stood,
increased the farmers expense account
from 35 to 100 per cent on every imple.
ment of industry with which he toiled,
and last year binding twine had been en-
hanced to is cents pound by the tariff
and twine trust.
He did not believe that the hands of
the farmer would hold Republican
ticket at the next Presidential election.
He declared that, not only had there
been no increase in the value OF land for
the last quarter OF century, but there
had been an absolute loss OF 80 per cent.
II the improved farm lands Of the United
States were put to sale to-day, under the
most favorable circumstances, they would
not, he said, on a general average, rea|-
ize more than two.thirds of what their
value had been twenty-five years ago.
In the face Of such appalling facts who
he asked, would eulogize the workings
and results Of a system Of tariff protection
which had for q continuous term OF
twenty-eight years accomplished moth
ing save the concentration and amass.
ment OF wealth in the hands of few
protected people. He went on to speak
ofthe recent Carnegie banquet in Wash.
ington, reading some Of the newspaper
headlines, such as Like Old Lucullus.' u
Gorgeous dinner that outrivaled an
ancient Roman feast" .,-.J -
A BIBLlcAL REMINDER.
That banquet brought to his mind tha,
other historical feast which Relshazzar
the King, gave to thousand 6i his lorle
and when tho King saw the fingers OF {
mans handwrite on walls oyer against
the candlestick, meme, meme, iekel ,iphar
sin, his earnest prayer and belief was
that the handwriting on the wall Of tht
Carnegie banquet would presage tht
overthrow Of system Of extortion and
robbery, more wicked in the sight O.
God and man than all the sins OF Babylon
when her robes were scarlet with in
iquity. The remedies to be applied
were-First, tariff reform; second, a full
supply Of legal tender money; third, the
FREQ coinage OF silver; fourth, the sup
preston, by law, Of gambling in futures
fifth, liberal policy OF pensions.
AS Mr.. Voorhees, took his seat there
was some applause in the galleries ani
on the floor.
Mr.. Wilson, OF Iowa, said that be dc
sired, as areply to the remarkable speech
Just uttered, to read a letter from a far
mer Of Iowa, who knew by practical ex
perience, more about the condition 0
the farming class than the Senator from
Indiana had ever learned in his readings
and theories. : He then read leste
which has been already published, show
ing the comparatively low prices Of farm
products and the higher prices Of manu-
factured goods before the war. 4. ~.