The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1890-12-06
A State Alliance.


organized State Alliance and pu
forth platform of principles diff
fering from the platforms of thei
eastern brethren only in the fac
that the tariff is not referred to
Observing this omission the Chron.
icle jumps to the conclusion tina
the tariff is approved by the Cali
fornia farmers. The inference i!
rot legitimate. On the contrary
it proves that they were unaccus
toned to drafting platforms anc
inadvertently omitted reference tt
matter in which all Americans
whether opposing or favoring, are
deeply concerned. 1t further proves
that the great daily papers Of Cali
fornia, of which the Chronicle is a
principal one, have habitually treat.
ed the tariff in a sensational and
not in an educational manner. The
tariff affects the pecuniary interests
OF the people when properly pre-.
sented to their understanding.
This the farmers of California will
discover in good time, and when
they draft another platform will
have and express an opinion either
for or against it.
Time was when the American
farmer had no opinions about grant
ing the public lands in limitless
quantities to railroad companies,
and the robbery was pushed ahead
by the party in power at a rate that
would in decade or two have wit
messed the transfer of the entire
public domain to those corpora
tons. But the magnitude and
effrontery of the grant business set
the people to thinking, and soon
such a roar of disapproval went up
from the robbed multitude that
Congress was compelled to call a
halt. And so it will. be in regard
to the questions now being pushed
upon the attention of the country
by its farmers. They have votes,
and they are rapidly acquiring in
to know how best to
their votes for their protec-
ion, and they will do so in spite of
ourblind partisan newspapers. The
egislation Of the last thirty years
las made it possible for few COR
'orations comprising a few thous-
md men to dictate even the terms
If existence to more than 6O,OOO.-
700 of people. To say that this
anomalous state of things is to be
permanent is to deny common
ense to the people wronged by it.
The iniquities that have produced
are being studied by the produ-
ers of wealth. They will be COM
'rehended and then will follow their
tier destruction, whether existing
'olltlcal parties will it or not.
And 1t is good omen that the
emands of the farmers are, so far.
nth The single exception of woman |
utlrage, calculated to promote |
ommon sense, honesty and purity |
4 the administration of the GOV
rnment. The abolition of Nation |
Banks and the substitution of
gal tender treasury notes which
hould be noninterest bearing and
ased upon the wealth of the ma
on, would place the control of the
olume OF our money of circulation
here it belongs-to-wit: in the
ands of the general government,
hlch would put a stop to the huc-
1atlons now produced for specu-
tive purposes, and protect the
ubllc against that means of spoil
hon. For it is not conceivable
lat government could have a mon
AIRY interest in specializing upon
he citizen. Public control of the
always is simply a restatement of
lblic control of the highways Of
he nation, a well-established prin-
pie much older than America. So
telegraphs, telephones, ships,
lese being means of levying taxes
pom production.
The election Of president, vice
resident and United States Sena-
RS by the people is a political
ght which should never have been
lrrendered. But the states having ,
cen shorn of their sovereignty by
e general government, makes the
lty of it's exercise more urgent
wv than formerly; and these just
having been formulated
i'll not be abandoned, even if new
'litical party has to be organized
enact them into law. The polit-
al party, therefore, which seeks
ignore or hout the farmers or
cir demands, will find itself de-
ived of an occupation very sud-
My.
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