Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1890-09-25
THE FARMERS MEETING.

=
Last Weeks Gathering on the Gee
Fair Gsrounds-speech or Hon. Jesse
Harper and Others.
JosLYN, SEPT 24-On Friday last the
members of the different lodges of the F.
M. B. A. met upon the Coe fair ground.
| for the purpose of making each others
acquaintance and to enjoy themselves
and have picnic. and to listen to
speeches bearing upon each Others inter-
ests. The day was cool vet pleasant,
| and there was large gathering in at
tendance. The meeting was called to or
der at 1890 by E. NJ. Feaster. the
president of the day, who introduced MIR.
Kempster of Henry county as the first
speaker. Mr.. Kempsters speech was an
answer to the question. WHITTIER as a
nation are we drifting?" He claimed
| that if the trust-monopolies and syndi>
Gates are allowed to go on unchecked,
that foreigners will yet own this country
and the children are now living who
will become nothing better than serfs..
Mr. Kempster's speech was loudly APP
plauded and highly spoken Of After
dinner the Hon. Jesse Harper of Ver-
million county, Ill. being introduced
said. That he intended to speak for Jesse
Harper, that no one would be RESPONSE
BILE for what he should say. and if any one
didn't like it, they could take all the less
of it and go home. He then to prevent
taking cold put on a black cap. which
fitted close to his head. and said if once
wound up he could run all day. and by
his witticisms and happy remarks kept
the audience on the grin for two hours
and half. He said there was virtually
no difference between the two old parties
on the tariff question. Tie Mills bill
only called for a reduction of about
seven per cent, and a campaign yell of
free trade was raised from ocean to ocean.
Now Jim Blaine and others are propos>
ing treaty of reciprocity between
this country and the South Ameri
can states which is mainly an
agricultural country like this our
own. All this is simply talk, and is
| intended as make believe to deceive
the farmers and induce them TO vote for
| that party just once more. But u ma
| jOrity of the farmers can now see
through the deception, and cannot have
the wool drawn over their eyes by such
campaign lodges and trickery. He said
there never was such an uprising rs
there was among the farmers Ut the present
time. They have come to the conclusion
that forbearance has ceased to be vir
| tue and unless they do something for
their own deliverance they will soon be
in no better condition than they are il
China, where families of five-on al
average-have to su5sist on $4l year.
What we lack in this country is in
dividuality. Farmers have been too prone
to follow leader and do as others do
without thinking seriously of their owl
interests. Men have voted themselve:
into their present condition, and they
will have to vote themselves out of it
All reforms must be accomplished eithe
by the ballot or the bullet He was il
favor of wiping out all laws from on
statutes which inteTfered with our civili
cation, and which enable few To be.
come extremely wealthy. while masses
the honest sons of toil-thOse that pro
duce the wealth. are becoming poOre
every day. In 1866 we had but ten mil
lionsires in this country; now we hay
seven thousand. These millionaire
have not obtained their wealth in fair
honest, legitimate way. They have BEEF
Made wealthy by the dsmnsble legisls
ton of this country. la twenty fiv
years wheat has gone down from
81. 90 TO rs cents per bushel
Twenty-Five years ago five eighth
of the families, owned their homes. three
Fights did not. To-day the scale has bee
reversed. The debts of the whole coun
try twenty-five years ago was six bllio
of dollars, today it is thirty>five. Tods
the farmers and their families were fifty
four per cent of the population and onl
owned twenty per cent of the wealth. an
today three per cent of the pOpulatio
owns seventy per cent of the wealth
Now then as the nation that can furnis
the cheapest money will root out ever
other nation. my remedy for our presen
condition is, that we have cheaper none
and more of it, $40 per capita. Tn
value of money in England ia two pc
cent, in Continental Europe it is thre
per cent, while in our country it Is eigh
per cent. He would repeal every one O
the land grants. The railroads are max
ing eighteen per cent, while our farms o
an average are not making more than tw
and One>half. Therefore | would have th
government own the railroads and ru
them at cost. He would tax unoccupie
land three times the amount of that whic
was occupied. He would have grade
income tax, the first 81 eco exempt. II
concluded by reading an extract froi
Chauncey Nj. Depew on reputation, an
: stated in that connection that while III
English railroads only charged three mill
per ton per mile, our roads charged frol
ten to fourteen. just as it happened
Finally he read an extract from Senate
,, Jones which was, that slavery wnic
went out at the mouth of the cannon
had been supplemented by system {
| robbery and spoilation."
MULTUM IN PARvO