River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1890-10-02
AGAINST HONEST LAEoK.
Some oid Letters of an Illinois Politi-
clan Who Wants to BE "A Senator.


| When General John NJ Palmer was
nominated for United States Senator By
the Democratic State convention he ac-
cepted the action of that body and made
speech in which he asked inquiry into
his entire life, and on that verdict he
/ proposed to stand:
The Democratic party named ne Tor the
/ Office Of United States Senator so that my
! whole life could be subjected to inquiry and
! criticism. II deemed il proper 10 put up a can
| didate. aud invited by so doing the press and
| people TO er1ticise and lay bare the past deeds
Of that candidate. / have no fault to find with
4 it,"
In his letter TO Congressman William
f. Mason, declining a challenge to
joint debate before the people, he said:
"a very large number of the electors OF the
/ State, by nominating me candidate for a
4 seat in the United States Senate have made
| themselves responsible not only for my political
opinions and conduct but for all the important
acts Of my public life"
There are, no doubt, reported speeches
and political letters of General Palmer
that would make very interesting read
ing. Gust at PRESENT his friends appear
10 be excited by the publication of
/ letter which he wrote in 1856. that ex-
presses his opinion as to these ques-
tions: (1) the power of the National
| Government to make money by it's
| fiat. !" and (2) to control railroads and
other corporations. and (S) his hostility
| to labor organizations. The few lines
of the letter on these subjects are as
! follows:
/ Il dislike irresponsible authority whatever
form II may assume. ], therefore, dislike the
doctrine of central National authority
| with perhaps underlined power and which can
make money by its fiat own railroads and tele-
/ graph, and by the process of its courts punish
| labOring men for contempt, without trial by
| jury or at the discretion OF its judges. d s
] 4 qrea' TABOR org nizI'iOHs fhtt ssaRis 10 con
! tr In Personal aoW and Rdqct Of all men loho
| td5jr."
1t must eeem by this declaration of
principles that the candidate seeking the
labor and farmer vote holds opinions di-
! rectly opposed TO those expressed by
the labor and farmer organizations. He
is opposed to Government money. is OPP
| posed to Government control of railroad
and other corporations, and he is OPP
posed to great labor organizations that
assume to control the individual la bor-
ers.
| Some years ago General Palmer gave
to the public an official declaration of
| his opinions on a subject of vital inter
est to free labor, and he was in posi-
| ton where his opinion carried so much
weight that it was enacted into the
| form OF law still on the statute books,
| but which will expire by limitation
within short period. When he was
Governor of Illinois, in message to the
! General Assem- bly, under date of May
| "a, 1871, he said:
1.-THE only practical system for the successful
management of the penitentiary in my iudg
| ment is that which combines the retention of
| complete control OF the discipline and govern
| ment of the eonvicts with the lease OF their la
| Dor TO persons en7d7sd in special pursuits as
| substantially embodied in the bill that passed
| the Senate at the late session and was under
stood to be acceptable to large number OF the
/ House of Representatives. can not forbsar
| the oppression Of hope INT such measure tcill
met tie approU I Of the General ASSEMBLY,"
A writer in a labor journal, calling
attention to this part of General Pal
mer's record, expresses his regret that
it was not disclosed in 1Sss, and says
| that ''the trade organizations who have
| labored so heroically for twenty years
| to abolish this infamous system would
not have been so jealous in their sup
| port had they known the hollow friend
ship of General Palmer" the author of
! the prison contract labor system of the
State. Probably not! But they will
not have the excuse of ignorance this
! year.-Chicago Journal.
/