The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1891-06-30
THE POWER OF THE MONEY
KINGS.

q
ness9" somebody asked Talleyrand.-
" L'argent d. autres." (Other folks
money! was the reply The an
swer was given in the light of his
tory experience as priest, prince,
courtier, diplomatist and man of the
world; and if at the time it contained
touch of sarcasm, no such suspicion
could to-day attach to the response, at
least, not in this country. For If
business means other folks money,
then the definition of Talleyrand's is a
certitude beyond the reach of sarcasm,
and is as true, terse and comprehensive
as was ever cOncOcted to EN- brace such
an extensive subject. Indeed, no bet
ter definition could be devised to state,
in explicit terms, the existing state of
things When we call tomind that the
total wealth of 81, 900 people amounts
to $50, ,250, 900, 900, or, in other words,
that three -fifths of the entire wealth Of
the United States is owned by one
twentieth of one per cent. of the popu
lation, we can then, indeed, begin to
comprehend what business is, as
Talleyrand expressed it, in all it's force,
and see to what extent "other folks
money" goes to fill the Golfers of the
few by creating over 81, OOOmillionaires.
just think of it, thirty-six thousand,
two hundred and fifty millions in the
hands of comparatively few men!
What mighty power does this give
them to WELD for veal or woe! And
how do they WELD it? Why, in a way
not only not to rest satisfied with three
fifths of the wealth of the country, but,
| if possible, to own two hundred one
hundredths, that is, to gobble us up,
body and soul.
However full, with something more
| They fain the bag would cram
| They sigh above the crowded net
For fish that never swami"
And "p argent d. GutreS" will be
their slogan so long as we have a cent
for them to grasp without resistance,
and so long as we case to resist such
ravenous greed, with all the might
that's in us, the more tenacious will be
the grip, and therefore harder to
shake Off
Tt is time. indeed, to summon forth
our battalions, beat the long call, dress
by the flag and march abreast, at
double-quick step, with concert of
action, to oppose and combat this
mighty pOwer-a power with the thirst
and insatiate greed of ghoulish harpies
to prey on human flesh. They will, by
a concentration Of all their power to
perpetuate their, reign, move heaven
and earth to thwart us in getting rid
of their yoke. And what a yoke it is
we groan under, few facts known to
us all, showing how they WELD their
power, will readily demonstrate
Let's relate few of the monstrous
enormities this monster of a money
power can and does perpetrate to suit
it's own behests and the subversion of
honest government. Monster is a ter
rible word and reads as if written in
anger, and perhaps, under such aggra-
waiting provocatiOns, it is. But what
other word so cold, so impressive, so
true? 1t is a monstrous thing to buy
judges; to pOllute justice by degrading
it to dishonest gains; to lead venal
creatures on the bench into crimes
which result in their impeachment; to
purchase legislators, and boast that it
was done without regard to politics;
to aim even to control the Supreme
| Court; to dictate nominations to the
Presidency, and deal with the majestic
franchises of a nation as though they
were the watered shares of one of their
swindling railways; to subsidize news
papers, wreck railways and carry off
as plunder the invested savings of
widows and orphans; to corrupt every
channel that Doodle can reach-and
what can't it reach?-tO further their
ends; to lead a long career of crimes
succeeding crimes, tolerated only be-
cause of success and unaccOuntable
public apathy. Such, in brief, is
relation of few of the nefariOus do
ings of these monsters Of iniquity, and,
because they are guilty of such, they
should stand condemned as monsters
to the highest vengeance of civilization,
the contempt and scorn of mankind.
Do not let us, for moment, enter
tain the delusion that this money power
will ever, on its own accord, rest salts
fed with it's accumulated hordings, or
volunteer to tighten it's taskmastership,
for, far from being satiated with mil
lions, they will not cease to drain US of