The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1891-05-28
THE CONGRESS OF CRANKS.

THE CONGRESS OF CRANKS.
! The Platform is a Hodge Podse OF the ST
Louis, Ocala and Omaha Platforms,
with Various Other Resolutions to
Crafty as Many Idiosyncracies
as Possible.
CINCINNATTI, May 2G.-When the
Convention met this morning choru:
from the Farmers Alliance song book
preceded by prayer by the Rev. Gilbert
DeIamater, the Greenback EX-Con'
gresham. Delamater was rUundiy ap
plauded when he rose to pray. Ere
quent and earnest amens from the au-
dience punctuated the invocation, and
then the Kansas Glee CLUB regaled
them with ahumorous ditty. Reports
from committees Of arrangements and
credentials now helped to kill time
pending the exciting developments
that many looked for when the plat
form committee was ready to report.
A collection was taken to reimburse
Chairman Power, of the arrangement
committee, 1865, which he had ex-
pended and on of which be had re-
ceived only $50. The report Of the Gre
dentials committee showed 1,4l7 dele
gates present. The larger delegations
were: Kansas 407, Ohio 3l7, Indiana
154.
ALUCKY CAROLINA DARBY.
Senator PETER was then presented to
the Convention as permanent chair
man. An appeal was made from the
platform for funds to pay the home
fare of a colored Alliance delegate from
South Carolina. The delegate, Savage
by name, came forward personally and
in clever speech said that the reason
so few of the colored organizations
were represented was that the colored
people were too poor. 1t was perhaps
as we'll for the Convention, be added,
eying the hats that were being passed
around for his benefit, that so few col
ored delegates came. He was handed
hatfuls of small change, and retired
amid great cheering for the Colored
Alliance.
The proposition to adopt unit rule
was overwhelmingly defeated on the
ground that every man that came to
the Convention should have vote and
have it counted. The five minute rule
for speeches was adopted. a recess
was taken until 2p. m.
When the Convention reassembled a
letter from L. L. Polk, which was
read, advising this Conference to issue
an address and defer action on the
Third Party till 1892, caused breeze,
and when motion to refer it to the
committee on resolutions was declared
carried there was q loud demand, nota-
bly, from the Minnesota delegation,
that the negative be put more forcibly
by the Chair. The demand was re-
newed and continued from time to
time during the reading of a number
of miscellaneous kilograms.
Ignatius Donnelly, chairman of the
committee on resolutions, climbed
upon the rostrum at this juncture, and
amid whirlwind Of excitement an
nounced that he was there to report
that the committee on platform was
unit for the organization Of the Third
Party. He gave way to Robert Schil-
ling, of Wisconsin, secretary of the
committee, who read the platform as
follows:
The Platform.
First. That in view of the great 50
cial, industrial and economical revolu-
ton now dawning on the civilized
world, and the new and living issues
confronting the American people, we
believe that the time has arrived for
the crystalization of the political re-
form forces of our country and the for
nation of what should be known as
the Peoples Party Of the United States
of America.
Second. That we most heartily en-
dorse the demand of the platforms as
adopted at st. Louis, Mo-, in 1889; Oca-
la, Fla, 1890, and Omaha, Neb., in
1891, by the industrial organizations
there represented, summarized as fol-
lows:
(A) The right to make and issIe
money is sovereign power to be MAIN
tained by the people for the common
benefit, hence we demand the aboli-
ton of national banks as banks of is
sue, and as substitute for national
bank notes we demand that legal ten
der treasury notes be issued in sutfi-
cient volume to transact the business
of the country on cash basis, without
damage or especial advantage to any
class or callings, such notes to be legal
tender in payment of all debts, public
and private, and such notes when de-
manded by the people shall be loaned
to them at not more than , per cent per
annum on non-perishable products, as
indicated in the sub-treasury plan, and
also upon real estate with proper lIni-
tation on quantity ofland and amount
of money.
(B) We demand the free and unlim-
tied coinage Of silver.
(Cl We demand the passage of laws
prohibiting alien ownership of land
and that Congress take prompt action
to devise some plan to obtain all lands
now owned by alien and foreign syndi-
Gates, and that all land held by rail-
roads and other corporations in excess
of such as is actually used and needed
by them be reclaimed by the Govern
ment and held for actual settlers only.
(D) Believing in the doctrine Of equal
rights to all and special privileges to
none, we demand that taxation, na-
tional, State or municipal, shall not be
used to build up one interest or class at
the eXrenSe of another.