The farmers' union. (Memphis, Mo.) 1891-1895, 1891-06-25

of New 1ork-the Empire state, as it
is callcd-g gridironed with railroads,
rich IN wealth, possessing the greatest
cities on the continent, settled for
hundreds of years by most energetic
and Industrious pcople-what do we
find? Why State Assessor Wood, the
official whose business it is to know
the condition of property in that state,
in an official report, not in stump
speech, not in political utterance,
but i'll the cold and unimpeached de
claration of an official report rs state
assessor of the state of New York,
makes. in this latter end of the nine
tcentll century, the astounding declar-
alton that, at the rate at which the
people are being wiped off the face of
the lands in that state by mortgages,
foreclosures and executions, that it
will be-to use his exact language
but few decades, that is to say forty
or fifty years, when every farmer in
this great commonwealth will hate
ceased to own the land which lie oc-
cupies and will be tenant at the will
of the landlord, like the cotters of
Scotland or the poor peasants of Ire
land. 1Applause.I
Now, my friends, there is no deny
ing of this statement. If put alone we
might think it was exaggerated. What
do we find in New England? New
England, that claims to he the birth
place of liberty on this continent,
settled by n mass of intelligent and
| energetic body of ycomanry; settled by
the -acn who fought in the battles of
the revolution What do we find of it
there to-day? Why, its fertile fields
are waste places; the states are at
work trying to import people from the
! down-trodden peasantrv of Europe to
once more occupy the deserted fields !;
the land that once maintained a happy
and prosperous population, are now
being bought up by the millionaires
of the country for the establishment of
deer parks; and Austin Corhin, after
having made his fortune out of the
mortgages on the farms of the people
of the west, I see now proposes to pur-
chase thousands of acres of it and i'm
port wild boars from the forests of
Russia, and upon the soil of New Eng
land establish II hunting park, to
which he can invite the aristocracv of
the old world. Why. my friends, can
yon deny these facts? \ voice mo. y
| Are they not know TO all men?
| Why, the census huroau gave Ont a
short time since that tho last census.
taken few months ago. proved that
in the state of Iowa and no
more fertile section of country lies out
side Of doors on Gods footstool than
Iowa, no more moral, religious or hon
est population can he found anywhere
in this Nation and vet in this State
of Iowa there are mortgages, accord
ing to the [: S. census, of two hun
drcd million dollars. In some the
per capita Of mortgage debt is from
S25S to So6S for each man, woman and
child. including the infant in the
cradle; and wheu VIC turn to the
south, why that same census shows in
the state of Alabama the mortgages
lars. Mhcse facts came ont from the
census bureau, and then they shut the
door and refused to give ont anymore.
The revelations were too startling and
horrible; and / see by one of our pa.
pers that when they were written Il
for additional facts on this important
subject they declined to give them
Is there not a Necessity for the Farm
ers' Alliance and for the Peoples
party Of America? Applause. But
what have our old political parties tc
say? What hav. they been doing fol
this country? Why, keeping mp bite,
sectional feuds to distract the reopl.
that the work of plumber might go OF
without interruption.
They have a game in Spain called
hull-tighting. They form large ring
the people sitting on the outside look
ing down upon it, They lead bul
into the ring. torture and madden hin
by arts with which they are familiar
and when he is in the proper state o
rage horseman enters the ring ant
begins touching him up with spear
The bull becomes excited and charge
after the horseman who retreats ant
circles around and SO the sport goe
on to the entertainment of the popu
lace But occasionally it happen:
that the bull is too fast or to furious
and he lunges at the horseman SO thai
his life is in danger, and when tha
crisis is reached there are lot o
light -limbed fellows sitting around OF
the fences whose business it is to rusl
into the ring and shake red cloth il
the face of the bull diverting him from
the object of his pursuit, and whe,
the audience has been sufficiently en-
tertained the matador gives the tina
| -. L. I l., l., i 1,,,1f -,
gether. Now this is the kind of hul
fighting we have had in America thes'
many years, Applause The Amcri
can bull, tortured with poverty
weighed down by injustice and agon
lied by suffering, makes fierce lung
st its enemy, but just rs he is about t
transfix him the hehtlimbed politi
clans who sit upon the fences of the in
closure jump INTO the ring and shak
the bloody shirt before his face
Laughter and applause. And whe1
its sport is over the bull is dead
Applause.
Now, my friends. it is time to put
} stop to all this. | am northern man
an old republican, was in congress dur
ing the war, voted for the appropria
tions to carry on the war. All m
feelingf and sympathies We're on TIL
side of the Union and ON the side @
the north, and upon the question G
slavery | have never yet seen an
!; cause to change my mind. / believ
that Abraham Lincoln was right whe
he said that if slavery was not wron
nothing was wrong. But, my friends
: the war is over generation ago. VIII
are its memories and passions perpetu
ated? Why, for the purpose of carry
ing on the mighty game of plunde
/ [ApplauseI, the game of plnnder whic
haf brought the producer close to th
edge of bankruptcy and ruin. The pre-
: cesses that have filled up, are now fill
: ing mp the Pacific states and Montan
, and Idaho with the blasted and RUNE
farmers of this old country. The cor
ditions that have brought labor t
, such state that it is but trifiin
? degree above the .barbaric condition
of the old world.