The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1891-02-19
CITIZENS ALLIANCE.
AN ADDRESS BY THE ExEcU-
TIVE COMMITTEE.

...sasIr HrHI
-.--
"A Government by the People, for tho
Pcoplen-The Object OF the Organization
The Aid and Assistance of All Citizens
sUliciteds
To the voters Of the United States:
When the immortal founders of this re-
public issued their famous declaration of
independence-when they framed that
truly wonderful and inspired instrument,
the constitution OF the United States;
they gave to the world what would have
been to-day, hpd, their intentions been
faithfully carried dit, the best EoHerd-
ment that man has ever seen. They
doubtless went as far as it was possible
for mortal men to 60 with the light
which God at that time had given them;
they saw as fur Is Ii wa possible
for human wisdom and foresight at
that time to foresee. And there
can be no question raised at this day
that would impeach the assertion, that
that document was intended to protect
every individual in those rights that had
been So ably defined In the declaration Of
independence, upon which it had been
framed, viz: ''That we hold these truths
to be self-evident; that all men are Gre
ated equal; that they are endowed with
certain inalienable rights; that atnong
these are life, liberty and the pursuit of
happiness" And had these grand truths
been as sacredly guarded by their pos
tetity DIS they were earnestly fought for
by their fathers, their children hight
to-day be enjoying the fullness of the
fruits for which they bled. But unfor-
%tunately for the present generation, such
has not been the case.
When this government was formed it
was composed of but little over 1000, 900
Of people, stretching along 1900 miles of
seacoast, and extending into the country
in the farthest point not to exceed 300
this area until 1t is 1000 miles one way
have multiplied the population twenty
fold. At that time there were
no special privileges granted by the
| government save those of the
toll roads. Since that day we have null
tiplied these special privileges a thousand
fold, in the form Of railroads represent
ing thousands of different corporations;
comprising something like 200, 900 miles
OF improved highways with an aggregate
capital In stocks and bonds of upward
of So,6 600, 900, 900, and Poor's Railway
Manual, which Is standard authority,
places the fictitious portion of this ut
%one-third. And every one of these
corporations Receives its power to exist
from the fountain head of governments.
our legislatures bodies,
Then come the thousands of cities and
towns, deriving their powers to exist
from these same fountain heads of gov
ernn1eht, our legislative bodies, state and
national. Following them are the thou.
sands and thousands of street railways,
gas and waterworks companies, each de-
irving it's power to live by a statute law
enacted by some legislative body. Again.
there are the great insurance companies
of the land, with a combined capital of
81, S15, DOC, 900, and risks to the amount
of $40, 24s, 600, 900.
Then last, but not by any means least,
are the great banking interests of the
country with a capital of $977, O0O, 900.
One of these, the special pet Of the gov
eminent, the national banking interest,
derives its very existence from a special
privilege in the. form of a franchise. that
with u capital never to exceed $3.50, OOO,-
900 has in twenty-four years paid it's
stockholders upward of So, 600, 900 in
dividends, has at the present time a
SUI aus l 'St3 dllo OpACA uu~
divided profits amounting to SsS, 3O2,-
639.O1. This franchise alone has been
worth more to the stockholders of these
banks during the twenty-four years that
!. they haze held it than -thhe, total national
Every one of these corporate powers
: that we have herein enumerated, re.
l ceives its power to exist and live from
5 the fountain head of government, and
r every one of them is constantly looking
to their mother, the state, for increased
powers at her hands to despoil the PEG
pie OF their Inheritance, until the state
herself has become weak and is begging
and entreating to be let alone. Our leg
: islators have by statute laws given thcs'
corporations upward Of 200, 600, 900 acre
of land; they have loaned them the gov
k eminent credit to the extent o
q nearly 500, 900, 900 more. The,
s have farmed out to them the priv
n lege Of common carriers, by which the,
have extorted from the people thousand
of millions of dollars in the form of OK
cessive rates of freights in order tina
they might be able to reach large return
upon fictitious bonds and stocks. The,
have farmed out to banking corporation
y the governmental function of issuin.
money, and by which they have b,
vicious methods caused the %stringenc,
in the money market that has strewl
the pathway of 161, 332 business mel
with financial wrecks to the amour
of 5000, 1874, 1924 during the last quar-
ter of a century. And by the sam
process the great loan and trust com
panies have been compelled to foreclos
the mortgages upon our l%andholdcrs t
the extent of several billions more dur
ing that period of time, until our natio,
is fast approaching that state of thing
which Rome experienced on the eve o
her downfall, when the land of the pee
pie had been taken from them by usurE
ers, and her tillers of the soil were com
PEELED to leave the country and congre
gate in the city, and while her sever
hills were bedecked with the palaces 0
the rich, thousands upon thousands 0
her toilers were sleeping on the street
at night, with nothing but the broa,
canopy of heaven for a shelter.
These gigantic corporations are cor
stantly gnawing at every tissue of tn
government. They are sucking til
i blood from every pore. Their MALE
hand is thrust into every convention Q
the two predominating political parties
Y They fashion the party platforms. The
dictate the issues that shall be d~iscussc
by their party orators during the polit
d ical campaigns. They dictate who shaI
be speaker of the house of represents
= tives. They command who shall be tn
chairmen of the committees in our legis
" lative halls. They make and unmak
presidents and cabinets. They elect an
: appoint judges, and if the reports of tn
: daily press are to be relied upon, the
Q are now secretly packing the ST
preme court for the furtherance of thei
y despoliations. They compel the nations
campaign committees of both parties t
n execute a mortgage upon every candidat
of both of them in a presidential can
paign, and foreclose tho same as 500
Z as they are installed into Office
They have, with their gold, DEGRADED
e %debauched and p%rostituted %theJyouths (
our land. They have bribed our. legi Ii
tors until our legislative halls a:u b,