Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1892-07-07

| sions of the usurers may all be lost sight
| of. They propose to sacrifice our holdes,
lives and children on the altarnf mammcn
| to destroy the multitude in order to secure
corruption funds from the millionaires,
Assembled on the anniversary Of the
birthday of the nation, and filled with the
| spirit OF the grand general and chieftain
| who established our independence, we seek
to restore the government Of the republic
to the hands of the "plain people, with
whose class 1t originated. We assert our
| purpose to be identical with the purposes
of the national constitution, to form a
more perfect union and establish justice,
| insure domestic tranquility, provide for
| the the common defence, promote the
general welfare and secure the blessings of
liberty for ourselves and our posterity.
We declare that this republic can only
| endure as q free government while built
upon the love of the whole people for each
other and for the nation; that it cannot be
| pinned together by bayonets; that the civil
war is over and that every passion and
resentment which grew out of it must die
with it, and that we must be in fact, as we
| are in name, one united brotherhood OF
| free men.
FARMERS DEMANDS.
Our country finds itself confronted by
conditions for which there is no precedent
| in the history of the world our annual
| agricultural productions amountto billions
| of dollars in value, which must within
| few weeks or months be exchanged for
| billions of dollars of commodities consumed
| in their production; the existing currency
supply is wholly inadequate to make this
exchange the results are falling prices,
| the formation of combines and rings, the
impoverishmen, OF the producing class.
| We pledge ourselves that, if given power
we will labor to correct these evils by wise
and reasonable legislation, in accordance
| with the terms of our platform.
We believe that the powers of govern
ment--in other words of the people
| should be expanded (as in the case of the
| postal servicej as rapidly and as far as the
good sense Of an intelligent people and the
! teachings of experience shall Justify, to
| the end that oppression, injustice and
| poverty shall eventually cease in the land.
While our sympathies as a party of re-
form are naturally upon the side of every
proposition which will tend to make men
intelligent, virtuous and temperate, we
nevertheless regard these questions-im-
pOrtant as they areas secondary to the
great issues now pressing for solution, and
upon which not only our individual pros
perity, but the very existence of free in
situations depend, and we ask all men to
| first help us to determine whether we are to
have a republic to administer, before we
differ as to the conditions upon which it is
to be administered; believing that the
| forces of reform this day organized will
never cease to move forward until every
wrong is righted, and equal rights and
| equal privileges securely established for all
| the mer and women of this country. We
| declare, therefore,
PERPETUAL LABOR UNION.
| First. That the union of the labor forces
Of the United state this day consummated
shall be permanent and perpetual; may its
| spirit enter all hearts for the salvation of
| the republic and to aid the uplifting of
mankind.
WEALTH FOR WORKERS
Second. Wealth belongs to him who Gre
ates 1t, and every dollar taken from in
dustry without an equivalent is robbery.
| IF any will not work, neither shall he
eat" The interests Of rural and civic labor
are the same; their enemies are identical.
| OWNERSHIP OF RAILWAYS.
Third. We believe that the time has
| come when the railroad corporations will
either own the people or the people must
own the railroads, and should the govern
| ment enter upon the work of owning and
managing all railroads. we should favor
an amendment to the constitution by
which all persons engaged in the govern
ment service shall be placed under a civil
service regulation of the most rigid charac-
ter so as to prevent the increase of the
power of the national administration by
the use of such additional government EN-
ployes.
FINANCE.
We demand a national currency, safe,
| sound and flexible issued by the general
government only, full legal tender forall
debts, public and private, and that with
ont the use of banking corporations, a
just, equitable and efficient means of dis
tribution direct to the people at a tax not
TO exceed . per cent per annum, to be pro-
| vided as set forth in the sub-treasury plan
of the Farmers Alliance, or better sys-
tenn; also by payments in discharge of its
obligations for public improvements.
ca. We demand free and unlimited
coinage of silver and gold at the present
legal ratio of Ii to |,
| ID. We demand that the amount of
circulation medium be speedily increased
to not less than $50 per capita
! (C). We demand graduated income
| tax.
Cd. We believe that the money of the
country should be kept as much as posi-
BILE in the hands of the people, and hence
we demand that all state and national
revenues shall be limited to the necessary
| expenses OF the government, economically
and honestly administered.
| (S), We demand that postal savings
banks be established by the government
| for the safe deposit of the earnings of the
people and to facilitate exchange.
TRANSFORMATION.
| Transportation being means of ex-
| change and public necessity, the govern
ment should own and operate the rail-
roads i'll the interest of the people.
! (Al. The telegraph and telephone, like
the post office system, being a necessity for
the transmission OF news, should be owned
and operated by the government inythe in
tcrest of the people.
i LAND.
The land, including all the natural
sources of wealth, is the heritage of the
people and should not be monupulized for
speculative purposes and alien ownership
of land should be prohibited All land
now held by railroads and other corpora
tons in excess of their actual needs, and
all lands now owned by aliens should be
reclaimed by the government and held for
actual settlers only.
STORM OF ENTHUSIASM.
1 The platform was adopted with a
rush, and at once the convention broke
over all restraint and went wild in u
demonstration that had likeness to
descriptions of enthusiastic Bastile
demons rations in France. The whole
convention, audience and delegates, rose
to their feet, and the first platform of
the Peoples party was ushered into the
world with scene of enthusiasm that
in intensity and carnestness, though not
absolute length, almost cqualled the
cyclonic ovation which greeted the
mention Of the name of James G.. Blaine
at Minneapolis. That scene lasted 81
minutes, ana this scene between 20 and