Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1892-09-01

out these laboring men and reduce them to
serfdom!
How dare you stand up before these men and
Jay they have no right to organize to protect
their own families3 Now, let me give you an
other illustration. man died in this country
a few years ago very rich. His name was Van
derbilt. and let me say here that have moth
ing to say against the man God forbid. | only
speak against his wealth. This movement is
like the Dutchnians heart, who said, II wish
all men were rich: it would be better for the
poor" want men to be rich, if they get
rich honestly. He should eat his bread in the
sweat of his own face. | do not like any man
who insists that ii is his right to eat his bread
in the sweat of some other mans face. A
friend of Mr.. Vanderbilt came to his rescue,
and he was rich man, and he said Wander
bilt was not worth SIZE, 100000, but only $780,
100000 by conservative estimate, and SAID
furthermore that it took him and his fl her
thirty years to accumulate it. Now, want to
illustrate that; want TO contrast that fortune
I With the Accommodations of labor. You labor
ing neil here Low, can you on an average sup
port your families ont Of your wages and lay
up one dollar per day2
Now lei Inc suppose that the first laborer was
Adam. and we will suppose he never dies and
accumulated one dollar day over his family
expenses for the whole period of 5000 years
down to the day before Vanderbilt died, he
NOulu nave anu yet
Vanderbilt accumulated S220,000,000 in thirty
years, and would not have hired Adam for a
hostler. Now ! will give you another illus
!ration. There is II class of men in this coun-
try for whom | have great deal of respect,
for they are dong a great deal for the human
race. They are called scientists, and they
have been very skeptical, and thought few
years ago they were going to pry up the Rock
If Ages. They thought they had discovered
irtp MI -l,O xaA hafn 1oy, Gun
pose they were right Suppose they discovered
a man 6O,0O0 years before Vanderbilt. Suppose
hat man worked hard enough, was never sick,
and suppose he laid up dollar a day, how
many dollars would he have accumulated? 1t,
depends upon how many days there are. There
Ire just 2l9,0U)0cD days. So you see Wander
olt could have bought out the prehistoric gen.
.leman and had a million dollars with which
20 buy up the California Legislature.
! Now | am mentioning Nanderbilt's name
With respect. am only talking about his for
:use. presume there is no man here tonight,
unless he has been converted by The Peoples
party, who would not have done as Wander
oit. Now put the question again to those
Who have been standing aloof and wondering
III this movement was going 10 accomplish
anything. Do YOU think that this republic is
In healthy &C addition when such results can
take place within lifetime? Well, that Is
what the trades unions think about it, and the
Farmers Alliance, and the wageworkers. Do
you think you can stop this movement? Get
out Of its way or it will run over you as sure
as you are living.
|, These are sorae of the facts that have caused
the people to organize. Our fathers state in
the declaration of Independence and this
movement is to vitalize that declaration, to
protect the rights of laborcrs in this country.
Our fathers state. 1--WE hold this truth to be
- 10
1t is one that is as evident as the sun in
heaven. We feel it. How broad that is!
How like the heart Of God! How "all men
are created equal" one man before another!
stand here deriving my rights from no gov
eminent, but flom my Creator. What is an
nalienable right, a right that can neither be
bought nor sold, no man can buy it, nor can
he sell, either for himself or his children?
There are certain inalienable rights-his life,
liberty and the pursuit of happiness. To these
good governments are so many men deriving
their power from the governed. When these
governments do not do right it is duty to
abolish those governments.
Now If that is treason make the most of it.
propose to live to it and teach it as long as |
live on this earth. 1t is the great palladium OF
the world. If you have the right to abolish
a government you can blow into flinders these
parties which destroy your rights. A party is
only means to an end. Well, now l am COM
ing right home at you. You are either Demo-
Gratis, Republicans or Peoples party men. and
| would not be surprised if up to a month ago
the great majority of you had been Democrats
or Republicans. Now tell me what is there to
hope for from either the Democratic or Repub-
lican partiesl Why, did you not get tired Of
the Republican party and put it out of power
and put in the Democratic party with its own
legislature? Then the Democrats shouted
themselves hoarse and said, Look out for u
real old Jacksonian party" Was there any
change?
Oh, yes. in the San Francisco postoffice.
Well, the people got tired and put the Repub-
lican party back in power-the whole govern
,,nant bool, In Tho haplo ~ Tho