People's party paper. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1891-1898, 1892-09-30

IL AeS AhCACJ Will save OAAo SouhCi
from. (Cheering.) Now, listen. He
asked me at Charlottesville if |
would not acknowledge that there
was unusual suffering in the country,
caused by vicious legislation, and to
what legislation / attributed it. |
stated that | did acknowledge that
there was depression in the country,
but that | believed it to be exag-
gerated. l think, my friends, that it
is exaggerated by the preamble to
this platform. I believe that the
agricultural interest is depressed;
that the railroad interest is de-
pressed; that the mercantile interest
is depressed; that the laboring in
terest is depressed to-day; but ] do
say that the depression is exag-
gerated in this preamble, which says
that the people are on the verge of
political and moral ruin. Now listen.
You may not receive what I am go
ing to say with favor to- day. I know
that there are hundreds of you going
away from here with the impression
that | am not friendly to your inter
ests, but listen. There are evils in
this country that no political party
can ever relieve you from. Now,
which do you think is the best friend
to you, that man that tells you that,
or the man who under a mistaken
conception of the functions of the
government holds out hopes that can
never be realized? I say that there
is legislation that ought never to
have been enacted but / here and
now dare assert, and the truth of
history will sustain me in it, that the
Legislation to which you owe all your
ills is the infamous tariff-a tariff
that levies taxes on the black man
and the white man; on every vessel
that he uses; on every hat he wears !;
on every pair Of shoes he puts on
his feet; on every coat he puts on
his back; and / say here and now
that [ am a better friend of the poor
man, and will go further towards re-
moving the iniquities of this infa-
nous system, than he.
Why, fellow citizens, he says that
the people have not been informed.
That is true to a great extent. The
people have not been informed upon
many Of these great questions. But
let me tell you that the people have
been misinformed upon great many
things.
A voice. They have been reading
the Chronicle. Sarcastic laughter
Mr.. Black ignoring the rejoinder).
If [ had the time I could take them
up. You have been told over and
over again-it has been told this
people by their public speakers-that
the per capita circulation Of this
country is less than five dollars per
head, when there stands the report
of the Secretary of the Treasury
which shows that the circulation Of
the currency is greater than ever it
was in the history Of the country.
You have been told that the per
capita circulation is less than five
dollars when it is admitted in Mr..
Watson's own book, and in one Of
his communications to the PEOPLES
PARTY PAPER, that there are in cir
culation three hundred and forty-six
million of greenbacks. Now let any
school boy divide 346 by 81 and he
will know that the per capita circu-
lation is more than five dollars.
And yet that statement has gone
into all the homes in this district
where it was subscribed for, and into
many where it was not subscribed
for, and which I do not now criticise.
You have been told another thing,
that the Democratic party took sixty
millions Of dollars and gave it to the
bondholders. I deny that. [ stand
here to vindicate the Democratic
party from that charge. What are
the facts Of the case? The facts are
that under the Republican tariff
Mr.. Watson producing avolume).
Major, as I am in conclusion, allow
me to call your attention to
Mr.. Black. I do not say that [
can
"a spontaneous laugh rippled over
the entire audience by the hasty re,
treat, supplemented with the remark
of gentleman who was standing
near the corner of the platform; ''Ah
ha, Tom was about to draw the book
on him."
Mr.. Black. Now, my friends, you
do not know what you are laughing
at.
A voice. We will show you in
November.
Mr.. Black. Now that shows you
how you may be misled. You are
getting up a great hurrah over an
imaginary victory, and assume that
that is something like the victory you
will achieve in November.
A voice. He is ratified. (Laugh-
ter.)
Mr.. Black. Now, he laughs best
who laughs last venture to say
that there is not one Of you that can
tell what you were laughing at.
Now, is there?