The great West. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1889-18??, 1892-09-30
THE PEOPLES PARTY.

The claims of the third party move,
ment for support rest upon it's necessity
as means of restoring to the masses
OF the American people their proper
share in the government. The follow
ing remarkable prediction made by
| Abraham Lincoln at the close of the
| war for the nation, has been signally
| fulfilled:
'As result of the war, corporations
| have been enthroned and an era of cor
ruption in high places will follow, and
the money power of the country will
endeavor to prolong it's reign by work
ing upoh the prejudices Of the people
until all wealth is aggregated in few
| hands and the republic is destroyed.
feel at this moment more anxiety for
my country than ever before, even in
the midst of war. God grant that my
suspicious may be groundless.'
There is not an informed person ir
the nation who does not know that the
conditions thus forecast have been
abundantly realized and that the power
OF the people in shaping legislation has
been reduced to nullity b7 concentrat.
ed wealth and indefensible privilege.
Money in few hands dominates every.
thing. 1t dictates our laws and con-
trolls our industries. 1t is fast reducing
the wage-earning millions to merciless
servitude. It has oppressively aug
mented the burdens Of the debtor class
by the dethronement of silver and the
consequent enormous enhancement Of
gold, the purpose being to make money
scarce and dear aud to increase the ag-
gregate of debts, without additional
consideration, by making gold coin the
sole metal of ultimate redemption for
all credits and for all other forms OF
money. This debasement of one of the
money metals by the money power con-
stitutes the elimination of the conspir-
acy OF greed and privilege against the
wealth-producing population of Amer.
lea. Its disastrous consequences, al.
though the worst is come, have beer
widespread and are making themselves
felt in every lowly home in the land.
The conditions Of massed wealth and
corporate supremacy, with reeking cor.
ruptlon IN high places and the debauch-
ment of politics, which were foretold
by Lincoln, have grown up and taken
root in every state of the union under
the auspices and through the agency Of
both the old parties, and the control
ing machinery of those parties is now
hopelessly subject to the power that
has made itself practically supreme
over the destinies Of the nation Hence
the only rational hope of reasserting
the legitimate authority Of the people
in our government, of purifying our
politics, of infusing into our Industrial
system the qualities of God given
justice, of restoring the coinage to the
status given it by the founders of the
republic, and of preserving the hertz
age of freedom and the rights of free
men bequeathed by the fathers, depends
upon availing ourselves of a new and
interrupted medium through which
the people can express and enforce
their political convictions
To serve this purpose is the mission
OF the peoples party, and it has right
full claims upon the support Of all citi-
zens who realize the impressive fulfill.
ment of Lincoln's forebodings, and the
surprising Importance of checking The
aggressive and dangerous advance of
corporate rdpacity and the schemes and
cDrruptiOnS OF abnormal wealth.
No one should be swervA in this cri-
sis from course of political independ-
ence that is inspired by the highest de.
naands Of duty and interest, by the dis,
couraglng assurance of the enemy that
the new party, without organization
and without wealth, can have no chance
of success this year against the old par
ties, powerfully organized and With
linitless pecuniary resources. We arc
told that one or the other of the old
party presidential nominees is sure ia
be elected and if we would not throw
away our votes for president we must
choose between them, according to oul
preferences or prejudices.
The answer to this kind of partisan
sophistry is that we have no choice tie.
tween the presidential candidates OF
the old parties, that both of them are
committed to the dangerous
elements foretold by President Lincoln,
and that to support either would be to
with our countenance and
votes the very power that we recognize
as perilous to the country and it's pros
perity But this is not the only
answer Believing in the necessity for
the new political organization, if popu.
lar convictions are ever to be given ex-
preston and force, we recognize that
it must have a beginning, and that
duty requires its present support with.
out regard to the degree of success OF
failure that may attend the popular eff.
fort this year. If partial failure shall
be the result the people will none the
less have laid the foundation for the
fullest fruition of their hopes at a fu.
ture day.
But the failure can only be partial
for though money and privilege secure
the presidency for the next four years,
the popular impulse that is now taking
independent shape cannot be prevented
from scoring a victory this year of stu
pendous import to the rights of the
American masses The Importance at
this juncture Of a great popular protest
against the consuming and unrighteous
greed Of corporate wealth and it's defl.
ing influence on the legislative func-
tons Of the nation cannot be overesti
mated. The warning would be followed
by the most salutary and practical effects
and the results would alone justify
all the efforts that can be made this
year to give the peoples national party
organic form Still, incalculable as will
be the advantage Of such a protest from