The record-union., 1892-10-19
FARMERS m CONVENTION.
Annual Session of the State Alliance
and Industrial Union.
President Marion Cannon Reviews the
Work of the Order During
the Past Year.

The third annual session of the Farm
ers' Alliance and Industrial Union Of
California began yesterday forenoon at
the Assembly Chamber in the Capitol.
The session is an executive one, as are
all meetings of the alliance. Thirty-two
counties are represented. The delegates
all wear satin badges bearing the name OF
the county they hail from and over this
hangs an aluminium disc bearing the
busts of Weaver and Field.
The officers present yesterday were:
President, NJ. Cannon; Vice-President,
W. A. Vann; Secretary, J. S. Barber;
Treasurer, J. w. Hines; Lecturer, J. S.
Gilbert; Chaplain, S. H. Phillips; Ser
geant-at-Arms, C. Martin; Business
Agent, J. NJ. Moore; Executive Commit
tee-J. S. Dore, E. NJ. Wendall, L. NJ.
Landsborough, Jesse Poundstone, G. B.
Johnson and J. c.. Drew.
OPENING ADDRESS.
President Cannon called the convention
to order and in addressing the delegates
said:
''Once more, brothers and sisters, we
meet in general convention to review the
J
and means of continuing the work init
sted at San Jose. Since last we met at
Los Angeles the Alliance has been COM
PEELED to take decided stand on the po-
lltlcal questions agitating the people of
this great nation. This stand has caused
the bitter and poisoned shafts of political
bosses to be hurled against our order, and
mas lntertered with our successful organi-
Zatlon of sub-AllianceS. These Sub-Aln-
ances are schools, where our members are
educated in the science of government,
and many of them feel and believe that
they have graduated, and desire to enter
the lists and break a lance with the
enemy. In such a contest l do not fear
the final result. We may suffer tempo
rary embarrassments, but in the end vic
tory will perch upon our banners. 1t
must be so, because we have all the facts
and figures to support our cause.
Il cannot refrain from laying before
you some of these facts at this time, show
ing the depressed condition of the farm
ers throughout the country. These facts
and figures are taken from the official re-
ports of the Census Bureau. In 1867 the
average value per acre of all our crops
was $40. In 1887 the average value was
SO. From 1860 to 1870 the average price of
wheat per bushel was 81 80; from 1880 to
1887 it was 81 ". From 1850 to 1870 corn
was worth SO cents per bushel; from 1880
to 1887 it was worth 46 cents in New York
From 1860 to 1870 cotton was worth 4Sl
cents per pound, and from 1880 to 1887 it
was worth 9 cents. So that to-day dol
lar costs the wheat farmer 2i times as
much; the corn farmer nearly p times as
much, and the cotton farmer over times
as much as 1t did from 1860 to 1870. If a
farmer had given mortgage for 81 900 in
1870 he could have paid it with ,050 BUSH
els of corn; in 1887 it would have taken
2,702 bushels to pay it, without any in
InrpGt- and SO with all his other prOus
A LAW ANNULLED.
"But we are told that the law of supply
and demand regulates prices. How is it,
then, that we produced 90 bushels of
wheat per capita in 1881, and it was worth
81 10 per bushel, while we produced only
y bushels per capita in 1889, and it was
worth 79 cents per bushel? The operation
of this law in trade has been annulled by
combinations for the pillage and robbery
OF honest labor. In the great State of
Illinois the corn crop of 1889 cost its
farmers S9, 935, 600 more than the crop was
worth after it was harvested. The mort
cages on the farms of that State in 1880
were S204, 46I, 900. In 1887 they were S416,-
$4,000, or an increase of over l03 per cent.
in seven years. If every surplus bushel
of wheat ana corn III that State in 1889
had been applied on farm mortgages,
there would still remain Sl17, ,7S4, 600 to be
paid out of other earnings. In the State
OF AlCnlRdn LDeI6 were IaTnl mortgages
to the amount Of $50, 600, 600, with aver
age interest at per cent, and to pay the
interest alone upon this debt would re-
quire 455, 600 bushels more of wheat than
the entire net crop of that State in 1889.
In Iowa there is mortgage debt of $780,
100000 upon its farms, a sum equal to SI04
for every man, woman and child in the
State.
'All over this broad land may be read
the same sad story, and still politicians
will come around here during campaign
time and tell you how prosperous the
farmers are. Go to the Census Bureau in
Washington and you will find piled up
the abstracts of more 100000 mortgages
on our homes, and when we petition Con-
gress for relief we are told to go home,
work harder, live cheaper and keep out of
politics, and all will be well.
USING THE PEOPLES MONEY,
When Wall street, through its gam
bling schemes, becomes entangled in the
meshes of its own wickedness, it has only
TO call upon the Secretary of the Treasury
and he flies to its relief on the wings Of
the wire and pours into its lap $3.50, ,O5O. 900
of the peoples gold. 1t is perfectly con-
stitutional to transfer $780, 900 from
the United States Treasury to the vaults
of the banks and to pay them S24,00O, 900
advance interest and S37 100000 in pre-
miums, and to get il into circulation. an
from the people; perfectly constitutional
to pay to gamblers and spectators So
100000 in premiums and interest to get
SlS0.000,000 into circulation, but it would
be shamefullY unconstitutional to loan
this money to the farmers, upon their
land, at ? per cent. interest. No money
must be furnished to the people unless it
comes through some banking corpora
ton, and they pay usury for these sec
ond-hand favOrs.
There appears to be higher power
than that at Washington. 1t sits en-
throned in Wall street, revelling in its
gains and levying tribute at will on the
industrial energies OF the people. We
demand that this power shall be broken;
that the peoples representatives shall
hereafter represent them and not Wall
street and corporations.
1--WE demand that the circulating me-
dunn OF the country shall be issued
direct to the people at a low rate of inter-