The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1892-04-21
THEY HEARD ROB EVANS.

Messrs. Lankerd, Tyson, Beard.
Hughes aud Aiken made up the little
company from Redwood that visited
Sleepy Eye last Monday, mainly to
listen to the eloquent R. G.. Evans.
DR.. Beard may protest against this as
ISOLATION of ideas, but we feel bound
to warn his democratic brethren that
the doctor appears to have some hank
ering after the truth, and his going all
the way to Sleepy Eye to hear it is
submitted in proof. He did not go in
vain. The brilliant Bob" did not
touch off rhetorical fireworks or -four
ish the sanguinary shirt, but dealt in
history and cited known facts, mailing
the Republican banner to the mast
head with logic that was not less con-
vincing becansc it was presented with
the warmth of a natural orator.
Starting out with the statement that
he thought it better time now to dis
eass political issues than to wait until
the heat of the campaign, the speaker
told parable of landlord who let a
valuable estate to a tenant TO- be
worked, and after a series of years
found it running behind financially,
heavily mortgaged and without credit,
and held in partial contempt by the
neighbors. A new tenant was installed,
who by better business methods re-
versed the conditions of the estate I'M
til it became more prosperous than
any in the neighborhood, with every
thing about the place well kept, and
its credit and good name equal to the
best. OF course the audience made
the application readily, even before
the speaker asked them to recall the
condition Of the United States thirty
years ago.
We will not attempt to follow the
speakers argument in detail, but the
above indicates the general plan. He
assumed that the great mass of voters
OF all parties, were patriotic, and want
ed to work out their country's good,
but reminded some of them that two
years ago they forgot the lessons of his
tory and went after false prophets who
told them what great hardships were
to come out of the Mckinley tariff -
pictured the "poor mans dinner paip'
going up out of sight,a all the nee.
essaries of life to be made dearer by
that terrible law. Then contrasting
these prophecies by their utter want of
fulfillment, the speaker said that if
any Of his audienceuld not get any ar
ticle affected by the Mckinley bill as
cheap in the stores of Sleepy Eye as
they could two years ago, to come to
him, and he would turn merchant
himself.
The address abounded throughout
with appeals to existing and past act
ual conditions, almost the only theory
advanced being that the wage-earners
and taxpayers of the United States
had moral right to all the benefits
of the markets which they had created,
and were justified in looking after their
fences and protecting their homes and
the fruits of their labor from compe-
tition with cheap labor and cheap men
of other nations.
In closing the speaker said that he
did not purpose to make single con-
vert by his talk, but would feel amply
repaid if he should be the means of in
'ducing some of those present to study
the past history of the identical prob
lens that were to be settled by the
coming election, none of which were
really new to the student of our coun-
try's history. We commend this as
the right spirit in which to appeal to
voters, and we are also bound to COM
mend the almost entire absence of in
vective and buncombe which disting-
uished Mr.. Evans speech. It would
be fortunate thing if the speakers of
all parties could follow in this this
line, during the coming campaign.