The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1892-09-29
AN OPEN LETTER,
T. T. HICKS, ESQ, PROM
INENT.. THIRDl PARTY LEA
DER,

| T. T. HICKS, ESQ.,, TOA PROM
INENT, THIRD PARTY LEA
DER.
An Able and Pointed Paper or
the Political and Financia
Situation.
HENDERSON, N. c., Sept. q, 1892.
d. H. Gill, ESQ,
Dear Sir: Il believe that you are
the head and front OF the People.
party in Vance county and you will
be held responsible for its action and
the results thereof l have heard and
considered the reasons for your
course; they are to me insufficient
would gladly follow you or any man
who offers something better than we
have had. You know l wear no party
collar. | wished that you and the
Peoples party would hear dispassion-
ately and without confusion in politi>
cal assemblies my reasons for the
political course / intend to pursue.
This is not permitted. Please read
this. 1t contains no falsehood.
believe no Democratic or white
man will leave the party if he can be
satisfied that the Democratic party
is not responsible for the AayA times.
That it is not, 1 shall try to show.
| I. You know it is a fact that be-
tween $50 and 5000 dollars are
taken from Vance county every year
to enrich Northern manufacturers, and
that neither we nor the nation get
any return. That is a tax of eleven
dollars per capita per year on Vance
county. If left here, would not it
cure the hard times? The Demo-
cratic party protests against this.
2. You know the South made last
year nine million bales OF cotton and
that was threefourths of the worlds
crop, and that two thirds of our crop
went to England; that she Is allowed
to fix the price because she is the very
largest buyer on the worlds market.
1t l carried my cotton to England and
exchanged it for her cheap goods,
she is excluded and so am l, from
bringing them to this country
without nearly doubling their price
in the form of tax or a tariff, and
you know that this keeps out English
goods, forces England to pay less for
our cotton. and allows Nezo England
manufacturers to charge us any price
they will. And you know the Demo
cratic party protests bitterly against
it.
3. You know that between 1866
and 1870 process was discovered of
curing tobacco white, and that the
practice was confined to Caswell and
Granville counties, N, C. and per-
haps a border county in Va, and
that from 1870 to away up in the
eighties Darham, Henderson, Oxford
and Milton and Danville, in Va,
supplied the worlds demand for
bright tobacco and almost entirely
from the counties named, and that
the demand was out of all proportion
to the supply, and that the price was
out of all proportion to its value. And
you also know that the production Of
bright tobacco has in the last few
years spread almost all over North
Carolina and Virginia, and in this
State it can now be bought in great
abundance at Asheville, Salisbury,
Greensboro, Winston, Mt. Airy, Bur
lington, Milton, Durham, Oxford,
Roxboro, Henderson, Raleigh, Louis
burg, Warrenton, Rocky Mount,
Wilson, Tarboro, Greenville, and in
various other places in Virginia and
South Carolina. And while the sup
ply has SO increased the demand has
decreased, people preferring to use the
dark tobacco. Call on the next crowd
you are in to show their plugs. Nearly
all will be dark. Is the Democratic
party responsible for this increase in
supply? or the decrease of demand?
or for the trust that further decreases
the price? No, rather, it is the fault
of the world and always was, to s'make
a good thing too common"
4. You know that political agitation
depresses trade and causes those who
have, to fear to venture lest they lose,
that there were never SO protracted
and bitter and successful efforts, as
for the last two and a half years to
make the hand workers hate every
body else. Does not this depress
values and contract the currency? Is
the Democratic party responsible for
it?
5. You know that the entrusting of
government in the Southern States to
those who are unfit to govern would
paralyze all business, depress values,
contract the currency here and ruin
US. As the breath of suspicion tar
nishes fair name, 50 the talk Of this
two years ago and the present con-
tinued threat of it have and do de-
spoil US till it shall be past. But the
blight of it is on lis and makes times
hard. Will you help to keep it on
US? Wasn'tH bad enongh the 0ther
timer Is the Democratic party re-
sponsible for this? But l hear you
say: Let's talk about money. FL
nance.
E. Well, you know, or I assume you
do, fo, it is true, that from the time
this nation begun to coin money in
I762'till 1861 the total product of
the silver mines of the United States
was s1,65o,ooo, and from 1861 to
1873, sI52,5oo,ooo, and from 1873
to 1892 it was s843,5oo,ooo; and
that including dollars, halves, quarters,
twenty, ten, five and three pieces there