Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1892-10-28
Senator Ingalls, Great Speech
A Terrible Condition Of Affairs,
Read it and Then Think a Moment.
Can't You See Where We Are
Drifting and the Cause.
Every Honest Voter Should Help
Stop These Great Crimes.
Vote With The People and Relief
Will Surely Come.

During that perod (ls6O to 1880 Of
twenty years the wealth uf the country
increased at the rate of $3.50, 900 for every
hour. Every time that the clock ticked
above the portals of this chamber the
aggregate, accumulated, permanent
wealth OF this country increased more
than $40 Sir, it rivals, it exceeds the
fictions Of the Arabian Nights. There
is nothing in the story of Aladdin's lamp
that surpasses it. 1t is without parallel
or precedent; and the national ledger now
shows balance to credit, after all that
has been wasted and squandered, and ex-
pended and lost and thrown away, of be-
tween sixty and seventy-tive thousand
millions dollars believe myself that
upon fair cash market valuation the
aggregate of this wealth to day is not less
than one hundred thousand million dol
lars. This is enough Mr.. President, to
every child beneath the flag comfortable.
and keep the wolf away from the door;
it is enough to give every family COM
petence. And yet we are told that there
are thousands of the people who never
have enough to eat in any one day Of the
year. We are told by the statisticians of
the commission Of labor Of the United
States that Notwithstanding this stupend-
Gus aggregation. there are a million
American citizens ablebodied and willing
to work, who tramp the streets CT our
cities and the country highways and by
ways in search of labor with which to
buy their daily bread in vain.
The people are beginning to inquire
whether, under "a government of the
people, by the people and for the people, ;"
under system in which the bounty Of
nature is supplemented by the combined
labor of all, any citizen can show moral
yes or legal title to 5000, 900, ,OOO Some
have the temerity to ask whether or not
any man can show clear title to 800,
600, 600. There have been men rash
enough to doubt whether, under system
so constituted by speculation or otherwise
any citizen can show fair title to
$40, 600, 900 when the distribution per
capita would be less than 81 900. If
were put upon my voire dire, l should
hesitate to admit that, in the sense of
giving just compensation and equivalent,
any man in this country or any country
ever absolutely earned million dollars.
do not believe he ever did. What is
the condition today Mr.. President, by
the statistics? repeat that the people
are not anarchists; they are not socialists;
they are not communists; but they have
suddenly walked to the conception of the
fact that the bulk Of the property of this
country is passing into the hands of what
the senator from Ohio [Sherman] by a
|euphemism calls the ..speculators' of
the world.
T0uoting1 '!Four hundred persons
possess 100000 900; one thousand pos
sess $4,000, 900 each; two thousand pos
sess So, 100000 each; six thousand peo-
ple 81, 200. 900 each--a total of nine thous-
and owning $40, 800, 900, 00O."
Mr.. President, it is the most appalling
statement that ever fell upon mortal ears.
1t is, so far as the results of democracy
as social and political experiment are
concerned, the most terrible commen-
tary that was ever recorded in the books
of time-and Nero fiddles while Rome
burns. 1t is thrown off with laugh and
a sneer as the froth on the beers of our
political and social system. AS said,
the assessed valuation recorded in the
great national ledger, standing to our
credit, is about $65. 900, 600, 900. Our pop
ulation is 62, 2,500,O00; and by some means,
by some incantatiOn. honest or otherwise,
by some process that cannot be defined.
less that two -thousandth part OF our
population have obtained possession (and
have kept out of the penitentiary in spite
of the means they adopted to acquire it)
of more than one. half of the entire wealth
of our country.
So it happens, Mr.. President, that our
society is becoming rapidly stratifled, into
a condition OF superfiuously rich and
helplessly poor. We are accustomed to