People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1893-10-06
WHAI Is OPPREssloNi
The Answer Il Found In the Condition Of
This Country's Producers

This Country's Producers.
Oppression of ones own people never
comes with the mailed hand of force.
but with the cunning smile Of the trick.
ster. The people are amused and fat
tered while the schemers deprive them
OF property and then use them as servants
Snd slaves. If law were put upon the
statutes Of any state or nation that the
producers should not leave their county
or state, should wear a certain grade Of
clothing, live in certain class of houses
and feed upon certain grade Of food.
the people would revolt and tear down
the oppressors.
They could read that law and would
realize its import. If the law said they
should work for such wages as their EN-
ployers might decide, they would revolt.
But the invisible money power knows
this. This power studies human nature.
1t proceeds to blarny the people about
their great country, its wonderful
freedom, how much better off they are
than the oppressed and barbarians of
other countries. They put in their heads
strong words Of how they love the indie
pendent farmer, the honest laboring
masses, the yeomanry and bulwark Of a
nation. They hatter and cajole with
such lies as "honest money, protection
to home labor" 'labor is honorable
while they proceed to enact laws making
dishonest money, protect capital, not
labor, and spurn honest labor as they
would pest.
They create conditions that SO i'm
poverish the producers of wealth that
they never get money enough ahead to
leave their county or state, that they do
have 10 wear a certain grade of shoddy
clothes, that they do have to live in
shanties or tenement hells, that they do
have to be satisfied with the poorest
food, that they do have to take just what
those who can use their labor are willing
to pay-and go around and beg, humil-
iatingly, to be accepted on those terms.
These facts are so self evident that they
90 without saying. You see it is not
necessary to always make laws to OPP
press, to get the labor of others without
doing any labor yourself, but it is neces-
sary to prevent proper laws from being
enacted or enforced, that will protect
those who are weak and ignorant. The
laws of omission are as oppressive as
laws IT commission. And thus the
people of the United States are OPP
pressed.
At the close Of the late war the people
were prosperous, happy and out of debt
1t was so stated by the great men of the
times, and those old enough know it was
true. But by laws of commission, laws
giving special privileges and laws Of
omission-laws that could have protected
the masses-our people are hopelessly in
debt. Nine million homes have mort
cages on him, all municipalities have
piled up debts, all corporations have
heaped up mountains Of watered debts
for the people to pay interest on, and we
| find the nation today on the verge Of
some great social cataclysm. This is OPP
preston. No people ever had such bur
dens put on them, for no other people
ever had snch productivepowers and re-
sources.
We find the wealth that belonged to
the millions a few years ago now belongs
to the millionaircs, and the people are
poor indeed. This is all any tyrant ever
wanted-the people to work while he
feasted. No nation in the history Of the
past was ever reduced to such depend
ence in so short a time. This is because
the people have been partisan. Wisdom
weighs, considers, knows. No wise man
was ever bigot or an oppressor. If the
reader loves his family, loves his coun-
try, loves his freedom, / beg him, even
with tears. to think, to investigate, to
know.
The principles Of just government are
as movable, are as certain, as mathe-
mates. When You investigate, you will
see it. 1t is founded upon justice, upon
the teachings Of the lOwly Jesus, and it
cannot err. None of us asks you 10 ac-
cept it until you know. feel it is right.
Is that not fairi Only by investigating
can you know. Ignorance has brought
you misery and woe. knowledge will
bring you peace and joy.-Coming Ma
ton.