The great West. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1889-18??, 1893-08-18
WILLTHEY STAND IT?
A LETTER FROM A PROMINENT
BUSINESS MAN OF THE
SOUTH WHO KNOWS HOW
1T is BY EXPERIENCE.
Unless RELIEF COMES THERE IS
NOTHING BUT SERFDOM LEFT
FOR THE PEOPLE OF THE
SOUTH AND WEST.
Farms Sold Under Mortgage for Twenty
to Twenty-Five Cents on the Dollar.

We have frequently called attention
% the desperate condition OF the farm
'crs of the west and northwest who
have their farms mortgaged and are
unable, in many instances, to even pay
the interest. Although there is not,
perhaps, as large per cent of south
ern farms mortgaged, the condition of
the southern people, otherwise, is no
better, if indeed as good, as that of the
western farmer. Here, for years, cot
ton has been king, and no more ruth
less tyrant ever ruled poverty
cursed people. While cotton is king,
it is only SO in name. There is power
behind the throne that is greater than
che throne itself. The horde of land
lords, merchants and spectators be-
hind, who fatten at the table of king
cotton, are daily applying the whip,
flashing the people along the road to
poverty. In. tne meantime, through
the willy m3s.aipulations of English cap
italists. who have either bribed or
aupec cur great (:) American states
men to assist them, the price of cotton
has been reduced even below the &C
5ual cost of production. The manner
IN which this has been done is so plain
and simple that the only wonder is
chat it is not evident to all, even 1.-THE
wayfaring man, though fool" It
IS a simple problem in mathematics.
An ounce of silver, coined, makes
iust two and one-half rupees of India
money.
Two and one-half rupees buys ten
pounds of cotton in India and puts it
n the Liverpool market, which gov
srns the price of cotton throughout
she world.
In other words, the English mer-
.hant, with an ounce of silver, which
ne gets coined into India money free
IF charge. can buy and put in the
market of the world against all other
competition ten pounds of cotton.
Then it follows that the ten pounds
IF cotton will cost the English mer-
chant just what an ounce of silver
will cost him. If he wants 70 buy
cheap cotton all he has to do is to buy
cheap silver. At the present price of
silver, 70 cents per ounce, he can put
zen pounds of cotton in the market
FOR and 3-1Oths cents per pound.
When we had free silver an ounce OF
silver was worth about 81. 80. 1t then
cost 81. 80 to put ten pounds of cotton
in the market, or 10 cents pound.
This was the price our American
:otton had to compete with then.
About 8 cents per pound is what it
las to compete with now under
she low price of silver. America pro-
duces the bulk of the worlds silver.
By coming it into silver dollars, free
TO the owners of bullion, she can fix
che price uniformly at a fraction less
than 81. 80 an ounce. BY yielding to
che dictation of England she can re-
auce the price to 60 cents an ounce.
Cheap silver for England means cheap
.otton for America. The same reason
ing holds good with wheat It is this
Infamous treachery on the part of
American statesmen (?) that has
brought the south to the verge of
bankruptcy and despair. A recent
letter, from prominent business man
in the south to Major A. J. Warner,
president Of tie Am erican 3 metallic