The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1893-12-27
GROWERS CHRISTMAS MAIL,
Gov. PennOyer Contributes a Pa.
thetic Letter.

Uov. PennOyer Contributes a Pa.
thetic Letter.
HARD TIMES IN HIS BAILIWICK
SALEM, Or, Dec. 25.-Gov. Pen
noyer today addressed the following
letter to President Cleveland:
1.-The extraordinary circumstances
which greet the return of this holiday
must be my excuse for writing you.
Today is the first Christmas in the
history of Oregon when more than
t"o-thlrds of it's people are without
employment, and more than one
third are without sufficient means
or support. Business is almost COM
pletely stagnated. Money is not to
be obtained, and debtors are power
less to avoid seizure of their prop
erty and their homes to satisfy at
a small percentage of their value
the claims of creditors. Reported
appeals have been made to me as
governor of Oregon. to assemble the
legislature in order to alleviate this
condition Of affairs, and prevent the
impending calamity. The redress
IS, however, not in our hands, but in
yours, and hence this appeal to YOU.
1he laws OF congress, which have
disseminated against silver, and
made gold alone full legal tender
money, giving to money lender the
privilege of refusing both the silver
dollar and silver certificate, thus
RENDERING UNAVAILABLE
more than one-half of the national
currency as absolute debt paving
money, are the sole causes of the de-
cline OF values, paralysis of business
and consequent impoverishment of
the great army of wage workers, and
the impending starvation of their
wives and children. If, when you
stood upon the Eastern portico of
the capitol on the fourth of last
March, you had announced to the
people that you would speedily con-
vene congress in extra session to
carry out the pledge Of the platform
TO which you gave your assent, and
upon which you were elected, and
which declared for the use of both
gold and silver as standard money
without discrimination against either
metal, the widespread revision of
business, which has diminished the
value of the property of the nation
by fully onehalf, would never have
occurred. And if now you would
give such advice to congress the fur
ther downward tendency would be
checked, and with favorable congress
sional legislation business would
again revive and prosperity would
again visit our land. It is honorable
to carry out the pledges of the party
to the people, and is it not most dis
honorable not to do 500
THE RESPONSIBILITY
lies entirely with you. Complete
obedience of the lower house of con-
gress to your wishes has been OBJ
served throughout the world. 1t
would be your behest, and in this
the senate would give you support.
You are father, and you no doubt
feel grateful to God when you, upon
retiring to rest, look upon your
sleeping babes in their couches. the
nictures of health. consequent upon
their having sufficiency Of food and
clothing. l pray you, however, to
enlarge the scope of your vision and
behold, as you can in many and
many cot, children loved as much
by their parents as yours are by you,
weak and sickly from insufficient
food and clothing; the innocent vic
Tins of vicious financial legislation,
whose sleeping forms are bathed by
the scalding tears of mothers bend
ing over them in sorrow and despair:
and there resolve. as you should, to
| faithfully carry out the pledges
which your party gave to a confding
people. If you will do so God will
bless you, and a grateful nation will
applaud you"