Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1894-02-01
THOSE FARMERS NOTES.

Loux, Wardall, Crosse & Co. were
building their farmers heaven, and
letting contracts for digging bottom
less pits IN tophet for the plutocrats
and monopolists, and incidentally
acting as repositories for whatever
loose change the farmers could scrape
up as fees, dues, assessments, etc,
the Alliance Purchasing Company
was organized at a cost to the gran
gers figured at about $1,000 900 in
cash and notes, the cash payments to
amount TO about $4,000 and the
notes to amount to 100000.
1t will be remembered that these
Napoleons of business and finance
were going to completely revolution
1ze all the merchantile, coal, lumber,
binding Irvine and machinery trade
of the northwest. Every local mer-
chant was to be wiped out of exis-
tence, orcompelled to retail his goods
at prices fixed by Loux, and his
coadjutors. Every coal and lumber
dealer was to be crushed out of sight
and those wonderful Titans were to
put coal and lumber upon the dear
farmers wagons much less than what
had formerly been charged. But it
was when these saviors got down from
their lofty godliness and consented to
revolutionize the Irvine and machinery
trade, that they showed their deep,
broad, high, expansive grasp of hum
anitariasm. Being horny-handed,
dust begrimed, stable-scented, cow
hide-booted, big-knuckled, cow-chip-
burning, sod-shacking hayseeds them
selves, if there was any one thing on
earth more than anotherthat theyknew
all about, land a little more,) it was
"Twine and Farm Machinery" They
just fairly reveled in these two items
OF farmer robbery, and only waited
for the confding grangers to spank
their hands and holler "Sick-em," to
fly at these two octopian m~onopolies
like pink-eyed bulldogs, and with
their sharpened alliance fangs tear
them all to pieces, and lay the lace
rated and bleeding chunks of CULVER
ing meat-torn from the dodgasted
plutes at the feet of the dear-deary
dearest farmers. OF course, you
know, in order, you know, to 'help
things along, you know, it would be
necessary to levy a little ASSESS
HENT," you know, just. a mere baga-
telle, yon know, say a triaing ten
dollars or SO, for travelling expenses
and postage, you know, because WI
-Loux & Co., do so object to the
"free pass system"-(till after we get
mileage allowance from the ~alliance)
you know. AS is we'll remembered,
two dollars of the ten comprising this
unique phlebotomy was pinched out
of the farmers in cold cesh-the other
eight dollars covering the balance of
the alleged value of the stock being
accepted 10 notes, 1t took just about
a year for these shares to be all dis
posed of, and the $500 cash on each
raked in. The latter was evidently
the cream for which the precious
triumvirate were s~cheming. Having
secured the cash, the notes were laid
away as SO much collateral.
During this first year senator Loux
eonfesses that he was sin it," Since
that time he claims hat he knows
nothing of the matter. Oh, certainly
not! OF course not! Why should
he know-or care to know.
The cash rake-of, remember. oc-
CURED during the first year. The
suction of the alliance pump had been
carefully adjusted TO the enduring,
pay-downability of the victims, and
the $500 each was eoughed up will
li%ngly--eyen enthusiastically by the
CHANGERS. The cash was safe in the
coffers-then why should his Cana
dian Excellency dabble any longer
with the concern? Especially so
when there was nothing left but those
$500 notes-to force the collection
of each of which meant to him the
loss of a vote whenever he got ready
to run for u. S. senator.
Was fox ever more cunning?