The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1894-07-11
PIONEER PRESS HocUs-PocUs.
Shall the Debtor Have His Property
COnflscated for the Benefit of thu



Shall the Debtor Have His Property
COnfiscated for the Benefit of the
Mortgage Syndicate5
Editor Representative.
1t is curious and interesting study to
observe how the old party press is squirm-
ing to avoid the money issue, and now
when the dailies see that they are COM
PEELED to face it, how they try to throw
dust in the eyes of the public by putting
UP men of straw and knocking them down
again. The p. p. Of June II con-
tains an editorial headed ut Cost Too
Much" in which it is pretended that the
object of more money is to stimulate ex-
ports. Now while a sufficient volume Of
money that would distribute the wealth of
the nation equitably would undoubtedly in
crease foreign trade indirectly, no money
crank so far as I know, ever based his
arguments for more money on such a far
fetched pretext. It is man of straw set
up by the P. p. for the purpose OF
practicing athletics on, and fool its votariss
into believing that it understands the mon
ey question, and have knocked out both
silverite and greenbacker in one lick. But
to show the dense ignorance or W1llful ~
ing Of that great p. r. let me quote further
on, "Can we not better bear a sluggish ex-
pert trade and declining process for our
products, hard as this may be, for a short
time, than any policy which would cut
down the value of our dollar at one stroke,
and destroy thereby more wealth than our
whole foreign trade would bring us in
generation? There is no such thing as Gre
ating wealth or prosperity out of nothing
by monetary hocus pocus' What fopu-
list or money crank ever claimed that this
w
or prosperity out of nothing by monetary
reforms, which is probably what the P. P.
means by "hocus pocus?' And what fool
outside of the P. P. Office could ever i'm
agins that cutting down the value OF our
dollar at one stroke could destroy wealth p
That changing the money unit, or changing
by law the number of grains In the dollar
could or would destroy the metal? Or does
the p P. mean to say that by free silver
the value of gold and the gold dollar would
come down? And to protect the wealth Of
a few horders Of gold coin and bullion
from depreciation is of more consequence
to the nation than our whole foreign trade
in generation? The latter is undoubtedly
what the P. P. actually means but fails
the courage to state right out. Hence this
beating around the bush.
But while there is no such thing as Great
ing wealth out OF nothing by monetary
hocus pocus, there is such a thing as trans
ferring and distributing equitably or other
wise wealth already created such thing
as robbing the producer of wealth under
cover of law by "a monetary hOcus pocus'
The P. p is very careful not to
say anything about the present inequitable
and unjust distribution of wealth brought
about by it's own system of gold standard
money hocus pOcus; nor about the hocus
pocus of 1873, when silver was demonetized
and the gold dollar enlarged in purchasing
power and every debtor, public and private,
compelled by a general process called law
to pay more than he agreed to when he
entered into the contract-a sort of govern
notwithstanding for the-creditors hocus pocus;
nor to mention the hocus pocus Of Secretary
Foster, when by a simple ruling he de-
monetiZed silver a second time; nor about
the hocus pocus of last summer, when
statesmen of large caliber and great love
for the farmer voted the latter out of
house and home and his property over to
the mortgage syndicate. The P. P 10 very
careful not to touch upon this wealth.
transferring hOcus pocus. And it may
have good reasons to keep still. The farm
ers out here on the prairies are just now
discovering that there has been a lot Of
wheat stealing and horse stealing and beef
stealing Of most everything that the farmer
raises of late years, and they are organ
iZng investigating committees to see II
they can't find out where their missing
wealth has gone If they should track
their wheat and horses and beef to some
hocus pocus racket of the kind that it re-
fers to above.
One thing, however, is certain to every
thinking farmer and that is that agrcult-
ure, except for home consumption for the
family is impossible. Doing business
at a loss, as the farmer has for the last
two years, cannot continue forever. The
little surplus accumulated in former years
is now pretty well exhausted even among
the well-to-do farmers and the farmer who
has had interest to pay has very likely
chattel mortgages on all of his personal
property. The moneyed men have cornered
the money and our statesmen 60, nOtwith-
standing their protestation of great love
for the farmer, have actually Joined with
the money spectators and stopped the
600 annual output under the Sherman
law. How will the farmer now get the dol
lars to fill his contract and redeem his
property? The P. P. evidently never asked
itself this question. This talk about too
much money or enough money when thou
sands of hard working farmers on every
hand are losing their property and their
homes for want of it, is not only an insult
to average intelligence, but it is flendish.
1t betrays the entire lack of human sym
pathy and human feeling. The main ques-
ton at issue in the coming campaign is
this: Shall the property owner with mort
gage on his property have his equity in his
property confiscated for the benefit of the
mortgage syndicate? Both of the old par
ties say yes. The Populist party says no!
The Populst party demands justice for
the debtor. She demands justice! justice,
justice! Do the P. P and the old party
press hear? Oh, no. Their ears are deaf
to the demand for justice. All they can
hear is offices and barrels; and all they
can understand is the relation man with
a barrel holds to an office. If humanity in
general don't rise and wipe the earth with
the old party press in the near future
then, indeed, men now
Flight not as they fought
In the days of DID,
CHRISTIAN JOHNSON
New London, MINI.
GETTING INTO LINE.
THE CYCLONE Moving.