The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1894-07-06
CALLED TO ACCOUNT.
A WORKlNGMAN ASKS THE PRESI-
DENT TO REDEEM HIS PLEDGES.


and the Presidency-He Secured Votes
Under False Pretenses--where the Peo-
pie Are Anxious to See Him.
One of the important things guaran-
teed under your contract with the ma
tion) was that you would make things
cheaper. You have made some progress
in that direction which honesty requires
you should be given credit for. Arti-
cles of food, however. though much
cheaper than under the lower tariff four
years back, are not much changed in
retail price from a year ago-a fact l
thoroughly tested in my time of want
and such difference as does exist, store
keepers tell me. is temporary and due
to the fact that the smaller quantity
used by the working and other classes
during the past year has left an unusual
store of such products on hand, which
farmers and owners have had to sell in
order to get money or avoid loss.
But some things you have made de-
cidedly cheaper. You have cheapened
clothing, dry goods and nearly all kinds
of manufactured articles, temporarily
down to one-third the regular price and
one-half the cost to make, through bank
rupt stocks on all sides, with many rare
bargains which would gladly jump at
if I only had my old job and money to
buy with. With these you have also
cheapened our labor until over 100000
workingmen have been months unable
to sell it at any price and 100000 more,
through reduced time or pay, for more
than an average of three-quarters its
former value. You have cheapened the
country by prostrating its industries, de-
creasing the consumption of its products
and loss of over $50, 900, 100000 of bust
ness in single year.
You have cheapened the nation before
the world by a miserable attempt to force
q brass mounted queen over friendly
people. You have cheapened the presi-
dency by its use to intimidate and cor
rupt the peoples representatives in their
official action and to secure their coop
Grafton in an effort to degrade large
part and to cheaper the whole people.
You have cheapened your party by show
ing through its leaders its hypocrisy,
want of settled principles, incapacity to
legislate for the country's welfare and
it's treachery to American and favorit-
ism of foreign interests. You have cheap
ened your supporters by exhibiting their
weakness, cowardice, servility and their
readiness to sell their votes and the in
terests of their constituents for official
favors, and, lastly, you have cheapened
yourself by betrayal of public trust
through misrepresentation and use of a
public office to repay money used to Sc
cure your election. In fact, you have
been so generally successful in this par
ticular that both you and your support
ers will pass down through the ages as
the Cheap Johns of American history.
For over six years you have repeatedly
told us that if we should ever lose our
jobs there is always plenty of good pay
ing work to- be had. This you said to
secure our help. through our votes, in
your intended destruction of the salt
makers, wool raisers, wooden manufac-
turers and other industries, and the
turning adrift of their help. A large
number of US who then believed you
now desire to see you about that state
ment. We want you to make it good;
to go to New York and find jobs for
from 20, 900 to 100000 idle there; to 20 to
Brooklyn and get work for $4,000 to 3d.
600 in that city; to Boston, with 80, 1000
there; to Buffalo, your old home, and
provide places for the $4,000 unemploy-
ed, large numbers of whom helped to
raise you from harmless obscurity.
Go to Philadelphia, with its 90, 900; to
Pittsburg with so, 900 more; to Chicago,
with yet $4,000 more; to Cleveland, Gin
cinnati, Louisville, Indianapolis, Mil
waukee, st. Louis and San Francisco,
with their $4,000; to the manufacturing
districts of the eastern, middle and
western states; to the mining regions of
New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania,
West Virginia, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana,
Illinois, Minnesota, Missouri, Tennessee,
Alabama, Colorado, Nevada, Montana,
Idaho and California; the lumber sec
tions Of Michigan, Wisconsin and the
northwest; the farming and wool rails
ing territory of the central, western,
northwestern, southwestern and Pacific
states.
In fac, y~'' are badly wanted in near
ly every Cit, Si..sage and township in
the eastern, nor6,sern, western, north
western, southwestern, Pacific and some
southern parts Of the country W show
what over 1890, 600 of us have been un
able to find for ourselveo--good paying
jobs or any at all. And we want you.
right away too. We want to go to work
at whistle time tomorrow morning. Not
only come yourself, but lock up your
wrecking congress and bring the other
Cheap Johns along with you. We want
to see them also. They made the same
statement and led us to give you and
them government jobs on the strength
of it. We don't want bombazine char
ity work or more promised soapsuds, but
good steady jobs, with hard cash at the
back of them-in fact, our old places and
wages.-From Workingman's Letter to
President Cleveland.
------------