The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1894-08-07

wonder, then, that our government is
a failure, not that the people are a
failure at governing, but the people
failed to govern. Now why not lay |
the blame of this movement where it |
justly belongs9 The contraction of the
currency has curtailed business, clos
ing factories, mines and decreasing the
number of laborers in every depart
ment of work. The trend of our ma
tional laws for a number of years have |
been to foster and protect mining,
manufacturing and monopoly in gen
eral
And are there no crimes of which the
representatives of the above named in
dustries and institutions are guilty9
Why, the very wcrk of these protected
industries and monopolies tends to de
stroy manhood, independence and
patriotism in the bosoms of the opera
tives employed the rein. Is not this a
crime, as well as the 'Coxey move.
ment9"
Let me here quote few words from
eminent authority in proof of the charge
and assertion which have just made.
I refer to DIR. Strong's book, "Our
Country" On page 96, under the head
of 'Perils that threaten our country"
he says: Beyond question, under the
minute division of labor, the operative
tends to degenerate. This truth is
sadly manifest in the manufacturing
towns of England. The robust Anglo
Saxon degenerates in the mills to the
Leicester stockinger, to the imbecile
Manchester spinner-far on the way to
be spiders end needlers. The incessant
repetition of the same handiwork
dwarfs the man, robs him of his
strength, wit and versatility
and presently, in change Of industry,
whole towns are sacrificed like ant
hills"
And is not this the very work and
results Of the protected manufacturing
and mining industries of our own
countryG Are not Coxey's followers
mostly composed of men who were
forced to accept starvation wages, or
cast out to live or die9 But space for,
bids; L must hasten on. Again I
quote from this excellent authority
Under the low wages of the present
industrial system there is strong ten
dency among operatives to form a
hereditary class and thus degenerate
the MORE" Again, on page SO of this
same work we find these words: ''The
operative who has for years confined
himself to one thing, has thereby large
ly lost his power of adaptation. He
cannot turn his hand to this or that
He very likely is too old to learn a new
trade or acquire new technical skill.
He has no alternative and, unless an
chored by family, he probably turns
tramp"
might quote much more from this
valuable source bearing on the same
subject In proof of the assertion that
the owners and representatives of
these .aforenamed institutions are
guilty of some crime, as well as the
'Coxey movement, but I must desist.
It may be answered that no one COM
PEELED these people to adopt this life
work or occupation. To this would
reply that a train of circumstances, set
in motion by the favored few" have
compelled these people, in many in
stances, to accept this work, and after
laboring for years and enriching their
employers, while uniting themselves
for any other work, they are thrown
out and other poor, needy ones (only
too ready are taken in to be destroyed.
Do not these facts prove, beyond
question, that the 'Coxey movement"
has a cause behind it9 And that cause,
if thoroughly examined, will be found
largely in the unjust laws of our
country.
The farmers as class, while suffer
ing most of all from the money strin-
gency in the low prices of their prod
ucts, do not produce among their en-
ployees or laborers the woeful results
above mentioned. Is it not nigh time
our people were awakening to the true
situation of our country and to the
causes that have produced these condi-
tion9 Is it not time that we tear the
cloak of special protection from the
body of our independent, naughty,
oppressive, monopolistic institutions,
and that we issue sufficient amount
of the medium of exchange, as well as
accommodate the ever increasing vol
ume of trade, and thus furnish Life
blood to commerce and employment to
the thousands of unemployed, thereby
destroying, in a large measure, the