The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1894-06-05
RON. THOS. {. WlTSOK'S SPEECH

of a train held up while a United States
Senator was begging for the tramps
privilege of a ride without pay. Gap
pIause and cries of "Gordon.'O make
no war upon railroad capital, or rail
road president or railroad operators. l
g. this: the system is wrong, n
commerce free and unrestricted de-
mands that the proper solution should
be applied; when that is done it will
help every class, every section. All
persons every man, woman and child,
coIored and white, has a legal right to
be protected. applause and cries OF
tsHurrah for Tom Watson.")
If you had government ownership
what would you do9 You would save
millions of dollars spent in lobbying
expenses; millions of dollars spent In
fancy salaries of presidents and officials
who do no work; you would stop the
palace car extravaganza; you would
stop the free pass evil; you would stop
the ''Watered stock" swindling, and
you would stop this eternal warfare
between the corporations and its labor
ers. This is what they say is the wild
est plank in the platform. l say 1T
TALES with the principle of the public
highway; with the public river, with
the belief and the principles and the
system Of the principal European
statesmen and I to night beg you to
remember what old Bob Toombs said
in his last years, ''The time has come"
said he, "when the question has got to
be settled whether the government will
own the railroads or the railroads own
the government" I am glad to believe
that the government is the biggest man
around the house, and that the result
will be that he owns the roads.
Now let us talk a little about finance.
I believe we are substantially agreed
with the Democrats if you turn back
about one or two years. I do not pre-
tend to say where they are to night be-
cause I have been busy all day and
have not read the papers. Great ap-
plause.)
The thing that bothers me o is,
where to hit a Democrat. I would
rather try to draw a rife bead on a
didapper great applause) or to catch
ahumming bird with Texas cowboys
lasso.
God knows I would not persecute
Hoke Smith much about his record
daughter and applause) but here is the
Atlanta Journal of January I'd, 1892,
and as it isshort meter, I will read you
a few lines. The great question was
then up as to whether David B. Hill or
Grover Cleveland was the most perfect
patriot; that question is still unsettled.
daughter and ~applause.) The proba-
bilities are that it would take inspira-
ton from on high to tell which was
the most perfect patriot, David or
Grover. But the Atlanta Constitution
which is familiar with all ways because
it has travelled them all daughter and
applause) was trying to prove to the
people of Georgia that David B, Hill
Was about the only friend that free
silver had in all this country, and
therefore ought to be President, and in
that honest endeavor, I believe it was
assisted by Hon. L. f. Livingston Of
aromatic memory. daughter, ap-
plause and cries Of "hithim again."
The Atlanta Journal believed then,
- - Iooa Mt hoTTouo oou EboE NnOr1or
Cleveland was the friend of silver, and
of everything that was pure and good,
including good snipe hunting. Oaugh-
teri The Atlanta Constitution, claim
ing that Hill was in favor of free silver,
the Atlanta Journal combatted that
claim, and said that Cleveland was a
better friend of silver that David B.
Hill was. Now let me read this:
"Mr. Cleveland" says the Atlanta
Journal, sis in favor of letting alone
for the present the silver act which
provides for the coinage of $54. 600, 900
per year" That is it's language. They
pledged the people of Georgia that Mr.,
Cleveland was in favor of maintaining
the Sherman law which purchased four
million and a half ounces of silver per
month, which, according to the Jour-
nal, gave us fifty odd million dollars of
silver per year; while they said David
B. Hill only wanted the Bland act
which gave us 1924, 600, 900 of silver per
year. Cleveland, they said, was in
favor of letting the Sherman law alone;
was in favor of giving you the same
amount of silver that you were then
getting, and to prove that the Journal
OUa-oIo-l zA-s6z- - H.