The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1895-07-17
A STRONG LETTER.

=
ACCUMULATION OF WEALTH-THE
DANGERS THAT BESET OUR COUN-
TRY-LET US ROUSE THE PEOPLE.
To the Representative.
} I'll fares. the land, to Fastening ills a
prey,
Where wealth accumulates and men
decay"
In Goldsmith's lines can be read the his
tory of nations. Nothing but a radical
change of our present system can prevent
his words from being prophecy of our
own country's fate. 1t is the general belief
that our present industrial and financial
illness is mostly due to the accumulation
Of wealth in the hands of the few. So
far has this diabolical system gone that to-
day three-fifths of our national wealth is
said to be owned by $1,000 persons-less
than one-half of one per cent Of the popu-
latjon. Wealth ;accumulates, manhood
decays. Poverty and crime are largely
on the increase The few rolling in lux
uries, the many suffering for the neces-
sites of life. Virtue and honor of the
masses sacrificed to glut the greed of the
wealthy. Such are present conditions.
Daniel Webster once said Liberty
cannot long endure in country where
the tendency of legislation is to accumu-
late wealth in the hands of the few
What bright future lies before us. Can
any man with brains enough to have a
headache fail to see the present trend of
legislation? Corporate wealth sits en-
twined in the very heart of our govern
ment. It's corrupt presence is everywhere
It's hired agents on the rostrum, in the
pulpit and print shop pervert the common
sense Of the voters. It floods the polling
places with whisky and DOODLE With free
passes and campaign funds it secures the
goodwill of lawmakers. It's lobbyists
throng every hall of legislation, Con-
gress Is held up at the point of a sugar
scoop while the corporations secure spec
ial leg.slations by the yard. Yes, the
dollar takes the frosted cake, while the
man fills up on charity soup and wonders
what makes times so hard. Another de-
cade like this, where property rights are
held paramount to the good OF humanity,
and our boasted fabric of liberty" will
be 50 badly torn, that not a shred will be
left large enough to dust fiddle with.
1t is said that when Rome went down
1890 men owned all the world When
Babylon fell two per cent of her popu-
lation owned all the wealth. When Egypt
decayed two per cent Of her population
owned 81 per cent of her wealth. And
now the greatest republic of the world is
al
led those mighty empires to destruction.
In 1860 there were only two millionaires
In the United States, and no tramps. To-
day there are $4,000 millionaires and over
100000 tramps. If this is the result of
but IS years of plutocratic rule, what will
another like period bring forth? It is
time for the people to act Let us arouse
to our duty ere it is too late AS the
Jacobins aroused France, at the dawn of
this century, by bands of horsemen.carry-
ing banners inscribed, "The Country is in
Danger" let the Populsts awaken the
sleeping patriotism of the people by
means of the tongue and pen. Point out
the country's danger and make clear the
remedy. The hireling press will continue
to cry peace, peace while there is no
peace. But we must not let the terms
"cranks and croakers' keep us from per-
forming our duty to home and country.
Cling!ng to old parties will not bring
relief. While we followed the Republic
cans blazing torches wealth has accumu-
lated; and while we listened to the Demo-
cratic brass bands, playing their most
lofty airs, we have seen manhood decay.
Blazing bonfires and seductive music must
not influence our ballots. The use of
reason, not sentiment, is our only saliva
ton. 1t is the duty of every patriotic
voter to rally to the standard of the new
and undefiled Peoples Party, party not
composed of plutocrats and boodlers. but
one as Ignatius Donnelly terms it. ':of
the people, with the spirit of ITS and the
courage of it's convictions
A. M. GREELEY.
Duluth, Mimi, July Z, '95.