The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1895-05-08
SAVAGE.
A DEFENSE OF THE WORKERS
May, 1895.

SAVAGE.
A DEFENSE OF THE WORKERS.
| To the Editor:
In yo'lr issue Of the 18th of April Mr.
Edwin D. Cox, chairman P. p. Co. com
! mittee Of Marquette. Mich. pitches into
| the wage Garner and abuses him for not
voting the Pepulist ticket in the past
| campaign. Mr.. Cox is typical Popu-
| list. have heard numbers of Populists
express themselves in the same manner
He says in his letter: During the
| past two years 1 have labored with pen
| and purse, supplemented by the best
| mental labor l could control, to educate
| the lain laborer so that he might rise
| to a sense of the power of the ballot in
the issue now joined between capital
| and labor
would like to ask Mr.. Cox, did he
| really expect to accomplish so much as
| that in two years? If SO he is very fool
| ish, or else he would be in better luck
| than those who have labored ten times
| two years and have. seen similar re-
suits.
| Mr.. Cox seems to have no hope to sus-
tain him, no light to lead him except
the Omaha platform, or as they are TAX
| ing it here in doses of free silver, he does
not understand the movement or tAe
elements that influence it.
| He is mistaken, too, in the issue. He
says the tissue between capital and la
bor.'' No, no, friend Cox, you are
wrong. That issue will be brought in
shortly by the "Socialistic Labor Party"
who are already preparing for the fray
in every city in the Union. The fight
now on is easily understood by the man
who has studied and foreseen what the
| development of capital would bring
forth.
This fight is between the former small
business man, small manufacturer, sill
verite and the great capitalists. 1t is
their funeral.
1t is not the fight between the prole-
tariet (wage-earner) and the capitalists.
| The great capitalists will destroy tue
slnalla: onas-the farmers will fare like
wise; they will be driven into the ranks
; Of the proletariet.
E, we socialists will not lift finger to
save tbs. small middle class. Let then,
| he destroyed. To help resist would be
| to 50 agains. evolution; to act rsactinu-
AIRY; to Try ana roll bact. the wliael OF
| hiStaty.
| Il the PDpuljstS arg: successful! Il! gain
! ing pnHe,r in some siy.3ll states and in
out Of .ise way nia:es: t.s"y have &c gan
| erat influence il stripping the daTsiop-
msnt OF King Capital and the Porulist
remedies would d. mare harM than
good.
Mr. Cox is rn!,dant--pnvh ars he
belongs to the slua;: middle class, Gnu
fears that he will s.,oa be forced lnto t:.s
ever increasing army OF the proletar;5t.
| The average Poruiist is despcndsnt
| after defeat
| The socialist, never.
| The ropilists hopes are flying up
above the highest clouds and when de-
| featet. he is III piiiabla state, ard talks
about buying a g.in," etc. The social
list is NOS respondent. nor does he get
mad, if the wage class does not at once
fall into battle line. He knows that the
''class struggle" is in the near future;
and that the class instinct can be found
| in the breast OF every wageworker; and
that bye and bye it will spring into
| life and then he will rise to sense of
! the power of the ballot" Not for the
small middle class, but for himself.
The wage worker can see no difference
between the Republican, Democrat, Pop
| ulist and Prohibition politician, as far
as benefits to his class are concerned.
| Capitalists will pay him as little as
they can; enough to sustain life and per-
petuate the race; no more. Machinery
| drives him into the street, the proleta-
riet has yet to learn the power of organ
ization into a class party, and when he
does so organize he will rise and spring
| the upper crust" into the air.
Mr.. Cox should study these figures,
voters and classes.
Wageworkers- ............. 10.500, 900
| Middle class ............. 5,503,29
| Capitalisttc class ........... 847,015
He can see that the prolttariet are
more numerous than the middle class
| Industrial and axricultlraD, and the
capitalistic class hined, and then
1 stop for moment, and think--that this
| great class, outnn:rbering all other
classes, has not one representative In
ngress--neitber in the house of rep
resentatives or in the senate. The mid
die class control tina house: the capital
istic class the senate and president: the
| average Populist would not vote for a.
genuine wage-earner for. congress @-oh,
/ move must have middle class business
mans men. The wage-earners of the
United States are behind their comrades
In every European state. BY the last
news Copenhagen has elected seven
| Workingmen out of the eight constit-