The representative., 1895-12-18

these wonderful discoveries will obviate
the necessity Of farther silver agitation.
Therefore, let all gold and silver clubs
dissolve incontinently. w. w.
THAT 'INDEPENLiENT PRESS"
TO the Representative:
'"The crying need just now is not hon
est money, but honest bankers" 1 hear
some remark While you are about it
you might add: "And more honest edit
ors'' Where outside of those in the
vanguard of our revolutionary forces can
such be found? The great dailieS of the
country with others of lesser note follow
ing mechanically in their tracks. which in
every crisis are on the side of the Op
pressor, have been time and again vivid
ly pictured to your readers. My remarks,
therefore, are addressed chiefly to those
who still indulge in the illusions of hope
that all much-needed reforms will come
through one or the other Of the old par
ties.
One special feature connected with the
plutocratic press coming more into prom
inence in recent years, which has been
overlooked or at least lightly touched
upon by our own journals. is the institu-
tion of what is paraded with great flour
ish of trumpets, as the independent"
press, within Democratic or Republican
parties the avowed purpose of which is
to keep within party lines and reform all
the abuses arising in the party. Some
times, when an emergency arises. the
word independent" is laid aside and that
of "non-partisan' substituted. Now,
why such institution and what is the
scope of its reform work? AS a result of
my investigation l give this answer:
AS all are aware. the trend of popular
thought of late years has been, though
gradually, away from the partisan editor,
alike in both old parties until now he has a
comparatively small following, and it
was only a matter of time when this pop
ular thought, growing stronger and more
pronounced as it progressed would find
itself outside the party lines and within
the camp of a radical movement like ours.
looking to a new and better social order.
Their lOrdShipS over our commercial
realm. the plutocratic knave, saw that if
matters took such course the time was
not far off when they would find them
selves unseated, and that, too, in man.
ner anything but ceremoniOus. The peo-
pie, therefore. must be cajOled to keep
within lines-which party it mattered not
and what better agency for heading off
their wayward tendencies than the
Establishments of the 'independent"
press? We have with us, then, in every
city, the all-knowing editor Of that per-
suasion, to SO remain until there are
enough among his reading constituency
who have the wit to make things uncom-
he serves his masters. doing his part in
benumbng the understanding and con-
fusing the minds of readers concerning
matters highly essential for them to un-
Observation-Disclosures, indeed, calling for
prompt action--leading them, under his
Opiates of fancied security, down to ulti-
mate social ruin
And yet it is sometimes ludlcrOuS to fol-
low the curves" of the fellow. When
no campaign is on he will berate his party
most roundly as a virtuous reformer
against the party machine, predicting
party dissolution if things don't mend.
and thereby gets up sham fight with his
straight-out party contemporary; but on
the eve of electicOn he will advise the
voters to support the party ticket as the
least of all evils or as the best thing
in sight, after ALL" In some instances
he has been known to counsel the voters
that if they could not vote his ticket they
ought to vote for equally sound" men
in the opposite party-anything rather
than allow the "Populistic'' or "socialis-
tic elements to gain foothold.
Undoubtedly a reader of the above
class of papers would here give me this
sort of back talk:
You misjudge, sir. The Independent
editor scathingly denounces trusts. brib-
cry. extortiOn and dishonesty, from. the
common pilferer up to the bank-wrecker.
He rakes such men as Pullman over the
Goals for grinding poor working people,
instead of being kind to them. He ad
mits there are existing abuses but he
advocates what I consider practical re-
forms. Profit-sharing by an employer
with his workers is one. Organized chart
ties is another He believes in stopping
foreign immigration, and in maintining
our national credit by keeping up the
gold reserve, through bond deals. and let
ting the banks manage our currency for
us, and doing away with greenbacks that
deplete the treasury of gold.
My friend, your editors scheme of
"profit-sharing, as far as it operates for
the common good, is fifty embodied in this
petition:
80, Lord. bless me and my wife,
My son John and his wife;
Us four
And no more.
His other remedies have about as much
bone the rabble have been growing over
all these years. When right social con-
ditions prevail everywhere, people will
not emigrate from their own country to
better their condition. Our workingmen
want a fair chance-not charty's dole.
Your editor talks of existing abuses, but
is careful to ignore the system which pro-
duces them. Why don't he tell you all?
A half-truth is as deceptive as a whole
falsehood. What's the sense of abusing
these magnates of wealth as long as pub
lie sentiment-that astute thing called So
ciety-acknowledge as sacred the right
of individuals or syndicates to own, for
speculation, all the means of production
and distribution?
A civilization, such as this, with it's ex-
tremes of luxurious wealth and abject
poverty. brings about a general deteoria-
tion Of manhood and intellectual vigor
among your smart business menn'as well
as others-develOping a race of pgmies
where there should be men-and with it
the prevalence of vice and crime. Your
editor wants such system to remain un-
disturbed and to avoid the dread possi-
bility of it's attaining the end of it's rope
and thus destroying itself But ere
formers" like he can only postpone the
evil day for their system of so-called
property rights" for the time will come
when the tide of popular feeling. inspired