The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1895-02-06
Good Advice From a Veteran POpu-
list.

nrst lawmakers having an abiding faith
in the honesty and integrity of the people,
freely granted the same right to the
stranger coming among with honest in
tention to make this country his home that
was held by those who happened to be born
here, under a professed equality of rights.
What simple but all powerful right consti-
tutes our sovereignty? Each and every
ones right to share in making the laws
that govern us Are not our congressman,
presidents, governors and judges of more
Importance than the common people? No;
for their powers are derived from the peo-
pie. They are simply the agents or serv
ants of the people for season, and
sponsble to the people for their acts, and if
found unworthy of trust can be replaced
by others when their terms expire.
What is the most important act of the
sovereign people? Casting the ballot for
the ballot expresses their individual opin-
ions and wishes. If one votes with the mi
nority, is not his vote wasted? No. his
vote was the expression of his wish and,
although not obtained at the time,
pressed the desire of a part of the people,
and that desire. though not gratified, was
known as the wish of a certain portion of
the people, and the advocacy of that par
tlcular principle is brought before the people
and given a more thorough investigation
and more deliberate thought, and if found
to contain the true principles of justice
would if adopted, tend to ameliorate the
condition of the people, tend to produce
more general comfort, thrift and happiness,
and the policy advocated by the majority
found to be misleading, injurious and alto
Pofhpr
old parties in their platforms advocated the
use of both gold and silver no sooner met
than they We'd with each other in Destroy
ing the time-honored white metal, greatly
10 the increase in value of the yellow one,
and thereby adding to the sufferings of
the people, already in a most deplora BILE
condition, with the false assurance of i'm
mediate relief. Enough of those who had
voted with tn majority, finding themselves
deceived, might come to the assistance of
the minority and, withdrawing from their
former party, weaken that and strengthen
the more worthy one. Right justice and
equity must finally prevail, and while the
great majority are sufferers from class
legislation it is only a question of time
and more diffused information among the
people when majority will be found to adj
vocate the greatest good to the greatest
number
And, now, my dear reader, remember you
have neither railroad stock, bank stock, or
stock Fl oil trust, sugar trust or beef trust.
You are only common man, doomed to
eat your bread by the sweat of your brow,
with no chance to acquire what others earn
but by exchanging the products of your
own labor for theirs You cannot pile up
millions by the aid of favorable legislation,
and your manly nature disdains the pro-
cess of absorbing the earnings of others
without giving back an equivalent. Your
straight conscience will not allow warping
stretching, and you haven't influence
enough with the powers that be (the ones,
perhaps, you helped to elect to get law
passed to make your stealings legal that
you may lean against license, instead of
the stern rules of justice, and even if you
could you too late, for most of the op
portunities have been improved by others,
who have secured most all there was, and
the chances are nearly bare Old
Mother Hubbard's cupboard. Better live
on in honest labor, as you have begun and
turn to, lend a hand to change the bad
laws into good ones through the efforts of
the 1000, 900 at work to reform the ma
ton. and make it in fact what it was in
tended in theory, government of, by and
for the people Unless you are capable of
acting out the rare Christian virtue, after
having been smitten on the one cheek all
these years you wish to turn the other
cheek for another smite, or having borne
till forbearance has ceased to be a virtue,
you retaliate just enough to show that you
comrades who are determined to "strike
for their affairs and their homes,'' to strike
for liberty and good government, and quit
voting to pay taxes to corporations, rail-
roads, gas, landlords, trusts, etc. wealth
belongs to him who creates it, and every
dollar taken from industry without
equivalent is robbery. eff any man will
not work, neither shall he eat This, you
think, is rather radical. So is the Bible
Political economists all agree with this
proposition, that plenty of money in cir
culation is always accompanied with high
prices for products and high wages for
labor, while a scarcity of money is always
attended with low prices and labor seek
ing employment j. S. Mill says: IF the
whole money in circulation were doubled
prices would DOUBLE If my brother
farmers would get this truth thoroughly
implanted in their minds and then read
one of the planks in the Peoples party
platform, which reads as follows viz.
1--WE demand that the amount of circula
ting medium be speedily increased to not
less than $50 per capita;' if they ignored
all the rest of the platform and considered
that at present restricted to from
Sc, the lower, to $50, the higher, estimate
of the amount of currency now in circula-
ton and apply the axiom of Mill they
might blame themselves for the condition
now staring in the face of the lowest
market for wheat, wool and cotton that
has been known in 80 years, notwithstand-
ing a remarkably low crop. Inc question
might be raised, why those interested in
manufacture were not anxious for an
increase in the quantity of money as the
farmers and laborers? For two reasons
First-They like cheap and low wages
Second-They have had the benefit of legis-
lation especially intended to protect them
by raising the price of their products
under the false claim of protecting the
American laborer, while it raised the value
of the manufactured product from 40 to
60 per cent. You can be your own judge
as to how much of that protection labor
receives when informed that there are at
present at least 100000 unemployed and
one-third of them entirely destitute. de-
pending for existence, and, to prevent
actual starvation, driven to cold charity
and warm soup, while the farmer and
laborer not only have had no protection
but have been taxed for the protection of
the favored ones. When the manufacture
er's goods cease to pay the labor cost and
a handsome profit besides, they shut out
the laborer, but when the farmers pro-
ducts fail to pay between poor crops and
low market the labor cost they must
work the harder and longer, grin and bear
it, and vote again the old party ticket to
show that whatever others may lack their
confidence remains intact, and will .'vot' er
party-G. o. P. or D. o. P.-and if we
can't beat the Pops will LINE drives with
the other o. P. and beat them or bust ;"
We will suppose that all the sovereign
voters are familiar with the principles