The Louisiana populist., 1895-12-13

Eternal agitation AID united voting
is the price Of our Liberty. Do the
unjust laws grind us in the dust?
Then, Ia the name of just God, why
not vote those cruel laws out of exist.
ence? We are the government. Money
cannot corrupt the honest add fear
less voter, but it takes moral courage
to break away from party prejudice
and become independent and think
Ing men.
Laboring men, what nave you done
towards putting away such judges as
Woods, who sentenced Debs, OFF the
bench they have disgraced?
Are you still voting for tho two old
corrupt parties that brought into
existence such men as Grover Cleve-
land, John Sherman, Ben Harrison,
Carlisle, Mckinley, aud mob Of cor
poration attorneys known as tho Uni
ted States senate? Are you still 20.
ting your liberties and your rights ~
an American citizen into the hands
that have crushed you down in
the dust every time you asked for liy-
ing wages?
DO you know who IL is that has
dragged you down through hell OF
hunger into the hopeless gloom OF
gnawing despondency that now hauuts
you with ghost-like fingers pointing
always towards future miseries and q
grave OF buried hope?
Will the Imprisonment OF Debs
teach you no lesson? Will it point
you TO no other means OF gaining in
dependence Will you still bow your
neck aud let the politicians yoke you
tighter and closer to your poverty
and want? viii you GO again and
again in your rags and forced poverty
aud vote for your old OppressOrs?
Are you determined and hell-bent to
follow the old leaders who have looted
you for the last thirty years?
You have no right to do so. The
pinched aud hungry faces me. with
all over this greed cursed land ap.
peal to the honest voter for a chance
to earn q livelihood. Aud you owe it
to them, because you have it within
your power to give it TO them. Don t
stand by like great boobies aud yam.
mering babies. but get wiggle on
yourselves and wipe corruption and
oppression from our fair land.
would rather be Debs to-day
than Cleveland or Pullman. |
would rather be an active reformer
on earth to-day than conservative
angel ia heaven. | would even pre-.
fer to be O Lazarus la the midst OF
poverty aud hell OF hunger, than be
q millionaire in a castle built by plum.
der
would be ashamed to die for this
whole country, but would feel proud
to be- Debs and suffer Imprisonment
for the sake Of Gods miserable poor.
Brother laborlug man, do you know
how we would howl aud groan il We
had no vote, aud boast to our wife
and children how quickly we would
right our wrongs IL we had q vote?
How we would boast OF iwhat we would
do II We had chance to help elect
our public otficers?,
We have that power now. We
have had it ever since we were old
enough to vote. Are we too dumb to
use that power for our own good ?
Have we brains, or are our heads
stuffed with sawdust?
One thing is certain: we have our
heads stuffed with prejudice aud polit-
ical ignorance. We even let our re-
ligious views come between US and
our toiling brother. II is time to
drop all such nonsense. Liberty on
earth is equal to pardon in heaven.
Ii We can't be men here. we can't be
angels elsewhere.
DO not let US run 10 meet Debs with
as much prejudice and ignorance as
We did six months ago. Let US show
him that we have been learning many
vital lesson since they led him OF
to Woodstock Jail. Let US show him
that we still believe it is no crime to
fight the battles of Gods miserable
children. in spite OF tho opinion OF
presidents and chuckle-headed judges;
and that liberty is but bubble TO the
man who fears to speak his honest
cancellations