Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1896-02-28
NJ. NJ. Price Writes the Leader.
LETcHER, So. OAK.
Feb. 10. 1896.

Feb. 10. 1896.
NY DEAR LINN: Your paper ought to
keep the idea prominently before its read
ers that the populist party was organized
primarily for the benefit Of the producers
and deductively for the good of all. 1t
had been seen for years that the producers
of the country and especially of the west
ern states, were the victims of economic
and industrial partiality. This reform
movement was started to put them upon
business equality; this is the guiding
cynosure and lode star of our course.
Anything else is incidenta and second
ary. Free silver and tariff are trifies to
the great achievement OF Industrial lib.
trty; they are helpful and administrant;
out the great central mission Of our pur-
pose should be kept IN constant, lustrous
prominence.
4 The embattled farmers have been on
the warpatk for many years to put them
selves on an equal footing with other
industries; so far they have failed.
They have had the numbers and the
wealth; but not the political shrewdness.
It seems incredible that seventeen mil
lions should so long have been the slaves
Of an oligarchy. If you charge them
directly with serfdom, they Indignantly
repel the,insulting taunt; but if you look
at the facts you find that absolute indus
trial slavery is the actual condition,o of the
producers.
II thetproducers could be brought once
to fully ysabsorb the astounding fact that
in South Dakota, 800. 600, 600 worth Of
farm property pay over five times as
much taxes as 500, 600. 600 worth of rail-
road property; that little more than
one-third OF all the property pay a1l the
taxes; shat this one-third is the property
of the producer; and that railroads. ware
houses and merchants discriminate
against the producers, the would line up
at onceain solid column and abolish these
monstrous wrongs and these blots upon a
peoples government.
How.can the eyes OF their understand
ing beenlightened?
To solve this problem Is the nons asin-
Drum Of our Euclid. Let me try to make
plain the evil complained of, and the
remedy proposed.
In reGnd numbers, if there are 65. 0OO,-
600 people and s65, coo. 600 worth Of
property and If 5000 people own about
threefenrths Of the whole, then nina
ture picture of the present industrial
conditisn would appear as follows;
iImagice an independent. isolated state.
1t has population OF 1900 people. The
value of its real and personal property is
-, 000 OOC, and one man owns Al 800 600
worth Of it, Its products are almost en-
tirely agricultural and this annual pro-
duct amounts to 81 500, COO. Four-f1fths
of this must be carried, converted and
distributed. 1t has no granaries, ware
houses nor elevators sufficient tostore its
products. ITS railroads are owned and
tcontrolled by, one man and they are ,inad-
Eeauate 10 do the traffic. That one nan
can charge almost any rates that his
|oupidity dictates.
His railroad lis worth S2O, 900 uasle.and
It lis ,capitallDsd at fictitious value Of
SaDj 600 per mile. His tariff is fixed so as
to pay interest and dividends oa three
times its value and hence every shipper is
compelled to pay three times as much as
the service is worah. On its million bush
els ef grain 1t pays IS cents bushel
instead of Z cents, which costs this little
state 4G2O.OOO alone in one year to say
nothing OF the loss on other shipments.
Now this is a grievience which the people
of this little state want to remedy and
lately portion of Its citizens have begun
to urge tkat q law be passed to control
and regulate this rallrsad; to prevent its
owners from watering it's stock for gamb
ling purposes and regulate its rates of
carrying SO that the people shall pay only
fair ompensation for the service per-
formed. Since this railroad is common
carrier and is hy law subject to public
control and since its present charges are
SAOIVIeouU 0ud OoSSO upOu d uCJlGlOuS
value and since the government of this
little state was established to conserve the |
rights and promote the happiness Of its
people, it seems evident that this law is
wise, practical and of instant Importance.
These people have another grievance
and that is unequal taxation.
The law and equity demand that all
property shall bea. its equal share of the
public burden, but this railroad avoids it,
The property of the farmer is taxed at
about three-fourths of its cash value, but
while this railroad is worth 500, 900 mile
and should be taxed at SIS, 200, it is only
,axed at SO, 600, less than one-sixth of it's
cash value, and if there are SO miles of it,
t escapes taxation upon 5000, 900 worth
If property, which if taxed at 3 per cent,
he same rate as other property, would
oay SIS, 600 into the treasury and tighten
he tax upon other property. Would not
his be wise and equitable and are not all
,onest mon in favor of If