davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1896-09-18
THE RAILROAD QUESTION.

The railroad question demands the at:
tention Of the executive OF the state ana
Of the officers appointed by him to admin
lister that important branch Of executive
responsibility. It should not be ap-
preached in hostile spirit, however hos
tile the railway interests Of the state may
be to our political success Both during
the campaign, and If charged with the re-
sponsibility Of administration, am sure
that those of our people who support me
for the great office for which have been
nominated will neither advocate nor seek
to enforce any measure tending to cripple
any legitimate interest In the state, much
less one so closely identified with the de-
velopment and welfare Of our great COM
monwealth. But, upon this subject we
shall insist, as we shall in all other cases,
that there shall be in this state no power
higher or greater than the law and the
duly constituted officers for Its execution.
Every railroad corporation shall have the
strong arm of the law applied in good
faith for it's protection, but we also pro-
pose that it shall submit to It's rule as we'll
to the h11nblest citizen. '.
That transportation rates, at LEAST on
certain commodities, are unreasonaDly
high and higher than in our sister states
less favorably situated, is q fact easily
demonstrated The Republican party In
its platform in 1890 pledged itself ito So
cure the reduction of rates on grain, lum-
Der and coal" How it has redeemed the
promise, let the people answer. In the
section Of the state where reside, on the
line of the Chicago, Milwaukee and St.
Paul and the Chicago and Northwestern
companies, where am the most familiar
with the situation, rates on grain more
especially, instead of having been reduced,
have been advanced from 10 to Is per cent
in the last 10 years. This fact remains
true, though those companies have made
nominal reductions at few POINTS since !
called public attention to thi state OF al
fairs at Minneapolis some weeks ago. The
people have Alright to demand, and 1t Is the
duty of those in authority to see to 1t that
no greater burdens are imposed upon our
producers than justice and fair treatment
to all interests demand. No radical action
is proposed, but we intend to see to 1t that
rates are adjusted with reference to the
interests of the producer as well as the
railroad magnate. That such Is not now
the case is best shown by the evidence OF
Mr.. Stickney president of the Kansas
City road. On Aug. last, before the In.
terstate commerce commission, he testf
fed: II tell you gentlemen this scheme
of rate making L. what makes anarchists.
It says to the farmer, DO as want You
to, or I'll see that you don't do anything
else.' High rates are charged the farmer
for shipping his grain, and then the rich
grain merchants are given less cut rates. :
Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1896-09-18
STATE ISSUES CONSIDERED.

You refer in your letter to the trusts
and combinations which prey upon the
people. So far as it lies in the power of
state law and state legislation to destroy
and prevent their unjust exactions, that
power will be invoked and applied. But
it must not be overlooked that conditions
which promise no profit to legitimate
business are prone to produce combine
tions and trusts in the hope that the gain
which cannot be gained legitimately may
be secured through the creation of q
monopoly. A strict enforcement Of the
obligations of common carriers, fair, open
and equal rates of transportation, will go
far toward destroying the efficacy of
trusts and combinations for the oppres-
sion Of the people. Few attempts at mon
opoly succeed unless they control the IA
ciliies for transportation.
WhilD the national questions are enti-
tied to great consideration at the hands Of
the electors, the state issues equally merit
Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1896-09-18
EFFECTS OF INSTRUMENTATION.

The story Of it's demonetization has been
so often told that it needs no repetition.
Our country, though the largest producer,
consented to the degradation Of one Of its
important products The demonstration
Of silver had the desired effect. BY limit
ing it's coinage and depriving II Of its full
money functions, 1t cut of one Of thee two
sources for the supply Of standard money,
impaired the bank reservee Of the CONNER
cial world, and, as result, circumscribed
credit, and brought on an era OF falling
prices. ~
The worlds production is largely car
ried on on credit. The banks are the great
arteries for CONDUCTING the worlds circu-
lating capital to the points where It may
be most proftably employed. Bank To-
cilities and improved methods Of business
enable us to economic the handling OF
money to great extent, and by rapid
transit it's circulation Is accelerated.
Nevertheless, the fact remains as trne as
eyer, that credit is, and Of necessity al
ways will be, limited by the extent Of the
bank resources. A banker who says that
he can carry on his banking business
without an adequate reserve is either
fool or an early client in the bankruptcy
court Jevons, the great authority on
finance and gold standard advocate be-
cause he was an Englishman, says:
while the elasticity of credit may
certainly give prices more free fight, in
flammation of credit must be checked by
the we'll defined boundary or available
capital, which consists in the last resort
of the reserve Of notes equivalent to gold
in the banking department of the Bank
of England. Prices may temporarily rise
or fall independently of the quantity OF
gold in the country; ultimately they must
be governed by this quantity. Credit
gives certain latitude without rendering
prices ultimately dependent Of gold"
page 80, Investigations in Currency and
Finance.) And again (page 1857: 1T is
the aggregate Of coin and gold in circula-
ton or reserve, in short, the supply OF
gold as compared with the work it has to
do, which determines the range of prices"
While Professor Jevons here uses the
term "gold," it should be borne in mind
that it was used with reference to the
English system which recognizes only
gold as ultimate redemption money, and
that the principle is equally applica-
BILE to silver and gold or ''coin" in coun'
tries having the double standard.
Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1896-09-18
BURDENS REMAIN THE SAME.

It is grave1y suggested that If we sell for
lower prices, we buy cheaper. Ii debt
were unknown, our people might heed
such an argument, but even then the fall
ing prices would take from the producer
larger share of his products from year to
year for those burdens which are compar-
atively fixed. Our taxes are substantially
the same as they have been heretofore
not lower. 1t takes nearly double the
products Of the farm to pay them that it
did Is or 20 years ago. So with freight
and similar charges. On my fathers farm
in Sibley county, in this state, we have
raised oman average 1900 bushels Of wheat
yearly for the last Is years. The average
price Of wheat in Chicago for the years
1889, 1888 and 1884 was over 81 per bushel.
4 The average price for 1888, 1894 and 1895
was 60 cents. This year it is less The
freight rate from New Ulm during the
first three years was IS cents per hundred
and 20 cents during the last three years.
1t took a little over 200 bushels or about
one-tenth Of the crop to carry it to Chicago
during the first period, and 3S7 bushels or
nearly one-f1fth of the crop to transport 1t
to the same market during the latter
three years. What Is true Of wheat
is true of all other farm products. 1t Is
this insidious drain on the farmers earn
ings-taking larger share Of his products
year after year for interest, for taxes, for
freight, for insurance, etc., that leaves
him without q surplus at the end of the
season and without means to be anything
but an Indifferent customer Of the local
merchant. And still many of the latter
advocate the gold standard, while self-pror
lection, it would seem, would prompt
them to favor = policy that would not kill
the goose that lays the golden egg. Again,
when we consider the indebtedness Of our
people and the fact that the gold standard
and falling prices make 1t practically i'm.
possible to discharge it, the situation ap-
pears grave. On Jan. l, 1890, according to
the United States census report. the mort
gage indebtedness Of the people Of this
state was $197 ,z45, $50. The interest charges
on it was over $15, 0OO, 0O0 Add to this the
railroad, the municipal and the unsecured
and commercial indebtedness, aggregating
q much larger amount than the mort
cages, and we have an interest," charge on
the industries and productions Of the
state which probably exceed 80 600, 900 per
annum. Is it any wonder that merchants
complain of dull times and that business
is slowS .r-s. s-.- .
Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1896-09-18

Of other commodities govern tho price OF
money. II corn Is moro plentiful as com.
pared to wheat in OEe season than 1t was
the previous year 1t will take more corn to
procure given quantity Of wheat than 1t
did before. II all products have been
produced In larger amount than has
been the increase in money, 1t will take
more Of the commodities to secure the
piece Of money. The farmer who takes q
load Of product to market does SO to pro
cure money. II money has become
scarcer as compared to products, he IL
compelled to give more Of his products for
the dollar, and that Ia what he has been
doing since 1875. The gold standard adj
vocates admit this: After the passage Of
the Sherman act, adding 1850, coo ounces
OF silver to our circulation monthly,
prices advanced almost Immediately.
Wheat and all agricultural products rose
with the price Of silver. The Hon. Jerry
Rusk, secretary Of agriculture, said of it's
effects, on page 8 Of his report for 1890:
'The recent legislation looking to the
restoration Of the bimetallic standard Of
our currency, and the consequent en-
hancement Of the value Of Nlver, has I'M
queshonably had much to do with the re-
cent ADVANCE IN the price Of cereals. The
same cause has advanced the price Of
wheat In Russia and India and in the
same degree reduced their power of COM
petition. English gold was formerly ex-
changed for cheap silver, and wheat pur-
chased with the cheaper metal was sold in
Great Britain for gold. Much Of this ad-
vantage is lost by the appreciation Of sill
yer in those countries It is reasonable,
therefore, to expect much higehr prices for
wheat than have been received in recent
years" I'll z:.>., : Iii g. - ", II.
President Harrison, in his message to
congress In December, 1890, said: Us
1.-THE enlargement of our. currency by
the silver bill undoubtedly gave an up
ward tendency to trade and had marked
effect on prices, but this natural and de-
sired effect OF silver legislation was by
many attributed to the tariff act" -.
The fall in prices Of our export products
affects us nationally as 1t does the in.
diYidual. It makes it more difficult to
make both ends meet. We produce and
export more cereals, meat products and
cotton from year to year, but without ap-
probably increasing the value of the total.
We axD0rtod. .,tar..
Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1896-09-18
OUR PUBLIC LANDS.

Another question demanding the at
tention Of the people Is the preservation OF
the public lands to the state by the gen,
general government. The management
Of our swamp lands and the neglect Of
stare executives and state officers to guard
the interests Of the state and re public
domain in that particular is scaNdalous. I
will specify only one case. In 1875 the leg
islature passed an act granting to tho
Duluth and Iron Range Railroad DOM.
pany q grant Of {, 400 acres Of land per
mile to aid in the construction Of that
road. A time limit was fixed by that and
subsequent acts for the completion Of the
road. but it was not built within the time,
nor until many years after the limit had
expired. The grant was not earned. No
steps were taken by the state government
to secure it's forfeiture. Lands have been
certified from time to time In large
areas to the company, though it was in
default In the selection Of the lands for
the grant the company was limited to
lands lying in st. Louis, Lake and Cook
counties To secure enough lands to fill
the Immense grant within the counties
named the appointment Of servile tools as
deputy United States surveyors was Sc
cured, who returned large areas Of high
and timbered uplands as swamp. No at
tempt to expose these frauds or to prevent
their contamination has been made by
any state official so far as know, except
the present state auditor. He has refused
to certify further lands, but he is unable
to get the question as to whether the COM
pany is entitled to any lands tested in the
courts, as the attorney general refuses to
bring the necessary suit for that purpose
In conclusion, permit me to add that,
much as appreciate the confidence shown
and the honor conferred upon me by the
great party which you represent, assure
you that feel and realize how keenly the
responsibility which it impnes-not only
for the campaign, but in discharge Of the
high duties of the office for which I have
been nominated, If elected.
bring to your service in this campaign
neither money nor great talent. will,
aid you in the work before us to the best
of my ability. shall bear with fortitude
and patience the calumny and SANDER
which are always the lot Of those who seek
Over the result have little anxiety. 10
Is not my contest. My personal success
Is matter Of small moment. i is pot
my cause or the cause Of any individual
that we seek to further. If elected shall,
by all constitutional means, further such
reforms in state affairs, in legislation and
in administration as the situation and the.
just expectation Of the people demand.
I shall do my duty as God gives me dudg-
menf to perceive IL. JOHN LIND. /
Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1896-09-18
INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENT.

But, say our opponents, while we con-
cede that silver must be restored to give
us better prices and prosperity, we cannot
do it alone. We must await for an inter
national agreement We have waited for
an international agreement as long as
can remember. Will England, the great
creditor nation Of the world, ever consent
to system by which she win get less
products for the interest and money due
herp VIII she not hold out for the pres
emit plan by which she gets two for oneS
The commission appointed by Queen Vic
toria to inquire into this question report
ed to her majesty in October, 1888, as
follows
1T must be remembered, too, that this
country islargely creditor country of
debts payable in gold, and any change
which entailed rise in the price Of COM
modities generally, that is to say, a dimini-
ton of the purchasing of gold, would be
to our disadvantage"
The argument that we must wait for
England Is sham. 1t means that we must
wait forever. It may be we'll enough for
the little European countries to hesitate to
take step without the consent of the
others, or of some of them, but for us to
talk of international agreement when we
possess the domain of the better part of
a continent, is puerile. The difficulty is
that our own people fail to recognize our
own strength and greatness. Our great
dailies persist in looking at America
through English spectacles furnished by
Wall street. They speak Of English great
ness and power, but say not a word of our
own, except to urge that we are impotent
tn 6O inSfics n O11r own npOn1n
Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1896-09-18

tackled first. A, learned Frenchman, Mr..
Chevalier, wrote large volume, urging
the immediate necessity for demonstrating
gold. Richard Golden translated ~ into
English, and wrote preface, re-enforcing
the arguments of the author. Holland,
Germany and Belgium, fearing the flood
OF gold, as the gold advocates now pre-
tend to fear flood of silver, demonetized
gold. England would probably have done
the same had it not been for the fact that
gold was largely produced. in, her own
colonies. A united onslaught was then
made upon silver, and it was successful.
Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1896-09-18
FREE SILVER THE REMEDY.

+ For this state Of affairs our opponents
offer no remedy. The gentlemen who re-
Gently met at Indianapolis propose the
net scheme of the bankers for issuing
bank currency. do not believe for
q moment that the American people! will
ever again farm out the function Of issu-
ing money to private corporations, and II
congress did provide for an issue of bank
currency, the increase in our circulating
medium by that means would afford only
temporary relief. 1t would not affect the
prices of our great staples which are fixed
by the markets of the world. Nothing
but the restoration Of silver to its position
as standard money can affect the general
level Of prices throughout the commercial
world. Why should 1t not be restored?
Why should not the mints be open to
silver as they are to goldS It is conceded
that 1t was mistake to close the minis
to It No statesman In any country has
ever claimed or received credit for his par
ticipation In it's demonstration. On the
contrary, every legislator connected with
that act has repudiated any knowl-
edge of how or why it was passed and has
apologized for his connection with 1t.
It Is said that we cannot have free coin
age of silver at its present ratio, for the
reason that the silver bullion in silver
dollar is worth only 50 cents. To my
mind, It is most remarkable thing that
silver bullion is worth as much as it is,
measured in gold. The use for money has
always been the principal use Of the
metals. When that use was largely taken
away from silver and made to rest alone
on gold, it was but natural that the metal
Disseminated against should fall in value
as compared to Ghe favored one. The use
which an article serves constitutes its
value. Two things which serve the same
purpose and have the same use have the
same value Why Is q coined silver dollar
Of the same value as gold dollars It y
Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1896-09-18
JOHN P. REA, So,
FRANK. L. RANDALL
e. G. GR1DLEY, a'
Fl. H1MMELMAN, JR.
THOMAS d. O'BRIEN.
Committee on Notification
REPLY OF Mr.. LIMO.

Accepts the Nomination rendered Him by
RAJ. the Democratic Committee.
John p. Rea, Frank l.. Randall, Z. G.
Gridley, II. Zimmerman, Jr., and
Thomas D. O'Brien, Members Of the
Notification Committee Appointed by
the Democratic State Convention of
Minnesota d. .,. ~.
GENTLEMEN - Having received your
communication advising me Of my selec-
ton by tho Democratic party Of the
state of Minnesota as It's candidate for
governor, beg leave to submit to you my
i acceptance of the high honor conferred by
the convention of the party. In so doing,
/ deem it proper to state that have also
accepted the nomination Of the other great
party Of this state-the Populist party
I; and that in doing so, stated to its dele
gates in convention assembled that !
should accept the nomination by the
Democracy of the state of Minnesota,
when formally advised of it, as I &C
cepted the Populist nomination, not as q
Democrat, not as Populist, nor as a Re.
publican, but as o citizen of our great
state, In hearty sympathy with aims and
i endeavors of the united reform forces and
ready to do my share Of the work in the
Il pending struggle. This struggle Is to Sc
cure the adoption in the nation Of flnan.
cial policy which will tend to relieve the
working and producing classes Of the
United States from the existing paralysis
i Of business the loss Of profit in produc
ton, the enforced idleness Of labor, and
4 the misery brought upon our people by
y the gold standard, as well as to release ou1
4 great state from the small clique Of indi
yiduals, Who under the name and through
the organization Of the great Republican
party In this state, have not only con
Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1896-09-18
GOLD STANDARD TO BLAME.

hold, and, with me, 1t has been mat
ter of conviction ever since first entered
public life, that the most potent factor in
producing existing conditions, by which
larger share Of the products Of the soil
and Of human labor are taken by capital
from year to year, has been the adoption
Of the gold standard. The attitude Of cap
it'll, arrayed, as it is, solidly for it's con-
tinuance only serves to strengthen me- In
that conviction. That this attitude Of
capital is the result of groundless fear,
quite as much as sordid motives, cheer
fully concede, but the effect on the Ques-
ton Is the same.
The political and industrial liberation Of
the populations of Western Europe and Of
our own country before and during the
:arly decades Of this century gave human
ingenuity and energy scope which 1t had
never before enjoyed. Invention and
labor saving machinery multiplied the
results of human endeavor q thousand
fold. Production increased enormously,
but with the increased production came
period Of lower and falling prices, affect
ing Europe and America alike. The
cause Of it was the insuf1ciency Of the
quantity of the metallic money Of the
world to adequately measure the increased
quantity of products and to serve the ex.
tended demands Of commerce. Panics.
crises and failures were the order Of the
day between the sos and the 50s-condi-
lions very similar to the present. Indus.
try was paralyzed, commerce tagging, Ia
Dor idle and agriculture suffering.
With the discovery Of gold in California
human activity and industry were re.
yiyed. The enormous production Of gold
entered into the monetary circulation Of
the world and gave prices an upward ten
dency. Business and every legitimate un-
dertaking, properly conducted, afforded
profit. Gain, or the reasonable expecta-
ton Of it, Is the magic wand which starts
the idle mill, turns the furrow and gives
labor work. Except as temporarily dis
turbed by the disastrous results of Excess
siye speculation, induced by reckless
issues Of bank money, the period between
1850 and 1870 was the most prosperous,
and contributed more to the advancement
Of civilization than any like period in the
history Of the world. But the continued
upward tendency Of prices resulting from
this addition to tho worlds stock Of
money was q thorn in the side of the
bondholding and income-d drawing classes.
While the earning capacity of capital en-
gagged in business increased the purchas-
ing power Of fixed incomes, or of the dol
lar or pound, received from interest
on bonds, did not grow. In other
words. the conditions were such
as to favor the worker rather than the
drone. This was intOlerable to the In.
come drawing classes then, as 1t Is now.
| They determined on q reversal Of things
This could only be accomplished by in.
ducing governments to discontinue the
use Of one or other Of the money metals
as full and unlimited legal tender and
J limiting It's coinage. The production Of
gold being the creates, that metal was ct,
Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1896-09-18

trolled Its action, but have also In former
years prostituted your party, to give aid
to their schemes, to defeat the will OF the
people, to prevent the passage OF whole
some reforms in legislation and admins
tration, and to further the personal inter
ests Of those in control. L- 49,.
Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1896-09-18
COMPARISON OF ENERGIES.

Mulhall, the great English statistician,
in an article in the June, 1895, number of
The North American Review, in making
comparison between this country and
Europe, says: ''n we would compare the
energy or working power of the United
States with that Of other nations the fol-
lowing table would suffice to show at q
Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1896-09-18
SAME RULES GOVERN MONEY.

The same rules which govern the prices