The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1896-11-24
WE HAVE RENEWED OUR COW
ENANr WITH THE POWER OF
OPPRESSION.

all the trusts u D.
which the industrious producers Of the
marvellous wealth Of this country are
despoiled, and by which their wealth
production is absorbed into the money
vaults, the oil tanks, the grain eleva'
tors-into the ever expanding paunch
Of thig latter dag god of greed, have oh,
tanned the consent of the American
people to go on with their work.
But is 1t right7 Is it wise9 Have the
American people made no mistake IN
assuming that for the sake OF temper
ery peace or for other and more un-
worthy temporary expedieDts it is best
to tolerate the very apparent injustice
Of existing cOnditions7
Is there any intelligent reason TO ex,
pect that ircreaee Of authority and
power will soften the conscience and
reform the conduct of tyranny7
Are the American people really glad
OF the existence Of the Armor Beef
Trust, the Standard Oh Company, the
money syndicate that, by It's threat, as
il were, grabs their wheat and holds it
out Of the peoples reach while the peo-
pie hunger; grabs and holds from them
their coal while the people shiVer with
ccld; grabs the land and all the means
of production while the people suffer
OF Gle for lack Of a chance to work, an
opportunity to toll and produce food,
fuel and clothing for themselves?
Are the great masses Of the toiiiDg
American people really glad to toll on in
toe service of their masters under
systematic, institutional extOrtions by
which they are forced to give up to
their masters all but barely enough to
miserably lives Are they glad to live
lives filed with anxious caTe ard
with only mans charity and Gods
pity TO lean on in emergency Of old
sge9 This surely cannot be.
Yet with the harnessed lightning of
modern civilization the news is flashed
to me this morning that the American
people have consented to their enslave-
ment by the trusts.
Miss Columbia" has attained the lie.
gal age of consent" but whether her
consent to such debRsement as this sur
render to the trusts involves, is given
for peace sake, is given because Of her
innocent confidence that these she thus
particularly endOws with privileges
will reward all her people with boun-
ties, or whether it is because she has
not the courage 10 Go right. Her con
duct TO Day is as clearly prostitution
as it was in those earlier days, when,
with the words "AlI men are created
tquRi" emble z ming her maiden brow,
cha continuously, for more than eighty
; ears, consented to the enslavement OF
millions Of dark skinned men, women
and children. Wrong is not right
because the American people
give their consent to it.
Force, fear, misrepresentation, self
greed, expectancy, are any Or all Of
competent means OF gaining viii
ing or unwilling consent may be given
to crime.
Government drives it's just power
from the consent OF the governedI'
What a pretty, catchy pIatItude that
Ie, isn'tit? Doesn't III lsG government
also depend upon the consent of the
goveTned8 Do not the powers Of ty-
ranny depend upon the consent Of the
tyr8nr zsd7 When the victim can no
endure, ne refuses consent; If
that refusal is imp0Gent, ne defends his
God given right to lie with force; il
fierce is insufficient to maintain 0js
rights be dies fighting for the right, be
cause he will not consent to live g slave.
l have too lofty a conception Of
American intelligence and American
discernment Of Injustice, too implicit
confidence in our ability to NEST and
peacefully overthrow as the ballot box
the growing po8ers which are opposed
TO the Democratic principle in govern
ment, to believe that the people will
Continue to give their consent to the
great wrong from which they suffer,
uatil the powers they have conferred
upon the American people to fight for
the right to existence and the perman-
ence Of Republican institutions.
E. STILLMAN DOUBLEDAY,
III Lafayette Ave Brooklyn, N. z.