Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-08-19

always a creditor for at least one days
work. When any man can show me q la
days work. I will show him a laborer who
Is debtor.
The laborer. by the very law of his being
creditor for at least one days work. Is
generally creditor for a weeks work, or
two weeks work. Every great Industrial
enterprise has for its chief creditors its own
laborers. The heaviest account in every
department Of industry, whatever 1t may be-
Is always the wages account.
The pretense that the farmer of Nebraska
Is suffering under the weight of a mortgage
contracted under metal which has steadily
Increased in value is but q popuistic meta
phor. Two-thirds of the farmers have no
mortgage debts whatever. / do not believe
there is per cent of them that owe a mort
gage OF over three years old. during which
time there has been no change in the value
of the metal. This proposal Of the populists
Is an intent to enlist the farmer in a con-
spiracy to reduce the wages paid this labor
that he may have a larger proportion of his
own products. and they are willing to cut
down the wages of every man who works in
cities, who tolls at the bench, who digs In
the mines, who manages the train, in the
hope that they can ride into power on
wave of cupidity and greed awakened in
the breast of the voter.
American Citizcnship.
But. my friends, 1t is triumphant vindi-
cation Of American citizenship that this at
tempt to enlist the farming and agricui-
tural members of this community into this
conspiracy has failed miserably, utterly. alb
soiutey. Every western state which In 1890
and in 1892 fell into the hands of the popu-
lists and went into the Farmers Alliance
before their real purposes were executed,
were purified, and the populistic forces scat
tered out of existence when the farmers of
this country understood precisely what the
populistS meant for his welfare was really
for his ruin. The farmer, who, when this
danger SlOullerpd
muskct to set it aside when the last shot had
been fired on the southern battlefield, whose
moderation prevented the political war
riorS at Washington from pursuing policy
of discrimination and punishment In the
southern states-that farmer who made the
policy OF the north Il policy of Conciliation,
of forgiveness. of reunion, whose hand 1t
was that made ruin of her cities and ashes
of her homes. received her once more and
said: Live in pe.,ce and sin no more" That
farmer today is the r;I.nStaE of order ard
of property, as he was he mainstay of the
Union.
There was a popuistic delegation from
states that were democratic, but ii is sig
niicant fact that every northern state in
Which there waS a chance of electinS dem
ocratic governor or of choosing democratic
electors with the exception OF Missouri and
Indiana. stood boldly and firmly for the
gold standard at Chicago and they were
submerged by wave of popuiism from the
south. My friends, there has been a great
change in the democratic organization OF
the southern states. The men who, from a
mistaken sense of loyalty, followed theiI
states out of the Union, whose .,allantry in
war. whose fortitude In defeat. won the
admiration of the civilized world: the men
whose virtues commanded the support of
northern pubilc opinion lii the attempt tC
overturn carpet-hag governments in the
southern states. the men who led their p9o-
pie through all the troubled period of re-
construction back into a fun union with the
sister states-these men. like Hampton in
North Carolina and Caffery in Louisiana
have been swept from power. a new set has
got into the sadule-a set of leaders Of which
Tfllman is the exponent, who boldly I'M
fured the sectional flag AT Chicago and de-
clared that this popuiist movement is
direct movement against the prosperity OF
the east.
An Appeal to worlingmcn.
Men of New York. toiicrs of -America
guardian. of your own homes. will you al
low your rate of wages 20 be affected
(Cries of Never" Never by any man
who never has paid wages at all If he
could get out of il? VIII you submit to
this conspiracy between the profe ssional
farmers. the farmers who cultivate tn.
4Garrels OF their ne.shbors, farmers who
TABOR with their Jaws, popu!ist agitators OF
tfe west and the unreconclied Shareholders
OF the south? This is Il conspiracy bs--
tween professional farmers who want 20
pay low wages and the unreconciied slave
holder who would like tc rly no wages al
this consp racy. Mr.. Bryan did rot create
1t. NO man can create a movement ike
this. The forces that created il are active
and have oeeu working in a thousand diff
ferent directions. Mr. Bryan, repreS. ntins,
this theory. is but like a drop Of water on
the crest of the wave more conspicuous.
but no more import ant than the millions
OF drops that form its baS" The populiS-
tic movem is the attempt of these pro-
fessional farmers. of these men who are
unwilling 10 share with the lahorer, to APP
peal to their greed. He is an enemy of
public order: lie IS an obstacle 10 progress.
lie is a conspirator against the peace am,
prosperity OF the industrial masses OF the
country.
L have said that the laborer is the object
Of this conspiracy. and he is. But let no
man imagine that il they are successful
the injury would all be borne by the man
woo works with his hands He would be
the last to suffer and the last To recover
from its effects But the shock to civili-
cation which would ensue from such
breach OF public and private faith would
be irreparable. Its effect no man could
measure from any experience of the hu-
man race. We cannot tell to what degree
1t would paralyze industry. If L were ask
ell to define civilization. l should say it was
industrial cooperation. Everything that
a man does for his own benefit acts di-
rectly upon the interests of his neighbors.
No man can STANG alone in civilized com
nunity. His interests, his prospects, his
fortunes are to some extent shared by his
fellows. There is not an ear of corn ripen-
ing in the western field that does not af-
feet the price of bread TO you and to NE.
The farmer who scatters seed upon the
ground by that act starts into motion the
wheels of the factory; he sharpcnS the
tools of the carpenter: he stimulates the
construction of railroads; he causes the
engineers to plan new bridges crossing cur
rents, new tunnels under rivers, new can
ais joining oceans and separating CONT
nentS.
If the farmer did not work, if the miner
cid not dig in the subterraneai. gallery,
every other department of industry would
languish, for men would not produce and
create if they did not in the industry
and activity of others a prospect of de-
nand for the commodity which they pro-
duce. and every man in the world is
bound closely to the destiny ard interests
Of his fellow man. Underlying the whole
scheme of civilization is the confidence
men have in each other-confdence in their
honesty; confidence in Their integrity: con-
fidence in their industry; confidence in
their future. If we want silver coinage to-
morrow, if We even debase our standard CT
value, men say that still you would have
the same property you have today; you
would still have the same SOIL you would
still have the same continent. And ii is
true. But so did the Indian have the same
rivers that roll past our cities and turn the
wheels of commerce they pass; SO the