The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1896-09-10

u,u., Labor NouId 10 I'm Demand
,..t.,,.. would be Incrssssd-Esad
,,,,fally rhl- Discussion.
OyruE ROAD, AUG. 81.
.... ...... rDlLlHo'.hmdn:
DEAR SIR: ! have never seen a.
corv of your paper, but have heard
XXI and know the side that you are
an. In this campaign. | send this
l.ttcr to you because | know that
,ou will publish It, and your paper
.l- probably q larger circulation
than any other paper that would
publish lt My name is withheld for
reasons that are obvious. i am
conductor on Western railroad.
A Icw weeks ago certain official
ot This railroad company handed me
q small pamphlet of several leaves
entitled "'Ihe Wage Earner and Free
silver / was asked to take it home
with me, read carefully and return
it. did so. la fact, j read it three
times. 1t worried me very much. !
have been IN the railroad service for
| about fifteen years, and have never
given any special attention to pOlit-
lcaI questions, and know probably
more about the tariff than any other
question, and don't know much
about that. In general way | have
felt from observation that money was
scarce; | have seen all business and
enterprises getting dull; | have seen
land sell under the hammer for half
what it sold for n few years ago;
,vNI, 70, f,.,t
uyes and friends who live on farms
10 the effect that prices We're so low
that II was difficult to meet expen-
SEES and have enough money left to
pay taxes; | have heard merchants
complain that they could not sell
half the goods that they had beer
selling. | had 30 doubt that rail
roads would do much more business
in carrying out and bringing bacl
'reights if produce brought a better
price and new enterprises were start
ed up SO had made up my mind t'
vote for the side that favored more
money in this fight.
But now for the circular: 1t start
ed out with calling our attention t.
the fact that we were receiving
wages of SO much per day, or sal
aries of so much per month, and tina
IL was to our interest that every
thug we had to buy should be
cheap SO that our wages would buy
- more Of other things. Then it stateo
M that free coinage OF silver woulC
cause the prices of farm product;
and AL. other things that we had tc
buy 90 90 up about double, which
would have about the same effect as
It the company were TO reduce ou,
salaries One-half.
Tho circular also went on to say
that the railroads al owed bond!
payable in gold, and that free coin
age would not only drive all gol(
out of the country, but that it would
also send it to n premiums; therefore
the railroad companies woult
have to pay n premium to get the
gold to meet their bonds; and thi
would so embarrass the roads tina
they would have to either raise thei
freight and passenger rates or re
duce the wages OF their employees
That freight and passenger rate
were now as high as the peopl
wonld stand; therefore, the onl,
thing left would be to reduce wage
of those who work for the roads
That this would be y double blow t
the men employed, and appealing t.
them (to u.s. not to vote to bring thl
calamity upon ourselves The ci,
cular also went on to say that fre
silver would drive foreign capita
out of this country; and much NOR
along the same line.
AS have said, this circular CAV
me a great deal of trouble, and ha
about forced me to the conclusio
that my duty to my wife and chi
dren would force me to vote agains
free silver. The day before | +,
turned the circular | had on m
train United States Senator.
was the young Senator from Mort
Carolina. While | did not kno
him we'll, knew that he was stron
free silver man, and that he ha
also on all occasions taken sides vii
the laborlng man. SO ! handed hi
the circular and asked him to re;
it and hand it back to me, sa
ing to him that if what was in tn
circular was so, why then was it 4
my duty to myself and my family
vote against free silver. When lie
| passed through the car he ask
me to sit down Il moment in the sc
with him. He handed me back the C
cular and asked if they were being d
trbuted generally among the @
ployes OF the railroad. | told h
that | thought they were. Th
smiling, he said: THE advice
these companies to the effect I'd
your wages will be reduced if y
vote for free silver reminds mo
what once occurred between lar
lord and his carriage driver. L
landlord asked his driver as th
We're about starting for the polls
voting day how he was going to vo
Upon receiving the drivers ansv
the landlord replied: Don't y
know that if you vote that way y
cannot get rs good wages as y
get nowW The driver promptly
Piled: Sir, If that were SO, L
thinks you would vote that "
yourselt.'n
| admitted the force OF the i'll
iratlon, but told the Senator tt
wanted him TO explain to
whether or not this circular was C
rect when it said that free sill
!. would raise the price of farm pr
, ucts and many other things whic
would be forced to buy out of
salary each month. give you
low as best l can from memory
answers and my questions:
senator: Yes, free coinage OF
Yer will undoubtedly raise the pri
or all farm products.
Conductor: If that is SO the
want you to show me if you can b
II WOuld ha ,,x, IN %