Birmingham state herald. (Birmingham, Ala.) 1895-1897, 1896-10-22

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stand by 1t; after pledge is, made, abide
1t.
I'VE have six votes in Kansas where
the democrats have one. We should have
eight electors and the democrats two. In
Colorado, three votes to one. In Kansas
the populists have not put out any ticket
at ALL 1t has been a political deal by of
fice-seekers on each side. They have
swapped off the national ticket for state
offices. They have done the same thing
in Colorado.
1.-The republicans of Georgia offered to
give us their entire vote IL we would
agree to give them one place on the state
house ticket. My reply was: You cannot
build a platform broad enough for pop
ulist and republican to stand upon.
I'm Texas our friends say we can get
fifteen votes for you If you will give
fifteen for Mckinley. My reply was you
cannot give me votes
at the Expense of Mr.. Bryan.
'I tried to get our chairman In Kan
sas to put out a ticket and divide the
vote, and 1 am now informed that that
chairman denounces me as a traitor.
when l speak for Bryan and Watson
speak for the ticket.
Democrats are very fond of me on,
special occasions, on other occasions not
SO fond. In one state the chairman has
applied to the supreme court to get a.
mandamus to keep my name on the
ticket, since have ordered 1t off.
Take North Carolina. The populists
have fused with the republicans on state
offices and fused with the democrats on
the national ticket. The peoples party
steadily protests against fusing with
dither of these parties.
Suppose I should go to North Caro-
lima to make speech. What would say Z,
l could not attack the democrats, nor
could I attack the republicans. All l.
could do would be to repeat the ten COM
ma nj dff,pn
sing the doxology
Gentlemen, reach your conclusions
like intelligent, brave men and stand by
them. Free and fair discussion will bring
out that which is best
"I say as a southern man, IL ever the
south unbars the door that opens the
way for her future prosperity she must
quit looking to the east and north Tor
succor. There the banks and corporations
dominate, and while thousands of in
dividuals would like to throw off the yoke
of bondage they are powerless to do So
If our deliverance Is to come 1t must come
from the south and west. These are the
sections that feel the effect Of class legis-
lation.
"The wealth of this country comes from
the fields and mines of the south and
west. To that extent this is a sectional
fight. The people of the north and east
have one idea, while we Of the south and
west have another. Let us fight 1t out
at the polls honestly anu Idirly.
The speaker here paused, stating that
this was the first speech he had made
since he had been suffering from his
throat. and while he excused himself for
the difficulty he found in speaking the
audience had not detected his hoarseness
and cried to him to go on,
His Voice Was All Right.
zone of the great evils the populists
are seeking to rectify," continued the
speaker, "is our tax system. Great IN
surance and express companies pay no
tax. National banks pay no tax, unless
you call II tax of 81 to make So per hun
dred interest tax. Men who have much
should pay much and men who have lit
tie should pay little. ~-s--=r
According to the present tax system,
the poorest man in this audience pays
more tax than the richest railroad in the
republic.
1.-THE federal tax amounts to 81 head
for every man, woman and child in the
government. A family Is estimated at
five members, and for this family tax Is
paid to the amount of $35 per year. Now,
start to pay this with cents cotton and
cents corn and see what it amounts to.
"Populists say let those who are most
able and strongest bear the burden.
"And our transportation system, too Is
wrong. One firm in Wall street, j. Pier
pont Morgan & Co., has been buying up
all the railroads without expending one
dollar. If they can buy railroads by re-
organizations and the issues of new
stocks and bonds to take up the old ones,
the government ought to be able to do so.
Yet some tell us to buy these railroads
would bankrupt the government.
"If the rivers are public highways, the
railroads certainly ought to be. How
would you like for Morgan & Co. to own
the rivers?
"These railroads can not only sap the
country, but they can strike the life out
- fA htftI Il NJ
other. They can strike down Birming-
ham and build Atlanta by discriminating
in freights. BY this means the Standard
Oil company has become the greatest
combine IN the world.
81 am one who believes the government
should be king, and not other powers.
"You say railroads will get into politics.
My God! where are they now? In the
legislatures, in congress and even I'm the
cabinet. If Mckinley is elected they will
have 1t all, but If Bryan Is elected there
will be no railroad lawyer in his cabinet.
Can Assure You of That.
"Put the railroads under the civil SER
vice, and let them come under the same
rule as the postofices, and there will be
no more strikes and boodshed and the
shooting down of employees by Pinkerton
detectives. Who ever heard or strike
in a postoff1ce, or where Pinkerton de-
tectives had to run down postoffice strik-
ers?
Railroads have become oppressive ty-
rants In the employment of engineers,
conductors and train hands they think
they are buying the laborer as well as his
work. I have no more right to tell man
how he shall vote than he has to tell me.
bismarck had his government to buy
up the railroads to get rid of this same
influence Mr.. Gladstone had passed a
law to buy all of the railroads in England,
but it never has been carried out because
of the railroad influence.
"The figures show that every twenty
years you pay for all the railroads in the
country and you never own hand car.
Let's pay for them one more time, says
the populists and then take them and run
them In the interest of the republic.
"And our financial system Is wrong
There are silver democrats who do not
agree with us all the way through.
'.There is as much silver now as there
has ever been, but the trouble has been in
the burning up of the greenbacks. The
populists want the government to turn
back to the people the money 1t has
burned. e.,sss,
'Major Mckinley says 1t Is not open
mints that are needed but open factories.
say give US open mints and we VIII then
IN, fo a