The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1896-08-15
FRIEND TO THE FARMER,
But Foe to the Monopolist--Let the
Tiller of the Soil Read.

these broad and fertile praries. Bum down
vour cities and leave our farms, and your cit
| les will spring up again as If by magic. But
destroy our farms and the grass will grow IN
the streets of every city in this country. My
friends. we shall declare that this nation is
able to legislate for Its own people on every
question without waiting for the aid or con-
sent of any other nation or earth. Upon that
issue we expect to carry every single State in
the Union"
The above. from the speech of William
Jennings Bryan in the Chicago Convention,
tells plainly how he feels toward the farmer,
and emphasizes the importance of clothing
him with authority to fight the trusts and com
bines that are backing up Mckinley. On this
subject of monopoly the Philadelphia Farm
Journal says =
monopoly now is rampant and submits to
no restraint. 1t threatens the happiness of
the people and bodies mischief to Republican
institutions. Upon no business does 1t press
more heavily than upon agriculture.
The toiling farmer tries to get through the
day without paying tribute to monopoly. he
wakens in the morning and looks out through
the window of his room to gaze upon earth and
sky: the price of the glass he sees through is
now fixed by the window glass trust. The
curtain which shades the window pays tribute
to the window shade trust. He arises and
strikes match-in that simple act he con-
tributes 10 the flowing Golfers of the match
trust.
The oil in his lamp was doled out to him by
one of the most gigantic trusts the world ever
saw.
He dresses. and as he pulls on his boots he
reflects that the leather which composes them
is furnished by the great leather trust. Even
the tacks that fasten the soles to the uppers
were provided by the tack trust.
The rubber in the comb with which he
dresses his hair, and in the hot water bottle
that thaws out his rheumatism, has added to
the wealth of the rubber trust.
The timber ofhis house, the stairs by which
he descends, the shingles which shelter him
| from the rains, were furnished at prices de-
termined by the lumber trust.
As he robes his manly legs in shoddy trou-
sers his lean and twisted shot bag scarcely
makes Jingle, for the gold that ought TO be
| in il was withdrawn from the sub-treasury last
week and is on its way across the ocean tor
London money bags. The lonely silver notes
| on hand are needed to pay store bills long
overdue.
The morning paper which spreads the news
| of the world before him is the favored child
of monopoly and is its chief advocate and OBJ
seauious servant. lis reports have come over
the electric telegraph, most distinguished
and venerable monopoly. Its Opinions are
dictated by monopoly and its facts distorted at
the bidding thereof. Its spirit is no longer
| free, its soul has departed.
He sits down to enjoy the morning feast, u
reward of honest labor, and the steel blade
which carves his meat is a product of the steel
| trust. The meat itself contributes to the beef
trust, the bread to the -four trust, the salt IN
his porridge 10 the salt trust, and monop-
oily fixed the price he paid for the coffee he
| drinks.
The coal with which his food is cooked and
his house warmed came from the mines OF
the coal trust, and he helps contribute share
of the forty million dollars profit that will now
annually go into the Golfers OF that giant mo-
nopoly.
finn. so some of the mines had to be closed,
the hours shortened and miners thrown out of
work. The price of coal is raised because
there is too much
Too much sugar, so monopoly takes pos
session of all there is, and he must contribute
to the enormous gains of the sugar trust as he
sweeten his coffee.
He arises from the feast his wife has spread
for him by consent of monopoly, and goes
forth into the open air and rejoiees. Monop-
DIV has not yet been able to corner the sun
light nor the atmosphere he breathes. Both
are vet Tree, anu ucotO"Sh'
Across the fields he beholds a fast flying
exnress train and hears the roar of the loco
motive whistle and the loud rumble of the
wheels as they pound the rails of steel.
These are not pleasant sounds to HIM, for they
| recall how his father helped build that road,
| took stock himself, and canvassed the county
in It's behalf; how long ago that stock was
swallowed up and became worthless except to
gamble with on the exchange; then came
| bonds. and bonds and bonds, sold to con-
| 6dine public, his neighbors and himself; these,
too we're engulfed, all but the one on top
| Now the road is run by receivers, the floating
debt is beyond calculation, and the president
gets So, 900 year. The reorganlzer is IN
| London selling gold bonds to cover every,
thing in sight,-equipments and road bed and
terminals and franchises.
The painful vision passes and he goes about
his work; he plows and plants and cultivates;
by and by harvest day comes. Monopoly
greets him again with grinning countenance.
| His crops are to be sent to market and they
must 90 by railroad A trust called Joint
| Traffic Association allows no choice of routes,
and demands that he stand and deliver. He
must nav all the traffic will bear and there is
no redress.
His products reach the market and tumble
headlong into a pit dug by monopoly, and he
receives for them price not liked by HIM,
but by the stock and produce gamblers ex-
change. The price is low and never advances
until his crops are sold.
He gets something for his years toll-Inst
about half what he got twenty-three years ago,
inst about half what in Justice is his-now
| take a look at it. Is it money? No, 1t is
"currency,'' the mere shadow of money. 1t
| is neither gold nor silver, the only real money,
but made of rags and ink, filthy and odorous.
| ONLY half enough of it and not real money at
all. Monopoly has the real money-and his
crops, too. The compound interest tribe OF
money changers, whose home is in London,
but who roam over the earth to crush and
blight, have impounded the gold, belittled and
debased the silver, put up the funds for the
grain gamblers to buy his crops with at halt
price; and then tries TO make him belleve that
the cause of low prices is overproduetion; that
the cause of public distress is bountiful crops
that the cause of poverty is plentitude.
And they pretend to a fear that money will
become too cheap and plenty, and SO destroy
half of it to prevent an overplus. Should
there be too much doubtless the people would
die of general poverty and universal misery
So to prevent money from becoming too
abundant they take what there is and lock 1t
up, all this out of pure, pure honesty, and a
burning desire to protect mankind from the
dire calamity of having too much.
There is a luxury that remains to the farm
er, that of paying taxes, which never dimin-
ish, and there is no trust yet formed to take
this Job off his hands or any part of it, or il
there is it werks the other way. For this
purpose the currency he has can be utilized as
far as il goes He is likewise relieved of the
responsibility of public Office, and civic re-
sponsibility for the bosses attended to that.
The bosses have monopoly of official posi-.
ton and the salaries and honors attached
thereto. and the international gold grabbers
have tight and sure monopoly of the bosses.
| All he has to do is to hurrah, to vote and to
submit. This finishes his duty as a citizen OF
this free and independent republic