The Dakota chief. (Gann Valley, Buffalo County, S.D.) 18??-1913, 1896-07-30
SENATOR BUFFERS SPEECH.
Stirring Address Made at the Popu1ist
Convention in st. Louis,

tlOn III st. LOUIS, spoke in part as fol-
lows:
Two political parties have held national
conventions this year. Both have had their
say, made their promises, and put forward
their lenders. Another political party. young,
but a growing giant Of strength (applause),
has to speak to the American peo-
pie at this Important and critical hour. We
are here because there Ia need for US to be
mere. The two parties that have already
spoken have between them had charge OF
the machinery Of a great representative gov
ernment In which kind Of government there
are the greatest possibilities for good and
for evil. the kind Of government where the
prosperity OF the people or their misery can
parties have between them had charge Of
your government for over twenty-five years,
ana during that time a great and prosperous
people, a people laboring to carry out the
injunction to make two blades Of grass grow
where one grew before, have performed their
duty in the eyes of God and man, and have
made this country blossom like a rose, as far
as creating wealth was concerned; yet dur
Ing this time Of unexampled creation Of
wealth. of unexampled industry and econ
omy on the part Of the people, these two
parties have succeeded In bringing this great
nation to the verge of ruin.
These two great parties, under false leadet-
ship, have succeeded In keeping from the
people the greatest Issue In American poll
ties. They have managed to array the great
masses Of the American voters with frenzied
zeal on two sides Of a great national cam
paign, when the issue was Il sham, put up for
rne 9 pSrposs of w Styi%in s;d the w people, the 1t n %ade
lost. Wall street In the United States and
Lombard street in England won. While
these things were going on the great Ameri-
can heart was wrapped in prejudice Of party.
1t was not until they had awakened from
this condition and aroused themselves that
they began to think upon these questions.
Then 1t was that the great middle classes
began to put their heads together for the
common good, and when that small cloud ap-
peared upon the horizon the hearts Of the
people of the country went forth and the
out the land. The minute that all bitterness
was laid aside, and the great heart Of the
people beat as one, that very minute the
American people began to move for them
selves. Then 1t was that the people OF the
South and West, who had been trodden into
the dust and loaded with great burdens,
knew that their interests were the same as
the people Of the North and East. That very
moment they placed themselves upon the
same platform Of principles founded by
Thomas Jefferson and Abraham Lincoln. In
ciples grew and fourlshed; they could not be
trampled down. They were eternal; they
were right. and from that hour to this they
have continued to grow throughout this
A few weeks ago the great national Repuv-
lican party met In this city. The politicians
wanted to straddle the great Issue again that
was before the people, but the Peoples party
hhN ShPOoNN NAN
logic Of events caused them to express them
selves clearly upon the question Of the day,
and consequently they went over bag and
baggage to the great money kings OF Wall
street and Of Europe. A few weeks after
that the great national Democratic party met
in Chicago and was forced there to take a
position, for it could not eyade the Issue
longer; the delegates were frightened; they
were so alarmed, and some Of them. no
doubt, so onscience-stricke that they for
mally decided to deliberately commit petty
arI rrop1 n rpnnr lv ltAulipO tho DonnlnS
party platform almost entire. They almost
tried to steal into our party. l am reminded
of the old fellow who had his Bible stolen.
He said: Faith. and l hope 1t will cure the
disease" My friends. l hope 1t will cure the
disease. My only surprise Is that when they
were stealing they did not steal all the plat
form. II they had been frightened a little
worse l think they would.
The Peoples party came into existence to
perform a great nilsson. There was a neces-
slty for 1t, and it is going to stay here as
long as there Is any necessity for 1T. AS
long as the American people need an or
ganization that IS true and one that Will
stand by them under all circumstances and
and give them the rights to which they are
entitled, this party will continue to exist.
We have done a good deal. No young party
has ever accomplished 80 much in the same
length Of time as we have done. We have
endured the bitterness of denunciatiOn and
the abuse and malignity of party feeling.
Shall it ever be said in the future that this
great band Of patriots who have had the
nerve and the courage to leave the parties
of a llfetime; this great band Of patriots who
have broken every tie that bound us and our
fathers and our grandfathers in political or
ganiZatlon; shall 1t be said that we who
have forced this issue to the front; that we
at this trying and critical hour shall our
selves be controlled more by party prejudices
than by patriotism? The only way you and |
have to build up this party is by appealing
appealing to their patriotism by telling them
that this issue is greater than party. That
Is the only way we have ever taken d single
man out Of the old parties who was worth
having, and 1t Is the only way We shall ever
take any man out OF them In the future who
Is worth having. In this solemn hour let us
drop the bitter feelings that may have been
engendered since we came here. Let us
stop believing that In one small head all of
wisdom and patriotism is contained.
My friends. | have enough faith In the
faces before me and enough faith in the God
above me TO believe that this convention
will not turn itself into a Democratic annex.
l have got too much faith In its patriotism
and In Its sense TO believe that 1t will turn
Itself into a Republican annex. There Is
your danger. There stands one danger and
here stands another. and one Is as big as the
other. 1t has been Il part Of my experience
that whenever you see some good men going
to one extreme and other good men to the
other extreme the path of truth lies between
them. What is our duty? 1t is to indorse AMI
approve what Is right and condemn what is
wrong. Any other course Is not true Popu-
lism. The mission Of the Peoples party has
been to strike down what Is wrong and to
hold up what is right, and we have appealed
to patriotism 10 rise above party to do this,
and our appeal has brought forth 1000, 900 of
patriots, and there are 2,0O0,0OO more patri-
OTIS coming sweeping into our camp.
The doctrine | am now preaching is the
doctrine we built the party on, and l tell you
to-day If you waver from your position Of
consistency. from this high patrlotir position
your party Is built on, you be no better than
the old parties that you rose up to destroy.
7 haliAya rhqt This a nypntinn X pnipp IN do
what Is wisest. We split both of the old par
ties and we split them on principle. We can
not split because We all stand for the same
principles. And of course a party that has
raised up a great principle and split two old
parties Is not going 10 be foolish enough to
allow itself to split on method and detail.
We will stand together and we Will go home
from here a united band of brothers. We
will strin OLE nnaIS for the fray and see the