The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1897-07-14
NASHVILLE CONFERENCE
Its Proceedings and PlatfOrm-The
National Committee AppGinted-A
Great and Harmonious Gathering.

we gave IN our ldSI ISSUE SOlue dc
count of the proceedings of the great
gathering of Populists at Nashville,
Tenn. We append the following supple
mental report:
AT noon of the second day, July 9Th
the committee on platform and plan
through their chairman, Hon. Ignatius
Donnelly, of Minnesota, made the fol-
lowing report, which was greeted with
applause: "
ADDRESS.
To the Peoples Party of the United
States:
Disclaiming any intention to dictate
to the POpulist voters of the United
States, or any feeling of bitterness to-
wards those who may have honestly
differed from us in the past on matters
of party policy, in the words of the i'm
mortal Lincoln, with malice toward
none, with charity for all, with firm
ness in the right as God gives us to see
the right; we submit to every patriotic
citizen the following address,
In 1891 there was organized at Cincin-
natl great political party whose prin-
ciples were as vast an innovation upon
existing beliefs as were the grand gen
eralizatiOn of Thomas Jefferson in the
Declaration of Independence an advance
upon the ideas commonly held by the
world in 1776
The latter proclaimed the legal equal
lty of all men, and their right to liberty
and happiness; the former declared
that government is mere instrument
tality, formed by all for the enforce
ment of the welfare of all; that labor
of brain and Drawn is the sole parent OF
prosperity, society and civilization
That wealth belongs to him who
creates it, and that every dollar taken
from industry, without an equivalent
Is robbery, that if any man will not
work, neither shall he eat; that the in
terests of rural and civil labor are the
same, while their enemies are Identical"
These ideas are the natural sequence
and supplement to the Declaration of
independence. Without them the words
of Jefferson are mere "brutum full
men, The right to pursue happiness
is of no avail if men are prevented by
misgovernment from attaining it. Lib
erty is but an idle word if the human
family are to be swept through poverty
and suffering In bondage. Life itself is
not worth having at the price of shame
and degradation. The New World is no
better than the Old World if the condi-
tion of the people is the same.
We escaped from England in 1776
We are again her subjects in 1897. We
are not permitted to pass laws neces-
sary for our own welfare, without her
consent; and that consent cannot be
had since she thrives by plundering us
had since she thrives by plundering u.s.
Cheap production in the United States
means cheap supplies for her citizens.
Instead Of a sovereign people, leading
the world to higher levels of statecraft
and development, as the greatest, most
powerful and most thoroughly educated
commonwealth on earth, we are
dwarfed into mere prOvincials, toiline
to enrich our cunning masters, side by
side with the starving Hindoo, the
wretched Egyptian and the impover-
ished Irishman.
The Peoples Party was born to live
and not to die. It was created not tC
put few men in Office, but to give to
all men that happiness guaranteed by
the Constitution of the United States
These conditions which five years ago
demanded the establishment of our or
ganization, insist today, with ten-fold
force, that 1t shall live as long as a
single wrong exists unrighted on the
face of the earth.
To resist these evils we organized in
1891. We meet in 1897 to renew the
faith; to proclaim that the battle is MOI
yet over; that it is just beginning, and
that we will continue the good fight az
long as God let's us live.
While we have the largest federation
for all honest differences of opinion
aUO Will welcome TO our ranks all pa
triots, we declare that those who think
the party ought to die have no more
place in It's ranks than Benedict Arnold
had in the Continental army or Judas
1scariot in the Christian church. Fl
deity to principle is above all Other
considerations, since such fidelity
means the greatness and happiness of
the human race.
While we have nothing but kindl,
feelings towards the rank and file O.
our late allies, we do not believe that
the question of free silver is in itself
broad enough platform for a nationa
party. The reconciliation of silve
would. we believe. increase the price OF
labor and Its productions by increasin,
the supply of money, and is therefor,
matter Of the utmost consequence t.
all the people OF the United States: bu