The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1897-08-19
A HARD SCHOOL
Is That Conducted by the Stern
Teacher, Experience.
As q Result the voters of Ohio Propose
to Right Their Wrongs at Coming
Election - Coercion Will
Not Go This Year.

discourage them
The common enemy Is both distract
ed and confounded by the unredeemed
promises OF last year, and finds it next
to Impossible to deceive even the most
credulous by putting forth a new crop
of equally false and fraudulent prom
ises this year.
Hannaism is better understood By
the people in 1897 than it was in 1896,
when for the first time it was inject
ed into national politics. And the
more the methods of Hannaism are
studied and analyzed by the people
the stronger their determination to
eliminate these methods from our po-
litical system.
When one takes into consideration
that coercion and fraud were freely
resorted to for the purpose OF achiev-
ing political results, on the bigot's plea
that the ends justified the means, and
under the promise that the victory 50
won was to come crowned with conf
dence and prosperity, with more work
and more wages for the toilers, and
|
pares the actual results-the worse
conditions now with the unhappy con-
ditions when the promises were made
he can only have contempt for the
promise makers and sympathy and
commiseratlon for the coerced and de-
ceived.
But with this Comes one pleasing
reflection. That the ways Of the de-
ceiver having been made plain, no one
need be deceived a second time. But
there is one serious reflection that pre-
sents itself at the same time, namely,
that the same methods of corruption
will be resorted to this year as last,
and the same scheme of coercion at
tempted upon all who are directly SUBJ
jected to the influences Of combined
and greedy capital.
Against all of these the people
should nerve themselves for the con-
flict which Is about to open here In the
State of Ohio. There is every reason
that existed last year and many that
did not then exist, why majority of
the voters hould turn out of power the
leaders of the Republican organization
which has so long deceived them prom
ises only intended to catch the votes
Of the unwary.
Not content last year with making
promises which they never intended to
fulfill, the leaders of the Republican
party, under the lead of NJ. A. Hanna,
set on foot a system Of terrorism which
hitherto unknown in our political his
history, terrorism which would dis
grace the average monarchial govern
ment.
There were thousands Of farmers
and other real estate owners who, in
consequence OF the reckless and ex-
travagant administration of state and
local affairs by Republican legislatures
and officials, had been compelled to
place mortgages upon their farms and |
houses to meet taxes and other obliga.
tions made doubly burdensome by the |
contraction of the currency under the |
single gold standard, and who knowing |
that the only relief they could expect |
was through an increase of the circu- |
lating medium by the restoration of |
silver to it's proper place in our none
tary system, expressed an intention to |
vote their own convictions and dn their
own interests.
Moneyed institutions and note shaw
ers, who held these mortgages and |
whose fortunes were to be promoted |
by compelling their debtors to pay
every dollar with 200 cent dollars,
served notice on them that If they vot-
ed for William j. Bryan the mortgages
against their property would be fore
closed at once and they would be sold
out of house and home.
This brutal threat had its intended
effect in thousands of instances. 1t
took brave man indeed to run the
risk of sacrificing the home of his wife
and children sooner than surrender his
political convictions. Thousands of
them, under this duress, surrendered
the sovereignty guaranteed to them
by the constitution.
But that surrender profted them not
Many of them have been foreclosed
and turned out Of their homes. All
of them have seen their tax burdens
Increase and the prices of the products
Of their labor decline under the grind
Ing gold standard system, and those
Of them who escaped foreclosure last
year this year are in imminent danger
Of 1t. In the meantime the money
changers have prospered. Wall street
has become congested with the money
which should be distributed among the
people, and those who toll not and
neither do they spin are clothed in
purple and fine linen, and fare sumptu-
ously every day on the tribute wrung
from those who toll from sun to sun
to meet the demands of the usurers
and the taX-eaters.
Acting In concert with the foreign
of our great railway sys-
tenn, Mark Hanna put into operation a
scheme whereby the minor railway
employees were compelled to either
choose between voting against their
honest convictions or suffering the loss
of employment, coupled with the prom
se that the election of Mckinley meant
more employment and more wages for
mem, and the threat that the election
of Bryan meant loss of employment
md consequent starvation.
What has been their experiences?
The hours Of employment have been
In no instance has there
been an Increase OF wages. In many