The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1898-01-15
of government was transferred to Wall

There. according TO PETER. was the
raison d'etre of the Populist party. 1t
came into existence because that was the
state OF the country. And truly when one
! hears that statement OF the case rolled
of. ore rotundo, from a ready tongue IL
! does present a very terrifying kind OF
nightmare. Until one has time TO catch
his breath. II does seem really az though
| all hope was gone. What touches could
he added TO such picture. unless, indeed.
we should say. land the sun rises ana
sets as usual. the day is light and the
night is dark. and man must have food
or man will starve."
Learning thus from PETER why the
| Populist party was started. II Is interest
ing to discover what it was intended to
| do. Hear PETER:
| And hence IT was that the Peoples
Party was born. 1t came into being that
government by the people might not
| perish from the earth. 1t planted Itself
| on the broad ground Of equality Of hu-
| man rights. II believed the earth is the
peoples heritage. and that wealth be-
| longs TO him who creates It, that the
work of distributing the products and
| profits Of labor ought to be performed
| by public agencies; that money should be
provided by the Government and distri-
buted through government instrumental
! ties. so that borrowers might secure it's
use at an annual charge not exceeding
| per cent
This Is about as odd a job lot Of lido
| syncracies as we have met with for some
| time. OF course, If government by the
people" was about "to perish from the
| earth" and the birth Of the new party
was going to avert the perishing course,
| it was high time for the new party to
be born. But We saw no sort Of indi-
cations then or now that government
by the people" was 'perishing from the
! EARTH" and we would like TO know some
! thing more about that broad ground Of
| equality of human rights" Where is
that broad ground? And what kind of
human rights are those that are Of an
equality Equality with what? Were
Astor and Dennis Kearney to have the
| same right to the Waldorf Hotel. or was
it no more than that Aston might build
a Waldorf Hotel if he chose and Kearney
might also build one if he chose. II the
first was what was meant then PETER
and the great public have about the same
idea of the Populist psrty. If the second,
chen we cannot see any occasion for the
new party, for all parties agreed to that
as they stood. We doubt whether PETER
had any very definite idea when stating
the objects Of the new party, except in
what he says Of money. He is perfectly
at home when he touches that subject,
and ne speaks in unmistakabe language.
When the Populists got possession Of the
Government the Government would make
all the money and distribute it out
amongst the people on such terms as
suited the people. That is what the
Populists were going to do and Jack
Cade's dream would be fulfilled
PETER mourns over the fact that the
Democratic party swallowed the Popu-
list party in the last Presidential cleo
ton, but he tells us that will no longer be
the case. The psuedo Populists viii re-
main with the Democratic party. but
the Simon pure article will go to itself
and stay there until The cows come home.
In this connection the following passage
from PETERS article will be interesting
reading lie says:
Unless some new alignment OF voters
is effected soon, the POpulist party will
permanently separate into Two parts.
one faction will go backward 10 the
Democrats, and il will not have 10 go
far as the distance between the rear of
the Peoples party and the van guard of
Democracy is so short that they readily
mngle in the same camp. and one coun-
tersign answers for both. The other fac
ton will 90 forward 10 still higher
ground These men have nothing in
common with Democracy. except their
views on the income tax and silver COIN
age, and these, even If they De taken as
leading issues. are POpulist doctrines. an
nounced long before they appeared in the
Chicago platform
And then, 10 give point TO the charac-
ter Of men who will be found moving 20
that higher ground, he says IF THE
PEOPLES PARTY BE MERGED. TT
WILL BE IN \ NEW BODY THAT
SHALL INCLUDE ADVANCED DEMO
Gratis, LIKE ALTGELD AND
BRYAN",N