The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1898-03-02

pdCeu Dy the TdllTOdu company IN the
hands Of scalpers and the said citizen
purchases said book from such scalpers
and offers it} for transportation the rail-
road company has the right to cOnfiscate
his private property, and he Is not en-
titled to demand the return Of his property,
as condition to pay his fare in cash,
while the company is justified to maltreat
such citizen even unto death, providing
ne contributed to his injury by his stub
DornesS not to leave the car, or pay his
fare. and not demand the return of his
book, Is now judicially established The
highest tribunal in our state which should
nave been justly designated the supreme
fraud Of the state, has sustained the above
decision by simply stating that such citl-
zen should leave the car, pay his fare
and not demand the return of his personal
property as a condition to do So He had
his remedy in the courts afterwards In
view of all this, it seems to me that as
the courts are at present administered,
any appeal to them is equivalent to going
to law with the devil with the court held
In hell From the above decision from the
highest court in Minnesota, I would sug-
gest for your consideration, the necessity
or passing laws covering the following
subjects:
Flrst-A bill providing for a uniform
reduction of 20 per cent on all existing
Ire'Sht rates in force January the 1st
1885,
Second-A bill for a uniform passeneor
rate of two cents per mile
Ihlrd-A bill providing for the lawful
transfer by delivery of mileage books from
one person to another The possession of
such book being prma facie evidence of
lawful ownership regardless of the name
written or stamped on the book
Fourth-A bill providing for the estab-
llshment of scales at all railroad stations
Tor the purpose of weighing farm produce,
10 6nIi
proper receipts for the amount of grain so
delivered for shipment.
Fifth-A bill providing for the manu-
facture of malt liquors and stamping the
same to It's ingredients
There is another corporation or trust I
desire to call your attention to- known as
the Malt House Trust. During the last
year l shipped some 10000 bushels of rye
and barley to manufacturers and malst ers,
In transit thereby realizing in some cases
nearly the Chicago prices at my home
rms year the same parties informed me
that they cannot deal direct with me-
Ihey belong to the American Trust. The
malt houses and buyers are nearly all
combined under one management, and one
buyer purchases their supplies instead Of
fifty as heretofore, thus making little or
no competition. l have always been OF
posed to Prohibition. but in self defence
I have changed by mind. I would there
ance convention insert Prohibition blank
in their national platform In my Judgment
the devil must be fought with fire. While
on this subject. l would suggest that YOU
would request congress to pass a law com
pelling the manufacturers Of malt liquors
10 brand their products stating the
materials it is manufactured Of and any
attempt to adulterate it or to evade the
law should be punished by a penalty of
not less than five years i'll the penitentiary.
TWO OF the most substantial and far reach
ing results were accomplished. where the
exposure of wheat stealing frauds from
the farmers in the large elvators in the
West. where thousands of bushels Ct
wheat annually. were lost. The men who
titled Gods soil and who take their re-
ward in the abundance Of tie EARTH and
regard crop failures as chast;sements from
on high, have been, are and always will
be the hope and guard Of Christian civili-
zatiOn In this country there are l3 900 600
farmers living on farms and in them the
hope of this nation depends. Farmers as
rule are pessimists, they are seldom con-
graduated for their honest efforts to ac-
complish public good. 1t is for this rea-
son that l propose to tell the farmers here
complish public good. 1t is for this reason
that l propose to tel 1.-The farmers here as
sembled. what they have accomplished not
only for themselves, but also for those of
the nation and the world at large 1t was
the farmers of the Alliance who first rails
ed the objection to the eXtortions OF rail-
roads. Some 25 years ago and often since
had the honor of formulating, introduce
ing and advocating the passage of remedial
legislation in our state legislation, both
house and senate Each year we discover
ed and fought new tyrannies that threaten
ed our interest. each year accomplishing
little towards our fre adom, but progress
was slow. We were cons ervatve and NOV
ed with deliberation. ana finally in 1890 we
1ant ino1 oofi
and succeeded in electing a sufficient num-
Der of members to the state legislature
to control both houses The purpose to
create reform, was frustrated to some
extent by corporations who still have the
power to prevent remedial legislation, but
not the power to kill the doctrines and
spirits OF reform. 1t was the farmers who
brought about an investigation of wheat
stealing in the West as the result the
farmers realized six cents per bushel more
for their grain than they did before that
investigation was begun. Then the diff
ference between the price Of grain at Chi
cago. Minneapolis and Duluth was seven
cents per bushel. Today the difference Is
only one cent. That saving of six cents
per bushel on 100000, means a saving
annually of $9,000.0O0 to the farmer The
saving in seven years to those three great
wheat states, the two Dakotas and Mime
sofa. of the enormous sum
of ss3ooOOOO or more than enough
to clear the entire mortgage Indebtedness
on all the farms in the state of Minne-
sofa The farmers are the authors of every
material reform that has been brought
about in this nation. Greater than the
influence of the great political parties has
been the power Of the farmers Their re-
wards have come in improved conditions.
1t is not wise to have the ideas that the
rewards should come in any great per-
sonal distinction, but rather in the satis-
faction that is to be derived from conscious
ness Of duty to the people. we'll and duti-
fully performed. If the farmers Of this
country couTd be united they would be
all powerful. greater in numbers than any
other class and with opportunities for
greater than those enjoyed by any
other class. But the farmers can be
criticised. common observer seeing the
conditions that threaten the nation. would
be more active, take more prompt and de-
cisive steps, to WELD, the great power they
possess for the benefit and salvation of the
nation. If you were ordinarily patriotic.
you would organize for all sorts of action.
The time is coming when men in the cities,
released from patriotism by mere want
may attempt to tear down this republic.
1t rests with the conservative element-the