Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1898-01-21
HISTORY CORRECTED.
SCHOOL CHILDREN HAVE BEEN
TAUGHT ANARCHY.
The Signers OF the Declaration of IL.
dependence Were the Same Kind of
Disturbers as the Populists of 1s-
day.

wards reforms and refOrmerS, showing
1t to be simply renewal of the tory
ism of revolutionary times. He writes
as follows:
There is no defense for the part
played by George Washington in the
so-called war of the revolution. For
mer school histories have almost del
fled this Virginian revoutionist, who
took up arms against the government,
and cast his wealth, position and influ-
ence on the side of disorder. The un-
trained and incautious historians of
the past were ignorant of the fact that
resistance to the established order Of
things is always wrong. While we may
admire the personal character OF
George Washington and respect and
praise him as the first president of our
glorious republic, we must not lose
sight of the fact that he raised his hand
agaist the law and, aided by his genius,
such demagogues as Pat Henry, Sam
Adams, Tom Jefferson and Ben Frank
lin. His conduct is the more inexcus-
able by reason of the fact that he was
the wealthiest man in the country.
''This is partly explained when it is
considered that Washington was
farmer. You can never depend on a
farmer to conserve the interests Of
wealth-the true interests of a nation.
Had George Washington been bank
er and lived in New York he would
never have led the lower classes of The
country against their betters.
There was no such thing as the war
OF the revolution. There was civil
war, or period Of riots and anarchy,
between a half-organized mob, COM
posed mainly of the debtor classes, and
opposed to them were the wealthy and
respectable people of the country The
latter had some assistance from Eng
land and the former were aided by
France, which country was already on
the verge of that period Of anarchy,
which eliminated in the hideous
French revolution, in which nearly all
of the best people of France were
killed. Some American historians
even glorify the French revolution.
"The fact cannot be too plainly stat
ed and too often repeated that from
the first inception of the trouble, which
resulted in our separation from Eng
land, the forces of revolt and disorder
were recruited from the dangerous
classes, and that this growing sedition
was steadily opposed by the wealthy
and conservative element of the COM
81; ri
lers, debtors and irresponsible charac-
tiers famed the flames of discomfort,
and started confagration which re-
suited in loss of untold millions of
dollars to the merchants and bankers
of the country. More than that, it en-
couraged revolt against settled condi-
tions, and fool writers and teachers
have unwittingly kept alive this senti-
ment by making heroes of the missuid-
ed men who sacrificed their lives or
their time in fight against England.
1t is a pleasure to record the fact that
to-day England owns in this country
five times as much property as all Of
the revolving colonies were worth, and
that we are about to borrow from her
5000, 100000 more Of gold. The total
expenses of the War of the Revolu-
ton were less than $5O,O00,000.
'In this book, which is now drawing
to a close, the historian will touch but
briefly on one incident of this period,
viz, the framing and signing of the
Declaration of Independence. This doc
ument should never be printed in a
school book AS a government We have
long since outgrown it's foolish, yapid
and bombastic statements, but 1t
should be rigidly suppressed, the same
as other seditious and unsafe pamph-
lets. It was written by Tom Jefferson,
aided by Tom Paine, both of whom
drew their inspiration from the es-
says of French revolutionary writer's.
Its platitudes about all men being
free and equal and that the people
have right to alter or abolish a gov
ernment,' have long since been laughed
to scorn by our statesmen, our clergy
and by our best public educators. 1t is
a pleasure to reflect thai the cOnven
ton of 1887, which framed our present
constitution, never even considered
this Declaration of Independence in de-
signing that wise document. The con-
vention was controlled by slave-hold-
ers, and they rather effectually settled
the free and equal clause when they
decided that in fixing the basis of rep
resentation negro was equal to three
fifths of white man, and that his
owner could vote for him on that basis.
The constitution also wisely provided
that the people could not vote for a
president, senator. cabinet officer,
or, in fact, for anything but member
of the lower house of congress. They
then arranged it so that the senate
could veto any legislation coming from
the house, and that the president could
veto the Joint action of the two houses.
The constitutional convention failed to
give the supreme court power to veto
legislation, but the supreme court has
wisely assumed that power, ami the
last danger from the elective mob has
been removed"