Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1898-02-09
OFFICIAL COUNTY q CITY PAPER.
THE POPULIsT CREED.

1t is amusing, and yet disgusting, to
observe how little the verage republi-
can knows about the fundamental prin
clples of the Peoples party. 1t is not
necessary that we go far away from
home to find abundant corroborative
testimony on that proposition-we have
him in our midst. And when this ap-
plies to one republican, it applies to
the whole household, collectively speak
ing. 1t was less than week that we
heard republican say, and he actual
ly and sincerely believed it, that the
POpullst doctrine was that of taking
the industrious mans dollar and divid
ing it among the lazy, the insolent and
the spendthrifty. Asked whether he
ever saw such a demand incorporated
in any Populst platform or whether 1t
was ever known to emanate from any
representative Populist body, he frank
ly ansW cred in the negative; but he had
been lifelong republican, reads moth
ing but republican papers and this er-
Toneous impression is so rooted into his
mind that eradication and enlighten
ment seems impossible. III this man
were left with himself to do his own
thinking, if he had the capacity to
think, if he would study the Populist
creed honestly and candidly, he would
find that he held ridiculous view and
would blush to make such statements
among intelligent people. But as we
stated before, he has armies of COM
pany. There are millions Of Amerl-
can voters who are equally ignorant.
The fact is that the Populist creed is
the only broad, aggressive patriotic
declaration among political parties in
America. The I'opulist party does not
only not believe that the dollar Of the
energetic man should be given to the
trifing, but it also believes that the
lazy, diseased millionaire and depraved
corporation should not hold up and
rob all Of the American people which
includes men of all parties. The Popu
list party advocates such principles that
would give all an equal race in life; if
they did not improve it the fault would
be theirs and they would have no con-
sistent complaint. The Populist creed
differs from the republican creed in
that it holds that the government is
more powerful than individuals and
cies can and should be controlled by
the general government, and, if neces-
sary, restrained from imposing on the
masses. For instance, the Populist
party believes that the power to create
money lies with the government and
that the government has the power to
make money out of whatever substance
1t will. The republican creed is that
the government has no such power;
that gold is the only material out of
which money can be made and that all
other forms of money must ultimately
be redeemed with gold. The populists
advocate government ownership of
public utilities, such as railroads, tele-
graphs and all public institutions, just
as the postal and public school systems
are managed today; but the republicans
say no, and most OF them even profess
to believe that it would be better if our
postal and school departments were op-
Grated by corporations.
The relative positions of the two
parties are now briefly defined: The
Populist party believes that the people
are the highest power IN the nation.
That all officers should be directly cleo
tive, that all laws should have popular
sanction before enacted and that no
power should be removed from them.
The republican party believes in CEN
tralizing power, removing 1t from the
people-a monarchy in fact. They do
not hold to electing high officers, such
as president, the cabinet afficers, sena-
tors and federal judges and court Off
GERS, by the people. They believe in
life tenure which again is undemocrat-
&c. They believe in everything which
will compel the great mass of people to
bow in submission to the requirements
Of the few while the Populists believe
that the few should be governed by the
many. 1t is a very simple and just
Propositions fact which all will ad-
NIT. Education, then, is the need of
the day. Prejudice, ignorance and
bigotry must be overcome. Men, to be
intelligent voters, must not be govern
ed by what politicians may tell them;
they must make their own research and
what seems best for the country and
its people all intelligent, honest and
patriotic voters will do.
CONGRESSMAN CURTIS is op-
posed to the bill to create a