The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1898-03-04
Appeal to Populists.

Lie conspiracy OF SOlu ana mOnOp-
oily is nearing it's elimination. Every
advance it has made during the last
twenty-five years has been by adroit
and stealthy processes. These would
have been impossible if it had not
had it's agents and confederates
holding positions of public trust in the
legislative, executive and judicial
branches of the government. Neither
the benefciaries nor the tools of this
conspiracy have any particular politics.
In name the last administration was
democratic. The present administra-
ton is called republican, but it has
ingloriously practiced and defended
the perfdious politics of it's predcces-
SOr.
At length the selfish and brutal in
terests behind this conspiracy deem
themselves enough to dispense with
the caution and duplicity hitherto
necessary to their succuss. The adj
ADMINISTRATION boldly avows its endorse
ment Of their scheme against the lib
erty and prosperity of the people.
| Within a few weeks it has formulated
and sent to congress a bill the leading
purpose of which is. in the words of
the secretary of the treasury, ''to com
NIT the country more thoroughly to
the gold Standard" In the pursuit
of this purpose of committing the
country more thoroughly to the gold
standard the plan of this admins
tration is to retire the greenbacks
and to issue interest bearing gold
| bonds and to increase the powers,
privileges and profits of the national
banks. This achievement would turn
over the duty of supplying the peoples
money, the very life-blood of business.
to a selfish, heartless and irresponsible
foreign gold syndicate and it's Ameri-
can agents and allies.
1t must be remembered, also, that
this foreign gold syndicate and it's al
lies have, with the cOnnivance, If not
the assistance, of our government,
captured and today control every in
strument of commerce in the nation
All history teaches that those who
have controlled the instruments of com
merce in any country have not only
controlled the commerce of that nation.
but have also controlled and dominated
the government. Thus the gold syndi-
cate and its allied monopolies in our
country have seized the great instru-
ments OF commerce, have used this
tremendous power to discriminate
against sections and individuals, to
destroy competition, to breed business
stagnation and to create .'hard times"
in the midst of plenty. Thus they are
making millions of paupers to create a
few millionaires. The inevitable re-
suit must be to convert our government
into an oligarchy of sordid wealth.
They substitute the press and attempt
to seat their well-paid attorneys in our
legislative halls, on our benches of
justice and on all other departments
Of government. Whenever college
faculties are suspectible to pretended
generosity or asserted philanthropy,
they carefully maneuver for either
silence Or service. Having succeeded
in this, the conspirators will not only
completely dominate the legislative,
executive and judicial branches of our
trenched against resistance and re-
tribution.
In every campaign the gold syndi-
cate and allied trusts and monoplies
combine. They select the conventions
they desire to control, they elect the
candidates that they have selected
OF course they control them after they
are elected. Therefore, those who are
not their agents and who would not
submit to their tyrannous spoliation
should strenuously oppose the allied
combination of gold and monopoly.
The only hope of the enemy is to
divide US. Therefore, let us be more
united and harmonious than ever, and
further, let us organize without delay
a vigorous campaign in every state
and congressional district, county and
precinct.
There are but two sides to this
mighty and portentious conflict. All of
those of whatever party who favor the
conspiracy of gold and monopoly. who
favor industrial slavery, widespread
poverty and national destruction
should be on one side and all of those
of whatever party who oppose this
deadly design, who love truth and
right, who love their country, who
love their homes and tiresides and who
believe in the sacred principles de-
clared by jefferson and reasserted by
jackson and Lincoln should be on the
other side. On this side we solidly
stand. Then let us, maintaining at all
times party integrity, invite the har-
monious cooperation of all seeking the
same end. Let us appeal to all citizens
and all organizations and parties that
oppose this conspiracy-that oppose
government of the trusts, by the trusts
and for the trusts, that oppose and
will not submit to the despotism of
sordid wealth-to come to the rescue.
Patriotism and manhood are not dead.
A large part of the American people
realize the wrongs and comprehend
the dangers and are ready and anxious
to fight this system to an end. The
spirit of 1776 is abroad in the land, and