The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-02-23

1bbASs COluDGleHI, ana seeks ciupAO9 AA1Ae'
What does he find? This-that he must
choose between farming, trade, a profess
sion or a clerkship in some corporation.
The mercantile world, as it was organ
lied thirty years ago, no longer exists.
Ability does not count except as corpora
tions can use it. When they are supplied,
the boys must go to farming or go into
politics, and maybe turn political strikers.
Or, perhaps, they may lose their self-re-
spect through idleness and drop into vice,
and, 1t may be, fall into criminal practices
possibly become lobbyists. The corpora
tion jobs, professional, mechanical and
clerical, are given first to the sons of
favorites of the stockholders and directors.
Any small jobs left over are given with
more or less show of generosity to young
men who are permitted to do the work for
which some of the favorites referred to
get the pay. Brains, ability, power in the
young man without capital will eventually
bring. if his life is spared to maturity, a
fair living salaTy-no more-unless, as some
times happens, an unusually bright man
comes to know too much to be put off with
only a salary
''These young men 1 have been speaking
of, and their fathers, too, are beginning
to ask: why are these things so Busi-
ness, as you all know, is at present in
the control of very few men. The growth
of corporate power has been rapid 1t is
now well nigh complete. But this is a re-
public, and a republic OF intelligent men,
and they cannot be deceived much longer
The ballot is mightier than money, and an
aroused public sentiment will make short
work with every combination that stands
in the way of justice and fair play.
Ger .7..gs .sk.k
to suggest that it send to the rear the lead
ers who insist that government shall be
conducted with an eye solely to commercial
interests. Those interests are important
and should be considered but the Repub-
lican party will not hold its following If it
is much longer dominated by the narrow
ness and selishness which always go hand
in hand with money getting. The rank and
file will not stay with the Republican party
unless we choose our leaders hereafter with
out consulting those who control the cor
porations, trusts and combines of the coun-
try, their attorneys, agents and servants.
Our leaders must be men who are proof
against all corrupting influences and the
temptations which come with political am
bition.
II plead for return to the early motives
and principles of the Republican party. l
urge you to give the subject earnest
thought. If you do, and If your delibera-
tions result in action, there need be no fear
for the future of the Republican party or
of the country. The time has now come
when the Republican party must check the
influences which are controlling 1t. If it
shows a disposition to do this, l have no
fear but that it will retain the allegiance Of
the people"
Secretary Wilson'S Response.
Hon. James Wilson, secretary Of agricu-
ture, was warmly greeted when he rose to
respond to the toast, "Our Agricultural In
terests."
''The territory of the original thirteen
States is but a small part of the United
States to-day. We have been growing
people, q spreading people, an expanding
people. The Louisiana purchase In 1893 gave
us the great grain belt Of the United States.
The annexation of Texas and New Mexico
and other territory lying north of those
regions in 1845 gave us the greatest cotton
field to-day. The Northwest Territory, dis
covered in 1892 explored in 1903 and secured
by treaty in 1919. with the addition of Flor
ida at the same time. gave us what is now
our greatest timber reserve Our treaty
with Mexico in 1S4S gave us what is now our
great fruit belt in California and the val
leys of the Rocky mountains, as well as our
great mineral region, from which come our
gold and silver. The Gadsden purchase,
now part of Arizona and New Mexico, was
added in 1853 The Territory of Alaska,
ceded by Russia in 1867, is land of i'm
mense possibilities We are just beginning
to learn something of it's wonderful re-
sources.
80 it will be seen that from the revolu-
tionary war up to 1867 the United States
has been expanding. And while it has been
expanding it has been educating. Our
schools and colleges are preparing the
brightest and most enterprisng young men
upon the earth. We have become the fore
most manufacturing people; we are feeding
a considerable part of the old world; we are
manufacturing machinery for the old world;
we are sending iron and steel to the old
world, and with this remarkable growth in
territory, education, manufacturing and
material progress the growth Of religion and
morality has kept pace.
Upon purely humanitarian sentiments the
people of the United States intervened be-
tween Spain and her colonies to put an end
to conditions that outraged our sense of
Justice, interfered with our commerce and
made more difficult the execution Of interna-
tional law. Nothing has occurred since the
war was declared to justify any man in
stating that the United States has departed
In any respect from the line Of policy laid
down when Congress declared war. While
the President did not seek the arbitrament
of war, he has met all its requirements.
"a quarter of a million men were mus
tered. equipped and put in the field. The
islands of the Caribbean and China seas
were conquered and brought under the
American flag in less than four months. A
treaty was made and ratified in less than
year from the beginning of hostilities. No
disaster on sea or land occurred. A mini
mum of casualties, an object lesson given
to the world in humane warfare merciful
treatment of the peoples coming under our
authority, an insurrection among the Malays
stamped out, the national credit higher than
ever before in our history, and all complaints
of the conduct of the war met and answered
this is the situation to-day.
"The events of the year have beer Of such
magnitude and have followed each other
with such rapidity that the engrossing in
terests OF to-day and the immediate future
have left no time for reflection and retro
spect Not only has the seat of political
power. moved to the Mississippi valley, to-
gether with the center of producing activ-
ity, but the national spirit is most pro-
nounced here and cosmopolitan sentiment is
best developed. The Western man is the
typical American. loving all America, re-