The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-08-17
LETTERS FROM A FARMER
Bryan and Imperialism.


Mr. Editor or:--when I driv down TO Higgins
store yesterday mornin' they was another OF
them spellbinder fellers there with one foot on
crockery crate layin' down the law TO seven
Of his neighbors. Well, as soon as | got in
the door and was askin Higgins for my mail
heerd him say:
81 tell you gents, that's a turrible thing
to contemplate II you elect William Nc
Kinley before his terms over we will be no
longer a democracy. lie Is crazy with power
and hungry for conquest and blood, blood, blood.
He wants to be an emperor and to wipe out the
constitution. We are driftin' to Imperialism
he says, "and heaven help our poor. stricken
| country II he Is elected What have we done
in the last two years7 We's been murdcrin
men in Cuba we've been murdorin' men in the
Philippines. Why7 Because the trusts de.
manded it. Do you want to see the land OF
your fathers git rotten with imperialism? Are
you goin' to stand by and"
"Hold on right there" says, lookin' at him
square in the eye. Gents, is this one man
spellin' bee or a free for all spellin' beef This
friend in the black suit may believe he's tellin'
the TRUTH but doubt it."
The spellhindeT says this was an insult, but
| the boys had knowed me for good many years,
and they knowed when got sot in my notions
with the bit between my teeth it was no use
| stoppin' me So one Of 'em says;
go on, 81, say what you wanter."
Well, sir, said It, Says l:
"Gents, hain't bothered myself very much
| about this imperialism business an I don't
| know very much about II. Only | reckon that
William Mckinley knows too much about bloody
| war to GO huntin' fer il. He's been down in
the camps" ] says, "among the fever, and the
| hunger, and the misery and the death, and
when a man once sees that he never forgits it.
81 only know that he amt goin' to stand
up and ask my hoy to go to the Philippines to
| be robbcr and murderer. ] don't think
so, nor the wife don't think so, nor my boy
that's over there now standn by his flag
| don't think so neither. He may kick about
| the sickness and the food and there's millions
| Of us done that before him. But, mister, he's
what we call down in this section trew blew
an he's an American from top to toe" I says.
| ''Mr. Bryan spoke here four years ago heerd
| him, an most Of these fclers sittin' here now
| hcerd him, too He says that the silver ques'
tion is the great cure, an that the country will
go to the dogs II il vast settled his way at
| once. He says that until we got sixteen TO
one it wasn't no use talkin' bout anything else,
an that no other question that America had
had to deal with in her history was half so i'm
| portant.
"Now he says its imperialism, whatever that
| is, an IL he didn't think that was strong
enough he'd say the great issue was the army
| canteen, an IL no army canteen talk was on the
boards he'd make the great almighty issue the
thief that got his hands inter the postofice down
| in Cuby," says, "he'd make it any old thing
to catch votes. Now, mister. Us farmers ain;
goin' ter be fooled nor our votes catched +" ans
considerable extent this year
| "What l would like to know is, what yor
folks mean by imperialism anyway. There
amt no emperors around here as can see
and the Lord help anybody that starts out II
this country to be one. I notice that this here
William Mckinley that felers like you cal
| emperor an 'czar,' stands on his porch at hom'
with his wife alongside him, an with his friend
an neighbors Of a quarter OF a century rounC
him, an listens to the men that come to notify
him OF his nomination. An when they git
done he mounts his step an talks right out il
meetin' about what he thinks an what HI
means to do. And notice that Mr.. Bryan, tha
modest young friend Of yours as hates show ant
smperors and believes in plain, simple democra
cy. must rent hall and beat tom toms, anC
hire brass bands, and make dickers with th
graspin' railroad corpyrations about excursion
rates for the crowds and invite the hull worlC
to step up and hear some more Cross Of Coli
fireworks How do them rawhide boots OF hi
fit in with that?" / says
"l'here's two kinds of campaign documents q
this imperialism yell" says. "Onc kind i
what we get from you calamity bogies who ar
telln us that more'n seven million OF peopl
who voted Ter Mckinley In 1sO6 is snarlin' AM
cursin' and writhin' under the lash of the trusts
and arc oppressin' Cuby, kickin' Porto Rico Il
the face and murderin' The Filipinos. The othc
campaign documents that some Of us farmers
gittin' is commin' from our son that we raise
out here the praries and sent to fight for thei
country's flag when the President said he wante
them. We know them there letters are straigh
talk" | says, 1--WE know who they come from an
where they come from. An we are begnnin
ter find out pretty well where your imperialism
yswp is comm from too,
"When l think of Imperialism I think OF Gen
eral Lawton an the bullet that killed him, an
when l think OF General Lawton want to pu
them iellers that patted his slayer on the back
well, never mind where want to put 'em. II
tell you about that in November
| "And, friend" says !, "talkin' about this wa
business, where does Mr.. Bryan stand? II
went and got to be a colonel in the Spanis
war, didn't heF Now he done that for one
two purposes. Either he done 1t Ser poitica
reasons because he wanted TO put himse
where he could say, I've fought in war a
well as Mckinley or else he done it becaus
he was anxious to take up arms for his oountr
and his flag. want to believe the last MOTTO
| is the true one.
"But suppose it is where is he at now? Come
mister" | saws, you're workn for him; te
us. The Spanish war wasn't our fault.
didn't look for it, did We? Neither did W
look for them Fiipinos to turn round wit
their treachery. One the result Of tn
other. II your friend Bryan stands up and be
gins to tell me he fined the army for his cour
try's sake wanter ask him whether his offer ha
a string to it. | wanter ask him why he ddn'
demand an agreement when he got his commits
sion rCadin' somethin' like this:
"TLL FIGHT AS LONG AS I THINK TIL
UNITED STATES is RIGHT AND THEN IL
QUIT. THIS WAR HAS GOT TO STOP WHE'
I SAY So
al don't know much about the new.fanglc
military tactics" says, "but II colonel whlc
had sworn to stand by the flag had made
break like that thirty.eight years ago | kno'
what would have happened to him. What di
Mr.. Bryan jine the army for, anyway
Well, the spcllbinder didn't wait fer any mere
lie jes' lit out.
So no more at present from
Once Bit Twice shy.
Can American Farmer.)