The county record. [volume] (Kingstree, S.C.) 1885-1975, 1904-10-13
Mr.. WATSON WRITES.
Letter Accepting PcpuIist Nomination
Made Public
SCORES BOTH OTHER CANDIDATES
PopuIist Nominee Declares That HE
Devotes Most Of His Fire to Parker
as an Artfu Dodger. since Roose-
Welt Stands Boldly Out in the Open.

! velt STANDS 6oloiy Out WI TIC SPS"
The letter of Hon. Thomas E. Wat
son accepting the Populist nomination
FOR the presidency is in substance as
follows:
"To Hon. Samuel w. Williams. Chair
man Committee on Notification:
What two great political parties
have, in turn. governed country. and
nave. .between them. brought unsatls-
factory conditions. it is but natu:ai
fact that a third party should arise
Citizens who have looked in vain 10
'the two great parties for remedial
legislation lose confidence in both after
a While. and adopt one Of two courses:
They either submit to the evils OF bad
government or protest by organizing
a third party.
To the student OF history. there IS
nothing more saddening than the ten
Gency of the people to submit. AS
rule. political education never reaches
the masses. State-craft, like priest
craft. jealously guards its secrets.
There is always the inner sanctuary.
which the people are taught to believe
would be profaned by the touch o.
their unholy feet
| Mr.. Watson then takes fall out OF
| the ruling classes in England, Ger
many, Italy, Egypt and India, and con-
tinues:
How is It in our own land? God
rover made a grander home for MS
| children than that which the Cavaller
If Virginia. the Dutchman in New
| York. and the Puritan in Massachusetts
sought as a refuge from the systems
| Of the old world. In natural advantages
this earth holds no reign superior 10
ours. Once it belonged to the people.
With his gun. the common man "oi'
it mile by mile from the Indian. the
Frenchman, the Saxon, and the Span
| lard. What the common man did not
win with his gun, he bought with his
money. From sea to sea, the land wnlcn
e ours became ours because the COM
mon man was ready to pay for it with
his tax money or his blood. ..
| What has become of it? With DeWll-
dering rapidity, it has been taken from
the common people and given to the
corporations. 1t belonged to the govern
pent. to all the people 1t was meant TO
supply homes to individual citizens,
and there was enough Of it to last Tor
MANY generations. To the extent OF
about 2O0,O00,000 acres, it has been
given to railroad corporations; anu
| now. when a common man wants
hcme in all that vast domain. ne must
60 to the railroad corporations to get
it."
THE GOLD STANDARD.
Once upon a time We had a tinan-
cial system OF our own. Placed In the
constitution as part of our Fundamental
law. it seemed to be firmly fixed. For
hundred years this money system was
IN oDeration among us. Therefore, it
seemed 10 be 'irrevocably fixed Very
wise men created this system or ma
tional finance. 1t was the one subject
upon which Thomas Jefferson and Al
eXander Hamilton agreed. Ihose TWO
were, perhaps. the greatest statesmen
this country ever produced. SO pre-em,
iaent were they above all others, tnal
they divided the PEOPLE into two DIS
tinct schools of political thought But,
rpon the vital subject Of finance. these
u,aster-minds reached the same con-
c,usicn: and that conclusion became a
port of the constitution.
ITO establish the single gold stan
card. which sets the constitution ar'oe.
the statue had to be violated: The WORD
coin had to be constructed to mean
gold only and the paper note, issued
or silver. had to be redeemed in a man
ner different from that prescribed Dy
law.
There are at least five reasons why
the gold standard cannot be consla-
cred as fixed:
I'D 1t is unconstitutional.
"(2) 1t violates statute law.
"(3) The supply of gold might in
crease beyond all the circulations OF
ihe money power. Thus, the standard
CT value would get beyond their con-
troll. In that event, the money power
itself would change the standard.
go The supply Of gold might sud
denly cease. In that event, contraction
would at once set in, because the coun-
1ry's expansion in business and in
crease in population required con-
stantly increasing ulation of currency;
II the horrors of contraction should
again come upon us by the selfish pol
icy of the money power, the people
would compel change in the standard
Wall street gave us the panic or 1873:
Wall street gave us the panic OF 1893.
Let Wall street give us another, ana II
nav find that it has given us
one too many. The American people
have about reached the limit Of endu-
rance.
1--WE have heard much of 'constltu-
,ionalism in this campaign: the SIN
cerity of the crime is known by the fact
that the gold standard, which violates
the statute law and the constitution, Is
u. o.