The independent., 1904-09-22

hon. .. w. Wllllams, CHAIRMAN NO
tificatiea Committee: In this formal
way and that it may be a matter of
record in the official documents of your
committee, hereby forward to you my
written acceptance of the nomination
IS candidate of the peoples party for
vice president, of which was notified
by the committee intrusted with that
duty at Cooper Union, New York city,
New York.
! am imDelled to this acceptance be-
cause it was unanimously rendered to
me by men who had before been di-
yided into-two parties, each with diff
ferent candidates in the field in the
last presidential election, one faction
voting for Hon. Wharton Barker and
the other for William J. Bryan. and
because it was bestowed upon me with
the greatest enthusiasm and unanimity,
without any solicitation on my part,
the subject having never been men
toned to me until within five minutes
of the time the vote was taken.
Many eminent economists and pa
triotic men are being slowly driven to
the conclusion that it is no longer
"safe or sane" to trust the destinies
of S0,000,O 900 of people to the direction
of bi-party government. The tremen-
dous concentration of wealth in few
hands makes it matter of easy ac-
complishment to control the conven-
tions of two parties and thus direct the
power of government toward the fur
ther building up of system that re-
suits in government in the interest
Of concentrated capital directed solely
by men who own the capitaI, giving
them the power to bring the men and
women who labor under the full force
of the Ricardian iron law Of wages"
The result will be that the millions
will receive only enough of the wealth
produced to sustain life and perpetu-
ate their species, while billions will be
wasted in degenerating and debasing
amusement and the retaining OF hordes
of men and women as followers. at
tendants and servants. who will be
taken from the fields Of productive in
dustry, to waste their energies in
mehial personal service, adding to the
innumerable horde that consume and
do not produce Such practice long
continued must result in the destruc-
ton of any people.
Even if there is no higher ideal for
men to attain than the production of
wealth, such system defeats that
purpose. The peoples party stands for
men, first. and wealth afterwards,
not from sentiment only, but because
men--educated men, well housed, we'll
clothed men, with bright eyes and hap
py hearts-are the sole creators OF
wealth. They increase the production
of wealth in exactly the same ratio that
the comforts of life and the education
of the heart and brain increase. If the
$4,000, 900 of American citizens now in
habiting these United States should be
removed and in their places there
were transplanted 80,000,000 African
Zulus, though the Africans might be
physically more stalwart and vigor-
GUS, In fifty years this continent would
be a wilderness. its temples In ruins,
its palaces dccayed, its railroads
streaks of rust. and its manufactures
crumbling piles of brick and stone.
The underlying and paramount is
sue with The peoples party is never
temporary, such issues as come and
go. like the free coinage Of silver, the
establishment of gold standard, or
the personality of two men who may
be nominated for the presidency. but
rather government policy that will
tend to populate these states with the
best and brainiest men and women,
we'll knowing il we have such men
and women. wealth far greater than
the world has ever before known will
follow. To accomplish this para
mount purpose the peoples party,
through its national convention has
promulgated set OF principles that |
most heartily endorse.
II has been held by all the great law
writers that no government should
Ixxlm -.