The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1908-09-03

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which we have never seriously tried
10 deal. I am not stating the fact
too strongly when / tell you that to
deal with this problem successfully
will require of the mass of our people
more discriminating intelligence.
q higher type of patriotism than has
ever been required of them before.
The Problem.
The problem is, in the language Of
of Bryan, Shall the people rule? Shall
the right to rule this vast country be
retained by the people or shall this
right be handed over permanently to
the "frenzied financiers?' Having
abolished black slavery will we now
permit the captains of industry to
establish white slavery? Will we
execute a quit claim deed to the
splendid heritage given us by our
ancestors and beneficient Creator
and hand it over to an outfit of "rich
criminals?" Will we be equal to the
task OF maintaining throughout this
vast territorial empire the ascend
ency of liberty, the equality of oppor-
tunity. the enjoyment of equal rights.
the distinctive blessing of industrial
freedom or will we acquiesce in the
bold proposal to abdicate our position
and hand our sovereignty over to the
captain of industry" that he may be
able to Grown himself Lord of all'?
Let me ask you in all seriousness, has
the prospect of industrial and CON-
merc1al slavery no terrors for you?
Do you not know that the concentra-
tlon of wealth and consequent power
have already circumscribed the field
of your individual activity and use
fulness, have limited the equality O.
opportunity even in some directions
have destroyed it altogether?
The Evidence.
To be convinced of the truth of
what l state try to get into the lum-
Der manufacturing business. You will
find that you can buy no timber ad.
vantageously situated. This is all
owned by a few lumber companies,
by the lumber trusts. This condition
was clearly foreseen and vigorously
pointed out by economic students
many years ago but the Iowa repub-
l1can gave no heed to the impending
calamity Of a lumber famine. While
he owned not tree of a quality to
make commercial lumber, "for the
sake of party harmony" and party
discipline, he annually voted for II
tariff policy that had the direct dis.
astrous effect of fastening the de-
struction OF our forests. Our forests
are now largely exhausted, the stand
ing timber is owned by the few, lum-
c y.in IN 1t oil =,
conv1cts US of being the victims of re.
publican folly. Form a company with
a moderate amount of capital and try
to engage in the iron and steel bust
ness and you will be unable to buy
any ore or coal beds in any favorable
locality these have all been pre-
emptied by the United States steel
trust under the sanction of a divine
trusteeship. Go into the meat packing
industry and the Armour syndicate
will treat you as an interloper and
not leave a grease spot of you. Try
the sugar refining business and your
experience will be vastly more bitter
than sweet. Rockefeller may toler-
ate you in some capacity as a men,
Der of one of his subsidiary oil COM
panles where you would enjoy i'm
munity from the payment of any fine
for breaking the law. While many
small bankers imagine their particu-
lar field is free of monopoly, the
truth is the small banker exists mere
ly by sufferance. Experts are ad-
Justing the machinery that will in
time effectually eliminate even him.
The Danger Ahead.
The frenzied financiers now have It
in their power to produce a panic as
neatly and expeditiously as tailor
can cut out garment and Aldrich's
emergency currency law enables them
to turn the panic into rich harvest
for themselves. During the panic
last fall the eastern banks were given
free of any charge two hundred and
fifty millions of dollars of government
money. Instead Of being patriotic
enough to send some of this to their
western creditors, which would have
materially mitigated ele severity OF
the money famine, they cold bloodedly
refused to send a dollar They loan
ed out his vast sum to spectators at
clear gain to themselves of sixty
millions of dollars. This is the outfit
of undesirable citizens" who, we are
told, several weeks before the Chi.
cago Convention of the republican
press, would be loyal to Taft"
do not question this loyalty, but re-
member to say that Wall Street will
be loyal to Taft" is only another
way of saying Taft will be loyal to
Wall Street.. pity the innocence of
the poor mortal who should imagine
that Wall Streets loyalty will ever
be gratuitously rendered to any one,
or to any cause. That a permanently
inferior industrial standard is in store
for the mass of our working people If
present tendencies are not checked
is to my mind perfectly clear. If the
concentration of wealth is not ar.
rested it will continue to concen.
trate at an ever increasing ratio. The
possession of immense wealth car
ries along with it corresponding poll
teal power; this power is used to ac-
celerate the speed with which more
wealth is gathered and thus more
power is acquired, the two pushing
each other along automatically. Are
the people to remain blind until the