The Republican. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1903-1909, 1908-09-23

alton for their wild schemes of the di-
vision Of the wealth of the country. No
one even intimated that there was lack
of prosperity in the country That set
ties the question as to whether or not
the panic was threatened before the cleo
ton. The produce of the farms was at
high tide The value of the products Of
the farms, mines, field and forests was
higher than they had been at any time in
the history of the country.
realize that | am here at Caldwell in
the great valley of the Snake river, and
have talked from the standpoint of
| the environment In 1892 in this city
saw warehouses bullying with the wool
that could be produced in this valley
and in this town commanding price
against which no one raised voice of
complaint In few short months the
query was on every mind, on every
tongue, on every morning of every day
What has happened during the
night?" What banks had failed1 What
individuals had gone into bankruptcy.
| How far had prices depressed since yes
terday3 And the great army of unem-
ployed was marching up and down this
country from end to end and asking
| not arms--no--labor, employment.
GREAT ARMY OF UNEMPLOYED.
Over on the banks Of the Snake river
was a stockade into which were taken
and protected hundreds of these wander
ers that had started out in search of the
promises of democracy Hundreds OF
| thousands of them marched in idleness,
seeking for labor seeking for an OPP
portunity to earn something for the fam
lilies they had left behind them because
they could not maintain thew where they
were. | saw the price of wool go from
IA cents to l6 cents pound to cents in
this very town
When | spoke 10 you in this hall, or a
part Of ii, i'll the year 1896, the wool on
your platforms and in your warehouses
was not worth 6 cents pound and the
reason il was there was that there was
no market for it, and the reason there
was no market for it as the that there
was no money to buy it with, and the
reason there was no money to but it with
was that there was no confidence in the
ability of the democratic party to main
tain and execute the purposes OF this
government That was the reason
What was true Of your wool was true
of your sheep; what was true of your
] sheep was true of your CATTLE it was
/ true of your lead in the mines and the
lumber in your forests. | saw lead go
down in the northern portion of this
| a. A. d.
cause of the removal of the duty on lead,
or rather a modification of il to a point
which afforded no protection.
The reason your wool was down was
that there was no market for il and no
money to pay for il because it was placed
on the free list The duty and the pro-
tective tariff policy of the republican
party was withdrawn from the wool and
the sheep that wore the wool and the
horses that drew your wool bales to the
railroad The wool Of foreign countries
was admitted without duty Lead was
given so slight duty as to afford no
protection Lumber was practically on
the free list Your saw mills we're idle;
your mines were idle, and your flocks
were disappearing from these hills and
these valleys You were poor-poorer
than you had ever been beforehand
poorer than ever hope or expect to see
you again. because do not believe the
people are going to be misguided and
led away from their interests again by
the return or participation in the return
of the democratic party to power
FREE TRADE STILL MEANS LOWER WAGES.
This is the great question. 1t will
continue to be such The democratic
party stands for free trade; stands for
an abolition of that principle of protec-
ton which stands between you and COM
petition with foreign countries and cheap
labor. The only way you can compete
with them is to lower your wages and
your scale of living; withdraw from
your children the benefits which come
from good wage for a days labor.
| That is all and we are not ready to do
it. The American people will never con-
sent to lower the standard OF civiliza-
ton to withdraw the principle of gov.
eminent which gives them their schools;
which clothes children in responsibility
that attend those schools; which gives
| you ldH prices IOT your ldooE anu inc
lproducts of your labor.
The tariff under which we are now
enjoying prosperity that marks this era
is Republican tariff, enacted by Re-
publican congress and signed by Re-
publican president II will remain with
you and protect you just so long as the
Republican party is in power But in the
hour that the Republican party sleeps,
the democracy take from you these laws
and the benefits which flow from them.
They will do it because they say they
will, and we know, judging them by the
past, that they will, unless you stand
guard over the prosperity of this day by
standing by the Republican party These
conditions that now exist; this prosper
ity that you now enjoy, will pass from
you.
These are great questions that reach
to every individual in the land; to the
employer and the employee; to the pro-
Queer and the consumer. Their interests
are mutual because they all constitute
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