Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1910-11-01
WHEN THE COUNTRY WENT
DEMOCRATIC.
VIII EN-

Il 4 Z : .
and on the stump in this campaign
about the panicky times during the last
national democratic administration. 1t
is not necessary to recall these times
to the attention Of the man of middle
age, who was a wage Garner during
that period sixteen years ago, because
they are stamped indelibly in his mem
DRY. But the young man who today is
from rs to 35 years of age will have but
a hazy recollection Of the days of Cox
ey's and Kelley's armies and it is pri-
marily for his benefit that the Courier
calls attention anew to the situation
that existed then.
This matter is Of vital interest as the
| issues in the present campaign are
identical with those in the campaign Of
cratic party on the tariff issue was fol-
lowed by grim disaster The democrats
then assailed the policy of protection,
just as they are doing now, and agreed
| if they were successful at the polls to
wipe out the republican tariff legisla-
ton and adopt the tariff for revenue
policy. The democrats are boasting now
that they will control the next house
of representatives and they are prom
Using to re-enact the same tariff legis-
lation that bankrupted the country six
teen years ago.
The files of the Courier give con-
elusive proof of democratic incompe-
tency during that period. They show
that during the first three months of
the democratic administration in 1898
there were more bank failures than
there had been in all Of the ~ years
of the system Of national banking, and
almost every railroad in the United
States was in the hands OF receiver.
Then came Coxey's, Kelley's and Ho-
gan's armies, during the spring and
summer. BY the time fall came. the
people who were out of work had lived
up all their savings. and by Christmas
time, millions of men, women and
children were in need of enough to- eat
to keep body and soul together.
But it is in reciting conditions right
here in ottumwa that the Courier files
tell the saddest story The conditions
here had come to be SO serious that
something had be done to keep worthy
people from starving. The situation
was more than serious-it was desper-
ate. Men and women who were here
at the time will remember it. It is Just
as easy to bring on those conditions
now as it was then. A tariff for revenue
did it then. 1t will do it now.
BY the first of January, 1894, a citi-
zens relief committee had been ap-
pointed. At the first meeting of the city
council that year, the relief committee
made report, and T. R. Buckley
stated that "the men Of Ottumwa did
not ask for aid, they only ask for
work" Among others who made sug-
gestions at this meeting were T. H.
Picker, William Reece and A. w.
Buchanan. The city marshals report
for that month showed 100 arrests for
vagrancy.
The next issue of the Courier offered
to print free the advertisements of all
those who wanted to advertise for
work. It suggested that all those. who
wanted work should register at this
Office. The same article called the at |
tention of the council to the fact that
the condition of Ottumwa was the con-
dition of the whole country and that
whatever was done in the way of re.
lief should be handled in manner
that our own people would get the
benefit.
Thursday morning, January 5, 1894,
the Courier placed a book in the Office
where those who wanted work could !
come and register. BY Friday night |
that list contained more than IT'S
names and the following day 1t pub
lished the names of 200 men, among
which were the names Of workmen
representing all trades, as well as day
laborers and teamsters. These men
did not ask for work at their trades,
they asked for any kind of an honest |
job that would enable them to get
enough to buy just the bare