Sequachee Valley news. (Sequachee [Sequatchie], Tenn.) 1896-1952, 1912-04-11
GOING TO BE HARD TO DO.

Editor News:
I see "Uncle Tom says buy the
property, and Mr.. Brannan says,
''Let the people say"
The socialist organizer for my coun-
ty says contiscate, and, by the way, it
looks very much like he is going to
carry this county for the socialist tick
ct. | believe the socialists will carry
this county in the fall election.
| want to say with all due respect TO
''Uncle Tom" that be is surely biting
off more than he can chew, when he
saws buy the property.
One of our we'll informed socialists
said the othe1 night that the wealth
of the u. S. in round numbers is lac
billions of dollars, with about 3 bill
lions in cash. We haven't got the
"'mou, ""Uncle, for You see we would
need 1877 billions more to pay for all
this wealth.
l am led to exclaim in the language
of the coon song, Rufus Rastus
johnson Brown, What are you gwine
to do when payday comes round -?
What are you gwine to say2 How are
you gwine to pay?' etc.
cuICly JOu pLV 6O4LS w BAoNO NC IL
mensely in debt TO your exploiting"
crowd, and they will have a great ad-
vantage over the great mass of the
people. You have and do claim that
this vast wealth has been unJustly
amassed by exploiting labor.
Our friend told us that 5 per cent. of
the people own 80 per cent of all this
wealth. Did it ever occur to you, my
dear "Uncle Tom," that this 5 per
cent, which You designate as exploit
ers will still have us in their clutches
if we buy theiI goods aud give them
their value, and will still be able to
exploit u.s.
No, "Uncle," we can't afford to
buy it. You can't have Socialism un-
til you get this wealth out of their
hands. You can't get it out of their
hands by giving them value received
for it. True, you may keep them from
running the machines for a while, but
it would certainly be only "a temporary
affair,
Further, there will be thousands and
thousands of Us, who are not nov So
cialists, who for self protection will
make a bitter struggle against buying
so much and contracting to pay debts,
which would require generations to
settle. Again, there is so much of it
that so many of us don't want. If /
don't want a farm, do you think | am
willing to help pay billions of dollars
for farm land for the other fellow. No
sir. ...
As l see it, there can be but one
way for the government to get this
wealth and establish Socialism, and
that is by contiscation, and l frankly
say to you that, if I were socialist, l
would advocate that plan.
While it will take in value in many
cases what represents hard earned dol
lars, yet it is the only way to disrobe
the millionaire and put him on equali-
ty with the lest of us.-in other
words. to take him out of his auto and
hand him a pick OF a shovel.
There is no use to tell us that you
can buy this wealth and pay this vast
sum of money, and at the same time
stop profit, rent and interest, which
are the three things your party says it
will kill. You need not tell us that
you can pay for 80 per cent. of the
wealth of this country to 8 per cent. of
the people, and either put that 5 per
CeuG. W WOTh VI Keep bu6ul lEOLu OK
ploitation. l asked this question that
the readers Of the News might get a
little information as to how this ques-
tion is differently answered.
l am of this opinion in regard to
Mr.. Brannan. | don't believe he will
claim that the property can be bought
and at the same time a socialist gov
eminent set up. MIR. Brannan has
studied socialism until be has surely
calculated the impossibility of such a
thing. No, gentlemen, you cannot buy
and you would do we'll to stick to the
original idea of socialism. 1t will win
votes faster and if you keep working
with the zeal with which you have
been working in the past, it looks very
much like you will capture the coun-
try.
You may be able to confiscate
.peaceably, and, of course, all peace
people hope if you do get in
that whatever the majority of
the people decide to do may be done
.peaceably. Yet so great is the change
that is advocated that the minority
may be so enraged that they will not
hold their peace.
WILD WEST.
T,amar Okla