The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1912-10-18
POLITICAL "CURE-ALLS"

ed his teens, the abolitiOnistS had
possession of the political bandWag-
on.
Slavery was painted in the most re-
pulsive cOlors and there was no char
acter in history that could measure
in vengeance and atrocity with the
slave-owner He was ignorant, bru-
tai, bestial
On the contrary, the slave-owner
as a rule, was humane, highly edu-
Gated, polished and refined.
Washington, Jefferson, Calhoun,
Clay, Benton and Jackson are illus
trious examples. There were bish-
ops, clergymen and hundreds Of pi-
Gus and deyout laymen who were
slave-owners
We were told that if slavery were
abolished there would be an extinc-
ton of race hatred, and the great
bodies of negroes would be speedily
| incorporated into our social, indus
trial and political system, and the
| negro question would be forever
solved. and would be a disturbing
factor no more forever
Alas. how short-sighted are earth
ly prophets Slavery was eventually
abolished. but the tension between
the two races today-the line of de-
N, rly q +;on tho o,,1f re eopo t;op- ic
stronger and more acute than it was
when Mr.. Lincoln issued his eman-
cipation proclamation, and this ten
sion is especially noticeable in the
centers and hot-beds of ADDITIONAL
ism.
Note, if you please, the platform
of the Bull Moose party.
If the early abolitionists could
arise from their graves, cast off their
ceremal garments and witness, not
the fulfllment, but the futility, of
their prophecies, they would be horri-
fed
The next "cure-all" for our politi-
cal evils was the resumption of spe-
Gle payment"
The New York Tribune, edited by
Mr.. Horace Greeley, led off in this
new political panacea, as it had done
in the abolition agitation.
The resumption of specie payment
was accomplished and the results
that followed showed that Mr. Gree
ley again was a deluded prophet
The next "cure-all' was the green
back propaganda, which had its birth
in the west, headed by General Wea-
yer, lately deceased.
Greenbackism was as rampant as
socialism is today, but after a ftful
existence, like the stubble grass, it
soon passed away.
The next "cure-all' was populism
1t had its birth in the west. and, like
| Elijahs cloud, no bigger than a mans
hand, it soon threatened to overspread
and overthrow our entire political
| system 1t swept the south like a
hurricane and almost with one &C
cord our crafty politicians leaped
into the populist band-wagon, and
throughout the land populism was
the popular cry.
Our political redemption was truly
at hand.
Alas! for the vanity of human
hopes! Only a few days ago popu-
lism was buried, and there were not
enough mourners at the funeral to
act as pail bearers.
The next "cure-all" was free silver.
1t found its best exponent and ex-
FOUNDER in Mr. William Jennings
Bryan of Nebraska
1t was proclaimed that the surrep,
titious decentralization of silver was
the greatest crime of the century. and
was directly responsible for the woes
with which we were then afflicted.
That its restoration to free coinage
would Immediately bring about a
fiood-tide of prosperity; that it would
| abolish poverty and everybody would
be happy That unless it was restor-
ed to it's rightful place calamity
would follow that would be so disa3-
trous that the whole world would feel
the shock.
These predictions, like so many
others, fell by the waysde, and in
little while We're shown to be utter
ly fallacious.
/ The price Of labor, the price OF
manufactured articles. the price OF
farm products, We're never so high as
they are today.
The campaign of the empty din
ner pail and the full dinner pail
strut!ed their brief existence on the
stage, and now we are told that $50
cialism' and "progressiveism" are
"cure-alls" for our social, industrial