Sequachee Valley news. (Sequachee [Sequatchie], Tenn.) 1896-1952, 1912-04-18
Uncle Toms Letter

Now that have given the readers
of the News the chief idea of Social
ism on the Initiative, Referendum an6
/, Recall, / want to say, while the most
of us believe in christianity, still we
do not expect ecclesiastical bodies tC
frame civil laws and enforce them.
Still, we believe great good will
come to society when the kingdom OF
christian socialism is established, but
the best way of establishing this
brotherhood is certainly thru the So
cialist party. For 1900 years the
church has bad terrific struggle to
hold her own against the demon greed
and this demon has stripped her of
civil power and would destroy her in
fluence also, and make poor people be-
lieve the church is not their friend,
but, remember, friends, that denomin
ationalism is not the church, and
when l refer to the church | mean the
real thing, the thing that is awaken
ing the minds of the people to realize
that there is better politics than
your grating political parties. The
church has a great influence and is do
ing much to educate and to enlighten,
but christian and non christian men
are not willing TO wait for the uncer-
tain and indefinite accomplishment of
this work of liberation by the church.
Still she is mother to the thought of
emanci patton, hence the thinking men
and women have adopted socialism as
the medium of deliverance. The bal
lot in the poor man hand is just as
powerful as it is in the hand of the
richest. The great pulpit orator, T.
Dewitt Talmage, had courage enough
to recommend the ballot box as cure
for our present industrial inequalities.
| Let us quote him, "While in this
country it is becoming harder and
harder for the mass of people to get
| living there are too many in this coun-
| try who have their two millions, their
| ten millions and their twenty millions
and carry the legislatures in one pock
et and the Congress of the United
States in the other, and there is trou-
BILE ahead. Revolution l pray God
it may be a peaceable revolution and
at the ballot box. The time must
come in this country when men shall
be sent into public position who can
not be purchased.
Bribery is cursing this land. There
have been swindles enacted in this
nation within the last thirty years en-
ough to swamp three monarchies. The
democratic parry filled its cup of iniq
uity before it went out of power before
the war. Then the republican party
came along and its opportunities thru
the contracts, were greater, and so it
filled its cup of iniquity little soon
Ell and there they lie today, the demo-
cratic and republican parties side by
Ci Of ~
iquity, each one worse than the 9TH
er.
Did Talmage tell the truth If he
did why should any workingman hesi-
tate about what he ought to do9 How
"What are we to doP' So far as | am
concerned l have nothing cut and
dried, and don't think any sensible
teaching socialism has. This | believe
is much better than running men for
Office before the people really under
stand socialism. When once the peo-
pie understand and desire Socialism,
they will have it. These sudden jump
ups are not the natural growth of So
cialism, aud sometimes defeat is better
than a victory We are proposing to
nominate candidates here in Grundy
for the county offices. Not that we
would consider their election a great
victory nor their defeat death blow
to socialism. We feel sure that social
ism will come when the people are
ready for it,. Our most useful work
that we socialists can do is to work for
education and organization, that |
would achieve more good than boost
ing men for Office. | am not gradu-
ate in socialism. | wish | was for | |
would delight to let others know all l |
knew about it. If it were not for the
encouragement socialism gets by elect |
ing their comrades to office, | would |
favor cutting that out while longer,
and | am not sure the people have suf
cred enough yet by misrepresentation
to cause them to renounce and turn
away from such politics as republican
ism and democracy.
Of course we nominate men to all
the offices in order to hold the party i
together, but to scramble, lie and mis-
in order to elect is some
thing none of our nominees will have.
All men who have any reasonable
of sense know that under the
rule of the two old parties, everything
Is going down. Even morals are on
the wane. Lawlessness is on the in
,rease, the grand iuries of the state
are corrupted until they seem to care
but little about their sworn duty.
They act more like they were lot of
than any other class Such
nen are not socialists and never will
be. The lawless elements will never
support socialist ticket, but will vote
md hang to that crowd that winks at
heir lawlessness The democratic
oarty in our own state seems to be
'egular seething mass of corruption,
Iwaying and influencing the courts to
wink at the violators of the law, as in
ome recent acts in the city of Nash
yille. A bad condition of things,
hould say. If thought and believed
hat the socialist party would ever
wink at lawlessness, aid and abet it as
be regular democratic party has done.
would wash my hands of it as quick
IS | could.
Socialism does not propose to tram
lie on the moral and legal rights of
he people or contend for any law that
be people do not want Hence, their
etermination to stand by the initia-
We, referendum and recall. What do
be leaders of the democratic party
are about the wants of the people
/. hen cid they ever consult the peopleS
be people are asked to vote in the