Year: 1879

FAILED entirely in this respect2 If So why is the
effort persistenty made to impede its progress,
and even to destroy it an institution,


Of transportation, our Declaration saws "we
wage no aggressive warfare against any other in
terest whatever 1--WE hold that transportation
companies of every kind are necessary to our sue
cess, that their interests intimately connected
with our interests, aud harmonious action is mu-
tually advantageous, keeping in view the first
sentence of declaration of principles of action
that, individual happiness depends upon gen
eral prosperity;' and again, "We are opposed to
such spirit and management of any corporation
or enterprise as tends to oppress the people and
rob them of their just profits"


Our agitation of the railroad question has pro-
ceeded from the spirit they have manifested to op-
press the people and rob them of their just profits
by cruel exactions and unjust determinations.
To show that the Grange has not failed" in its
efforts in this respect, it is only necessary to al


ude to the fact that the public sentiment created
by the edlscussion ofthis question resulted in what
is known as the Granger laws, and the decision
OF the Supreme Court that State Legislatures
have right to control transportation companies
within their respective jurisdictions When this
agitation first began, the unequal contest was
left to the Grange and the VERY FEW papers then
published in its interest now, many of the abest
OF our political papers have joined in this contest
not to destroy railroads or their usefulness, but
to prevent them from destroying the prosperity
of the people, and many of our wisest statesmen
view with alarm their encroachments and their
power which now bids defiance to the laws of the
land.


TO those who think farmers should take no in
terest in the management of railroads, call Their
attention to the evidence of decadence in farming
in the great States of New York, PENNSYLVANIA
New Jersey and Connecticut, as shown in a series
of articles which recently appeared in the New
York Bulletin, the only cause that can be as
signed being the determinations of the railroads


l would also.direct attention to the discrimina-
tons made in State, and close this part of my
letter by asking the question, can our industry
prosper with the exactions, extortions and dis
ordinations practced by transportation compa-
panies?


Again, we told that the Grange does not
propose to teach, but to govern. This will be
news to membership throughout the country.
The Grange is voluntary institution, and does
not and cannot, exercise any control over the ac-
tions Of It's members, but seeks through discuss
ion to eliminate the truth from all questions, that
its members may act intelligently. Nor, as it is
sometimes charged. has it ever attempted to gov
ern political parties. In ranks all parties are
represented. A majority of the voters of this ma
ton are connected with agriculture, and on the
questions of which we have been speaking are al
most unit and had our object been to govern
tie issue would long since have been made up
and the results demonstrated. No. Our object
is not to govern but to teach, and the inteli-
gence now displayed by farmers on ALL CUES
TONS shows conclusively that they are being
we'll taught.


The National Grange has, at various times,
sent petitions to Congress. These petitions have
never been brought from the committee rooms
but have been invariably treated with the utmost
contempt. Seeing that Agriculture had rep
resentative at Washington, and that its interests
were the least protected and encouraged of any
other, the National Grange petitioned that the
Commissioner of Agriculture be made a Cabinet
officer. II is useless to comment upon the result
of this petition the manner in which the efforts
of those who presented he petition were treated.
No. Agriculture must develop its science with
out encouragement or help.


Seeing our industry ignored and all our peti
tions unavaiing, that we produce nearly all of
the wealth of the nation, and while we own only
a little more than one-third of the property that
we paw over 90 per cent of the taxes the National
| Grange, at its last session. passed additional
Declaration of Purposes, which, after summing
| uo some of our grievances, contained purpose
to further extend the benefits of education, which
shall comprise knowledge of public affairs" and
that we will demand the recognition of our rights
in tie legislative bodies of the land. This is not
intended to govern" our meHbers in their party
| relations, but to unite them in all parties upon
matters pertaining to the interests of agriculture.
Nor was it intended to thrust the Grange into
politics. for a resolution passed declaring that
| no Grange could call political conventions, NOM
! mate candidates for political Office or discuss
their merits. These steps are but preliminaries
to put ourselves in position to develop the ''meth
ods of agriculture. AS it is, with all the obsta-
cles and opposition we have had to contend, we
/ claim to have done much in this direction.


OF Education our Declaration says: "We shall
advance the cause of education among ourselves
and for our children, by all just means within our
power" etc. The interest the State Grange OF