Dakota farmers' leader., December 25, 1890, Image 4

About Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??

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—PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY—
FARMERS" PUBLISHING COMPANY
—INCORPORATED—
The paper is inducted under the supervision
of a board of directors composed entirely of
farmers. The following is the present mem
bership: Hon. H. Braashaw, Nelson Larson,
Edgar wardwell, J. E. Ijelter, O. M. Iverson.
TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION :—Three months, 25
cents six months BQcents one year, $1, Pay
ments for subscription to the paper may be
remitted directly to the publication office or to
any officer or member of the board of directors.
Correspondence is desired from every county
in the southeastern part of the state and
especially from the towns and townships in
Lincoln county. Correspondent's should write
their manuscripts us plainly as possible and
write 6n one side of the paper, and should
at all times confine themselves to the news.
It is also important that a correspondent's
name should be attached to a communication
in order to secure admittance to the columns of
the paper. No attention will be paid to anon
ymous communications of any kind. Intelligent
contributions on economy, finance, tarriff,
transportation, land, and other important
questions of the day,
.are invited from all parts
of the country. Contributors are request
ed, however, to make their communications as
brief as possible. Communications of any
kind, must be in on or before Tuesday evening
in order to secure publication the same
week.
Address THE FARMERS' LEADER, Canton
South Dakota.
A BLUE MARK.
Opposite this paragraph indicates that your
subscription has expired and if no instructions
are received to the contrary, it is understood
that you want the paper to be sent you as here
tofore a red mark indicates that the paper
will be discontinued unless orders are given to
have it continued.
A blue mark opposite this paragraph indi
cates that the paper is sent you as a sample
copy and that you are hereby invited to become
a regular subscriber.
A blue mark opposite this paragraph means
that your subscription has been paid by a
friend a red mark, that the paper is sent on
trial for a short time.
CHRISTMAS.
Today is Christmas: a day of general comfort,
gladness and merrymaking a day of happiness
and good cheer a day consecrated above all
others, to the feeling of love and good will. It
is a day on which the heart of mankind opens
its narrow portals of earthly contractedness
and talks to God of His goodness and burries
the pains, sorrows and despondencies of a
year, beneath an avalanche of heavenly glee.
Christmas is set apart from all other as a day
of feasting., end universal rejoicing. It is
indeed a gloomy heart that cannot laugh on
Christmas and it is truly a desolate fireside
that is not surrounded* by glad hearts and
cheerful countinances on this day. The home
that is today filled with plenty and compara
tive prosperity, will hardly realize that there
are any who cannot jen joy any of the rich bless
ings and multiplying luxuries of the, annual
Christmas day. But there are plenty* of our
fellow crertures, who are in want, destitute of
the necessaries of life only a crust of bread to
appease their increasing hungre and Insuffici
ent clothing to cover their unhappy and unfor
tunate selves. Ask where they are? Go out
upon the the prairies of the great west, into
the hovels of many an honest son of toll, who
labors all the year round to find bread for the
world to eat, and you will find them: go Into
the city, from the palaces of the Goulds, the
Vanderbllts, the Depews, the Armours, the
McCormicks, the Shermans, the Blalng and the
Harrisons, all rolling in richness and splendor
children in the highth of their glory and in
want of nothing the human heart could wish
for yes go from there to the lowley, one-room
hut of many a toiler in the samelcity, and you
will find penury and hunger: degraded, wretch
ed humanity in misery as deep and superabun
dant as the luxury you have just left. Go to
these places and you find the mother's pale
face, the father's''heart smothered with an
guish, the little boys and girls, not understand
ing the situation, bittorly sobbing to quench
the disappointment inflicted upon them by the
heartless Santa Clause, who, they say "never
'tails at our iftjuse/'iPoor, wretched creatures!
Christmas has no chaims for them. The pangs
of hunger sting worse for them on this day
than on any other. No one who has not had the
experience can adequately sympathize with
the thousands of destitute, wretched human
beings, made wretched by a corrupt and de
plorable system of government. Thank Heaven,
South Dakota has not so many of them
this year r.s last, but there are plenty of them
yet, and many of these wretched creatures
have been brought to want through the heart
less conspiracies of the shy locks, the monopo
lists, the money grabbers of every kind. Sad
picture, this to contemplate on Christmas day.
Thank God, some progress has been made the
past year toward wiping it from the face of the
earth, and while we who have plenty today, en
joy our blessings, let us resolve to push on in
the work of reform in this country, that every
llvlnu brother ail sister, may soon enjoy
with us all the good things that make Christmas
longed for In the hearts of man
KNOW T1IEIR WANTS.
The action taken by the national convention
of the Farmers' Alliance has demonstrated
more clearly than ever the fact that the
farmers not only understand the causes of their
financial distress, but a^o know what is need
ed to produce a speedy, effectual and per
manent cure. No one can any longer say that
the farmer is a bull-headed blunderbus who
neither knows what ails him nor what he
-wants.
Among the important resolutions adopted by
the convention was the following touching the
financial conaition of the country:
We demand the abolition of the national
banks and that the government shall establish
national sub-treasuries. or depositories, in the
several states. Which shall loan money directly
to the people at a rate of interest not exceed
ing 2 per cent per annum, on non-perishable
aim products, and also upon real estate, with
WOML IjSft-
1 S
HON. H. BRADSHAW, PBESIDEXT
NELSON LARSON, VICE PRESIDENT
EDGAK WAEDWELL, SEOR'Y. & TRBJC
J. P. COOLEY, EDITOR AND MANAGER.
Entered at the post office In Canton as second
class mail matter.
THK FARMERS' LEADER IS owned by a com
pany composed of nearly 400 of tbe most pro
gressive farmers of southeastern South Dako
ta. It is a fearless advocate of the rights of the
farmer, mechanic, day laborer and artisan and
as such it will use its best influence toward the
upbuilding of the Farmers' Alliance, the
Knights of Labor and kindred organizations,
and, Incidentally, toward the support of the
principles of the independent party.
sfP^sfFSw fewma- WPWIJH&WP*
proper limitations upon the quantity of land
and amount of money. We demand that the
amount of the circulating medium be speedily
increased to not less than 850 per capital.
The^protracted discussions upon thelsubject
embodied in the above resolution, which have
taken place among the agricultural classes all
over the country, together with the final ad
option of this as the first plank of the Alliance
platform, indicates clearly that the farmers
have come to realize tha it is the money ques
tion, more than railroads or any other one
thing that injures their prosperity. They are'
no longer in doubt as to the destructive evi
that has a hold upon the roots of their pros
perity, and from the vigorous way in which they
strike at the hellish demon that is gnawing at
their existance, they mean to redeem them
selves as speedily as possible. ,'
That the farmers alliance, in the aboye reso
lution, have hit upon the correct idea of the
cause of their threatened ruination, cannot be
disputed now, for it has been generally admitt
ed, even among politicians of the older parties,
that the money question is really the important
question of the hour. Reform in this direction
is needed more than reform in all other depart
ments of the government and industrial affirs
of the country. To increase the volume of the
circulating medium of the country, will be the
watch word of every true reformer until the de
sired object, so/dearly and vigorously express
ed in the alliance platform' shall have been ac
complished. Thq gold kings, the money monl
gers of the east, who are all equally interested
in keeping the volume of money as limited as
possible, and thus increasing the difficulty of the
west to pay its debts, thereby multiplying the
rates of interest to be exacted, have feasted
upon the sweat of other men's brows so long
that their gigantic coffers of wealth have creat
ed the suspicious of the people and they* have
set themselves to studying the economio ques
tions of the governmenWor themselves. Now
the imposter will no longer be successful in
making the people believe his doctrins of dear
money, he has so ostentatiously peddled around
the country through the practical politicians
and "when people begin to think for them
selves" says one "the day of dear money has
reached its sunset and the morning of better
tines is dawning."
INDEPENDENTS IN THE LAST
LEGISLATURE.
While the last legislature has managed
pretty •well, weather intentionally or
otherwise, to keep its tracks covered from
the observation of the people, and while
in this way it managed to keep a great
many things forever from public know
ledge, yet they were not entirely success
ful, and during the past year there have
a great many things come to light that
were hardly dreamed of ,at the time of
their occurance.
The latest trick which has come ,to
the knowledge of this paper is House Bill
No. 50, a measure which, if passed,
Vould have fastened upon the unfortu
nate backs of South Dakota tanant
farmers, a condition worse, if possible,
than that now squeezing the life out of
accursed British slaves in poor old Ire
land. Section two of this bill provides:
"Thflt ft may and shall be lawful -.to and for
every lessor or landlord, or his or their agents,
bailiffs, receiver or other person empowered by
him, to take as a distress for arrears of rent any
and all property of the lessee in and
v.
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upon any
part of the premises demised, leased or holden,
and to sell or otherwise dispose of the same
towards the satisfaction of the rent for which
such distress shall have been made.
The bill further provides that the prop
erty of the tenant occupying leased
premises, shall not be exempt from sale
for the satisfaction of rent due or becom
ing due. ft
This terrible piece of legislative work
was engineered through the house by the
Hon. Maris Taylor, late candidate for
governor on the democratic ticket, and by
means of that superior ability of which
his democratic friends have boasted, that
distinguished gentleman succeeded in
getting the bill twice through the house.
The first time it was reconsidered and after
that was considered dead, but the attorney
of loan companies and landlords was not
so easily discouraged, and subsequently
seized the opportunity to pass the bill
the second time when its opponents were
not on guard. Being through the farmers'
hands in the house, it easily passed
among the lawyers senate. It went to
the gevernor, who happened to be just
then laying his ropes for a reelection, and
of course he wanted no better chance to
make capital than he had in vetoing this
bill. Of course he did it and by this means
was defeated. THE LEADER is glad to
say this much in praise of Gov. Mellette.
From an examination of the record, it
will btfsfound that all but a few of the op
ponents to this bill in both houses, are
now members of the independent party,.
This shows conclusively in what respect
the action of the last legislature would
have been different had there been more
independents sent there. True, these
men were then republicans or democrats,
but the fact remains that their hearts
were of the independent party principle
which declares hostility to all proposi
tions favoring capital against labor.' and
it was this that actuated their opposition
to such damnable piece of work as the
Taylor Landlord bill.
May the day be not far distant when wa
can have a full house of independent
hearts in every session of the state legisla
ture
TOO MANY NOW.
The present session of congress will
probably provide for a change of some
kind in the apporntionment of congres
sional represention.oTo that end a number
of bills have been introduced in both
houses and the indications are very favor
able that the 52 nd congres will have on
its pay roll at least a dozen more repre
sentatives than the 51st. At least twelve
and probably 34 more politicians
will harbor around the government crib
for the next ten years, than ther were the
past decade. Not less than $600,000 and.
probably $1,200,000 will be dished up in
fat salaries to fine-haired politicians in the
United States, more the next ten years
than has been dished up to them in the patf
ten. At least twelve more practical wire
pullers provided for at public expense
twelve more recruits to help swell the
slack of bills in congress, already as high
as the capital, tq the hight of fhe Wash
ington movement. Twelve more cus
tomers for Washington whiskey shops,
twelve wore professional poker-players,
twelve more statesmen versed in the art
of solving that important problem, how to
reduced the surplus in the United States
treasury. Twelve more railroad passes a
year for the next ten years and twelve
more private secretaries twelve more capi
tol seates to cushion, twelve more fellows
to supply with stationary twelve more
bunks supply at Washington flne
haired boarding houses, twelve more
towels to wash at the capital laundry
twelve more stumbling blocks in the way
of public business and twelve more law
yers to spin congressional yarns for the
benefit of $5-a-day printers setting type
on .the congressional record.
That is right. The public have no
other means of expending their
funds and the increased prosperity that
President Harrison writes of, might not
set well with the people if some
means were not supplied to relieve them
of it. It is, indeed refreshing ftr the dear
people—-the precious "constituents"—to
have among their number, men highly
skilled in the,art of providing waj'S and
means to relieve humanity of it burdens
of' wealth and the wonder is that
ministers, in giving thanks to God ip the
pulpit Suaday mornings, fer his' great
goodness, do not give special thanks for
the Divine blessing realized in the pro
fessional treasury-surplus-reducer.
But this is the way the people's money
goes. Twelve thousand here, fifty thou
sand there half millionfcere and a million
somewhere else. The way congressmen
throw around the thousands fairly makes
a poor man forget his, poverty for the
moment he thinks of it, and dream that
he has been laboring under a delusion
that all about him is made of gold and
silver and that he has been ar fool for not
discovering his stupidity long ago. To
think of all. this useless extravagance of
the peoples wealth, is simply to wonder
how long it will last and where it all will
end. Instead of increasing the congres
sional representation 12 or 24 members,
congress could have done the people a
greater service by reducing it that
number. If anything, the number of rep
resentavies in congress is too large now,
and a reduction instead of an increase of
24 would make a difference of 48,
and a saving in salary alone of over two
million dollars.
"CAPITAL WILL WITHDRAW."
No! you don't say so! God bless you,
is that possible? Happy day for farmers
when the Eastern Bloodswipe wipes his
crimson jaws, and says, "No more money
for that state!" Halcyon promise for toil
when it becomes impossible to mortgage
another farm! Capital—^foreign or east
ern capital? Why, the daily plutocratic
spittoon-cleaners imply that capital im
portations are a blessing! Blessing?
Yes, in the same sense that pirates are—
they keep money "in circulation"—and
blood too.
Farmers, don't mortgage that farm
now! Look out! You know well the
breakers are beatiag against the shore—
and in a few hours your craft will strike!
Let the west teach the east the want of
value in a leech when there is no blood to
suck.—Great West.
The democrats in congress, who are op
posing the passage of the federel elections
bill almost to a man, are doing so with a
great deal of comspicuous inconsistency.
Like all honest statesmen, they claim to
favor any measure that conduces to the
interests of the country, yet their opposi
tion to the elections bill is based upon
nothing else than what they term as the
feurof black supremecy over the whites..
THE LEADER hats no disposition to
be in the least suppecious in small matters^
but if it is indeed true, as the democrats
have always told as, that the elections xn
the south are as fairly and honestly con
ducted as they arwuL the north, how can
the new bill be tbe means of giving the
negroes any political advantage overjtheir
white neighbors,? Does the demo
cratic opposition to the proposed
measure not indicate that thexe is
something wrong? Do they not act the
boy who has stolen a big red apple- from
his ma, and refuses to have his pockets
examined? THE LEADER is opposed to
the passage of this measure, but Certainly
the action of the democrats looks, as if it
were needed. •.
Hon. F. A. Leavitt has been busy re*
cuperating alliance work in this county
the past few weeks, and as usual he suc
ceeds well. Last week he started two new
alliances, one at Banner, in Dayton town
ihip and one at the Falde school house in
Fairview township. The alliance in
Dayton has tatken the pretty and appro
priate cognomen of Riverside alliance,
with Henry Bradshaw, president, John
Juel, vice- president and A. L. Syverud
secretary. The Fairview alliance, of Fair
view township has elected M. D. Harris
for president, and Johu Falde for secre
tary. Let the good work go on—there is
plenty of it to do.
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THE PUBLIC QUESTION BUREAU.
Under this heading THE FARMERS' LEADER
will publish answers to all reasonable questions
that may be asked by its subscribers or regular
correspondents.' All communications for this
department must be made inrwriting on or
before Monday of the week in whih they are in
tended to be published. Available space for
the use of the department is limited to half a
column per week and all matter received in ex
cess of this amount will be carried over and
given precedence, the following week. No
attention will be paid to questions coming from
others than regular subscribers or correspon
dents nor from parties who do not give their'
names. Neither will it knowingly decide bets
or impart information concerning lotteries, gift
concerns or other gambling dlvices,
I have been trying for a. long time to get hold
of some reliable statistics on the gold and sil
ver imports and exports in the United States
for the past ten years. Can your paper help
me out? If so please, do so.
Answer: -The exports and imports of gold
and silver from 1879 to 1889, a period
Some newspaper,young man has been
writing to a number of distinguished
'people asking whether, in their opinion,
a politician can be a Christian or a Chris
tian can be, a politician. On having the
question put to him Dr. Chauncey M.
Depew answers with the utmost cheer
fulness and mellifluous flow of words
that a politician certainly can be a Chris
tian, not a shadow of doubt of it. We
infer that possibly Dr. Depew would
like to add, "If you don't believe it just
nominate me for president."
George H. Hepiworth, editor of The
New York Herald and retired doctor of
divinity, who presumably knows some
thing of what he is talking about, says,
"I have not seen enough Christianity in
the politics of the day to run an
claas in a Sunday achooL" Cardinal
Gibbons foils back on the theological
prerogative of non-committalism, and
Bays that while there hare been many
noble Christians who were also great
politicians it is to be deplored that at
present there seem to be so many politi
cians who are not Christians.. A more
diplomatic answer could not be devised.
Hear agnostic Senator ingalls: "Can a
politician be a Christian? Everything it
possible with God." Frances E. Willard
believes that at the foundation of a great
political party those who pioneer it can
be Christians, for they have to endure
contradiction, corses and contumely
enough to make them turn to a higher
power. In the middle life of the party,
when the tough times are oyer and the
party has wealth, power and prosperity,
it will still be possible for a politician in
its ranks to be a Christian, if he tries
hard. But when the party is on the
down grade, and its adherents must re
sort to trickery, fraud and vote buying
to prop up its rotten, tottering pillars,
then heaven help the- politician belong
ing to it Who profesae&to be a Christian!
It depends on the. definition of the
word politician,, says Gen. Howard.
Ex-President McCosh, of Princeton,
presents the point of view both logical
and theological when he says decidedly,
"Every politician should be a Christian,,
and he will thereby'be a better poli
tician, as actuated by moral principle."
"Politician actuated by moral principle"
is rather good.
It is observable that most of those
who are or have been office holders axe
sure a man can be a politician and a
Christian, too. This' unanimity is
marked. O. B. Frothingham writes,
"Certainly, why cannot a politician be
a Christian?' Well, we give it up.
A Berlin dispatch says that the dwell
ings for workmen which the govern
ment proposes to lnAld in North Berlin
will cost $1,000 each. They will be pur
chasable on terms equal to a deposit of
(75 and weekly payments of $1.2&
Tbe Same Old Bobber Game.
The struggles of today are nearly on
the same lines they have been for thou
sand of years, the strong to control the
weak, the wealthy still more absorbing
the earnings of the multitude. Every
million added to the millionaire class is
another million abstracted from pro
ducers and laborers.
Form of government, culture, even
Christianity, changes, modifies or miti
gates but little the inexorable and some
times inhuman laws of trade.
The trite aphorism that "business is
business" is the foundation and justifica
tion as well for the barons who in medi
eval times at the cross roads robbed or
terrified the tradesmen of commerce, or
in Christian Europe or free America se
cured superiority by all the devices
which legislation can give, or by com
binations and trusts, in violation of laws
and in opposition to protest or resist
ance from the masses who toil.—Speech
of .Hon. C. H. Van Wrck.
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ot
ten
years, was as fdllows: 1879, exports, 824,907,
441 imports, #20,296,000. 1880, exports, 117,142,
919 imports, $98,034,310. 1881, exports, 19,406,
847 imports, $110,675,497. 1882, exports, #49,-.
417,479 imports, $12,478,890. 1883, exports,
$31,830,333 imports, $88,489,391. 1884, exports,
$67,133,383 imports, $37,486,263. 1885, exports,
$42,831,525 imports, $43,842,323. 1886. exports,
$73,463,410 t. imports, $38,593,657. 1887, exports,
$35,997,691 imports, $60,170,793. 1888, exports,
$46,414,183 imports, $59,337,986. 1889, exports,
$96,641,535 imports, $88,963,073.
Will the LEASER have the kindness to give
the statistics of the financial failures in the
United States since 1885: J. W. F.
Answer: The' number' of failures in this
country in 1885 numbered 11,311 with liabilities
$307,343,427 in 1886, 13,393, liabilities, $239,388,
238 in 1887, 12,043, liabilities, $335,121,888 in
1888, 13,348, liabilities, $247,659,956,
Please give a statement of the amount of re
duction of the public debt during the ten years
ending June 30,1880: H. H. S.
Answer: In 1870, at the close of the fiscal
year, the public debt^of the United States, was
$2,480,672,427i At the jCloSfe of the fiscal year in
1880, the debt' amounted to $3,120,415,370, which
figures out a reduction during the ten years of
$360,357,057.
1, where is the national headquarters of the
Farmers Alliance and Industrial Union, and
where is the Westren Rural newspaper pub
lished? 3, which is the national organ of the
Farmers Alliance, the Westren Bural or No
tional Economist? O. S. S.
Answer: l.jthie head offices of the Alliance
are in the city'of Washington. The Westren
Rural is published in Chicago. 2, the Nation
al Economist is the Alliance organ.
Christianity and Politics.
years for
convinced.
E J.
mS
Viy'
Have soijio special bargain's in boys, "ywith
ahS men's clothing to offer this weekf -?5
Mens all wool suits from 35j*to 42 size,
from $6.00 to 88.00. Boys suits 5 to 13
We will sell anything in ourjjne of
business for 20 per cent less thanffanyone
else can. Call an see for yourselves||!!|ff|j!
r\ mmMllSf
Straw Bros. & Col
I. N. MENOR. N. M. JACOBSOrfr.
Menor c3z:
—DEALER IN—
LER IN— if,
ROCK BOTTOM FIGURES.
We handle no shelf-worn or shoddy stuff,
but the very best goods that money will buy,
and guarantee perfect satisfaction in oj\ery
department of our business. Call^nJff
&. J.KEAN,
1
ions,
(iroefks
FTbroiit© stnd Provisions.
We carry everything usually kept in a
first class store and our facilities are such as
will enable us to sell goods at
"y
MENOR & JACOBSON.
WEST SIDE MAIN ST CANTON, S
Coanfry Produce Taken In Exchange.
GROCERIES,,
CROCKERY,
BOOTS and SHOES.
C3-2?oo©rd©s,
Crock:©:
Bootsdc
{GROCERIES,SHOES.ANDCROCKERY,CROCKERY,BOOTS
GROCERIES,
country Produce Wanted In Exchange.
A. R. BROWN, O. A. RUDOLPH,
PRESIDENT. SECRETARY.
—INCORPORATED IN 1887.—-
0.X Krai, Cutier.
I TMMCT 1 (URAL BANKING BUSINESS.
Interest allowed on time deposits, and r"
special attention to loans. I
CANTON, SOUTH DAKOTA,
v^"e take pleasure in thanking
and patrons for their many favors and wish-
New Year, we remain,
A. G. STEINER.
VICE PRESIDENT
our
them all a merry Christmas and a happy
Very Respectfully,
HELMEY & KELMAN.
^friends
Uii