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THE INDUSTRIAL AND EDUCATIONAL INTERESTS OF OUR PEOPLE PARAMOUNT "TO ALL OTHER CONSIDERATIONS OP STATE POLICY. BALBIGH, N. C., DECEMBER 17, 1889. Vol. 4. No. 45 XT muECTORY OF FARMERS' OR- HORTH CAROLINA FARMERS 8TATX ALLIANCE. president Elias Can, Old Sparta, fT.C. Vice-President A. H. Hayes, Bird- WS'rfta?y-L. L. Polk, Raleigh, N. 0. easureV-J. D. Allen, Falls, tf. C Lecturer Thos. B. Long, Longs, N. C. Assistant Lecturer R. B. Hunter, Char- l0Chaplain'-J. J. Scott, Alfordsville, fr n Door Keeper W. H. Tomlinson, Fay- etteville, N. C. Assistant Door Keeper H. E. King, rgeantaAnns-J. S. Holt, Chalk gSteBusiness Agent W. H. Worth, Raleigh, N. C. Trustee Business Agency Fund W. A. Graham, Macbpelah, N. C. J.1CC0TIVE COMMITTEE OF THE NORTH CARO LINA FARMERS' STATE ALLIANCE. S. B. Alexander, Chariot e, N. C., Chair n; J. M. Mewborne, Kmston N. ; J. S. Johnston, Ruffin, N. C. 0SFICER8 OF THE VIRGINIA STATE ALLIANCE. President G. T. B.rbee, Bndgewater, Ta. , Yico-Pres dent tfaj. Marm Page, Erandon, Va. Secretary J. J. Silvey, Arnissille, Va. Treasurer Isaiah Printz, Stonyman, Lecturer J. D. Shepperson, Smithville, Ta. Assistant-Lecturer P. H. Strode, Step hen City, Va. Chaplain Wm. M. Rosser, Luray, Va. Doorkeeper B. Frank Beahen, Kim ball, Va. Assistant-Doorkeeper, G. E. Brubaker, Luray, Va. Sergeant -at-Arms Milton Pence, For- estville, Va. State Business Agent S. P. A. Bruba ker, Luray, Va. Ch'mn Ex. Com. S. T. Brumback, Ta. Ida, " ' - THE INIQUITOUS TOBACCO TRUST. - What Shall we do About It ? "-7-Middlebdkg Alliance, No. 492. Mr. Editor: It may well be asked what we are to do in regard to the tobacco trust. It behooves every grower of tobaszoto commence think ing what action should be taken in order to defeat their object. That action, immediate and decisive, is necessary, no one can for a moment doubt. Then, brethren, what' shall that action be ? We all know with what success the united action of our grand order has been crowned in the fight with the jute trust. Now, to my mind, the present trust on tobacco can he much more easily, quickly and efectively put down than the one which has been so successfully de feated. Bat some broiher,- perhaps, will ask how is it to be done ? Well, object in writing this is to put jvery one to thinking, and let us see whether or not some one, or all of us pr PftTinnt. r orico ctma nlai-i Vitt which the desired end can be accom plished. Violent diseases require prompt and decisive treatment. Then i let ns commence at the root of this matter and see whether or not we can discover the necessary remedy and then apply it as vigorously as possible. To begin at the beginning, suppose every Allianceman constitute himself & committee of one, whose immediate uu urgent duty it is to go to work Qd try to induce every man in his viumty, who is outside the Alliance, to join forthwith, and urge all who cannot join to act in concert with us, ior it cannot but be evident to the dullest mind that all, whether in or put of the order, are equally interested m the matter. This being done, let every Alliance within the bright to bacco belt, and indeed in the whole country, cMl a meeting at the earliest time practicable and proceed on the " fn?VnS r some similar and equally decisive plan, viz: Draw up a pream ble setting forth the grievances we wish redressed, and such a set of reso lutions as is necessary to the accom. plishment of that end; resolutions not merely to be resolved and dropped without further thought, (as I fear is wo often the case) but to be vigorous nd persistently pushed. Something . fcr instance, similar to the following: Whereas, It has come to our pledge that certain parties have ormed themselves into what is known JJ a trust with a capital of $25,000,. of cshig out tfTu F YTpeuuon, and threaten boycott all buyers who dare bid Jgamst them, and that in the verv th of the law forbidding such com Nations therefore it, by this Alliace, solved, That we will not, under jy circumstances, knowingly, allow member of said trust, or any of aeir servile agents, to buy our tobacco 5 any price whatever. ResolveHh&t we will not,!rom this day forward, use any cigarettes, cigars, cheroots or -tobacco of y kind manufactured by any company or persons who belong to, or are in any way interested or connected with, the trust. ' Resolved, - We will not buy goods of any description from merchants who keep for sale the goods of said trust Resolved, That after we have killed the present trust on tobacco, we will not allow any man or firm who may hereafter admit into partnership with them or in any way give employment to them in their business any person or persons4 who are now in any way connected with the present trust, to buy our tobacco, and resolved fur her that wo will not henceforth patronize any warehouse man we know, or very stroDgly suspect, of being in sympathy with the trust unless they can prove conclusively to our minds that our suspicions are incorrect. Resolved. That we earnestly ask the prompt and hearty co-operation of all the Alliances throughout the whole country and also that of all good citi zens outside the order. Brethren, it seems to me to admit of no doubt whatever that some such action, adhered to by us as one man, would most effectually wipe out the trust, and deter others from again at tempting a renewal of anything of the kind. And now it may be asked by some, what are we to do with cigar ette tobacco after we may have whipped out the robber trust ? Be not uneasy about that for there are plenty of other good, honest men who would be ready to engage in manu facturing it. But, brethren, why not establish our own factories and work up our own raw material ? There seems to me no sort of doubt but that we could do it with almost no cash capital or at least a very small amount, compara tively. Suppose we start factories and let every man, instead of selling his cutters to others, subscribe them at fair valuation as stock m the factory. "What H to prevent our success iu such an enterprise ? I really can see noth ing to prevent it. In elusion let me urge immediate and prompt action in sdme way in the matter. There is no doubt we are better able to cope with the trust now than we will ever be hereafter if they carry out their plans, for if we allow them to whip us in this contest, we will as certainly grow rapidly waker as time passes. Then let us go to work with determination- while we have every chance of success. FROM BLADEN COUNTY. Colly, N. C, Nov. 27, 1889. Mb. Editor: I have concluded to write you a few line?. The people in this section are about done gather ing crops. Corn is hardly an average, sorgum is short, about one-fourth. A. B. Brooks, a member of our Alli ance, made 290 gallons of syrup upon one acre, and about 300 bushels of corn upon five acres in Lyon Swamp, Bladen county, and I believe his en tire field in the same swamp would have gathered 40 bushels to the acre and there are thousands of acres of the same kind of land in this section that can be bought at from five to ten dol lars per acre. That being the case, why should our young or old men leave the State ? I was conversing some time ago with a gentleman that had traveled through several of the Southern States, and- he said he had never seen any land South that would yield moro to the acre than the Lyon Swamp lands in Bladen county. It is also very good for potatoes and field peas, and if a man should fail to make his meat, occasionally, he can go into the samps and kill a bear, like one of my neighbors did about two weeks ago. v But, Colonel, our lands won't pro duce jute worth a cent, for they would not have a jute bag if it was given to them. Good-bye old friend jute, you have been a good friend but you are controlled by the wrong company. And now adieu, King Ju'.e, we are going next for Queen Coffee. Now, Colonel, let all the Alliances pass a resolution and stand to it that we will not use coffee but once a day for six months, and the coffee trust will soon have more coffee on hand than they can hold, and as a consequence it will go down to ten cents a pound. Col onel, you can just put Furman Alii ance down as solid on all that per tains to the good pi the order and es pecially on resolutions passed by the National and State Alliance in re spect to combines and trusts. Breth ren, let us stand as-firm as the rocky mountains, and the day is not far distant when we will be a free people. Colonel, I will send to the State B ;siness Agent soon another good sum to swell the business agency fund, and it is to be hoped that those Alliances that have not contributed anything yet will wake up to their duty find help to raise the business agency fund as soon as possible, for it is certain we will then be able to get goods just, as cheap as the largest mf rchant gets them North. Colonel, your speech at Atlanta has made for you lots of friends outside of the Alliance (I say outside) for you have nothing bat friends in the Alli ance. Colonel, tell your Pitt county cor respondent that we agree with him when he said it was unjust and un constitutional to tax the whites to educate the colored race. They have had their freedom now about twenty four years, and if they have not ac cumulated anything in all this time it is not our fault, and I for one (speak ing, too, I believe, the sentiment of at least eight-ninths of the white people), do here and now enter my protest against that unjust, aad, I believe, unconstitutional law. Long may the editor and Progres sive Farmer live to advance the in terests of the farmers and laboring men of this country. Fraternally yours, A. J. Bordeaux, Sec'y. INSURANCE " AGAIN." Riverdale Alliance, No. 1,303, Thurman, N. C. Mr. Editor: On opening my paper last night, my eyes immediately saw " insurance again, by Old Hickory," and after reading, I thought is it possible that a brother who calls himself an Alliance man, could have written such. " Old Hickory " per haps has never read the 7th paragraph on 1st pge of the Constitution. Per haps he does not remember his obliga tion. Old , Hickory " claims the promise of God, " He that tilleth the soil, verily shall be fed.". I believe there are many widows and poor fatherless children who are not able to till the soil. The Bible commands us to help such, and as God-fearing and God-loving and Christian hearted Alli ance men, I think it our duty to aid the helpless and bereaved, and al though Old Hickory" may be worth lots of money, and may not need the aid of the "tramp and deadhead," still it is his imperative duty to aid those of our bereaved ones, whom death and misfortune has made deso late. I know of no better plan to aid those in distress than some well con ducted insurance. I do not intend for the seat of my its-to be patched for indolence, and hope by the help of God, that at my death ray family will not be paupers. -Yet I feel like we ought all to help the needy, and I for one am willing to pay my pro rata to help support the helpless. I believe God would prosper us more if we would give more of our means to charitable purposes. I would say to our brother, " Old Hickory," Come over and help us. If you are wealthy, we need you the more. Yours fraternally, Gabriel L. Hardison, Sec'y. - - FROM VANCE COUNTY. Willi amsboro, N. C. Mr. Editor: W& organized- Flint Hill Alliance, in Vance county, with fourteen or fifteen members, about two months ago, with theHbest men in the community, and they are men of nerve and backbone. We have the work of the Alliance at heart, and are willing to stand by and defend its principles unto death. Most of our members read The Progressive Far mer, and are wide awake to all ques tions that are being agitated by our State organ. We are heartily in favor of the in surance policy which many of our leading brethren are thinking and writing about of late, and hope that soon some plan will be formulated that will be just and equitable. Why not the Alliance be a great insurance company ? We are a unit in standing by our noble order in opposing mon opolies and combines; sometimes some of our brethren become eloquent on the subject. We think the Alliance next in importance to the Church of the living God, and God speed the d;j when we shall triumph over those who oppose U3. There is a move on the part of the sisters to join our Alliance, which I think is a jnove in the right direction. There will be ten .who will join our Alliance at the next meeting. When we get all the farmers and working men, with their wives and daughters, in one solid phalanx, combines will have to crumble. J. A. T. Shotwell; Sec'y. I FROM SAMPSON COUNTY. Hawley's Store, Nov. 20, '89. Mr. EmTORlf you will give me space in your valuable paper I will let the brethren kriow that Cedar Hill Alliance, No. .830,1 is yet alive, and stands by the true; principles of Alliahceism. At bur last meeting we resolved not to patronize any trading agent except he be authorized by the Ali ajice 30 to act.1. Our lodge is in good order and may be said to be prosperous. We have seventy-seven members in good standing, . and they are of as good citizens as the county affords. They are men eminent for truth,7 honesty, 'good sense, . morality and religion; and, composed of such material, of course they are as true to the Farmers' Alliance as the needle is to the pole. I am pleased to know that the order is making rapid progress throughout the State, arfti I am satisfied that if theWethreu will remain steadfast and faithful we will gain a grand and glorious victory over our enemies in the near future, and peace, prosperity and plenty will again smile upon our sweet) sunny land. Our enemies have heretofore had both ends of the rope, while ! hey have kept us in the middle, but it? really begins to look as if we had slipped from them one end and that we are now in possession of the biggest half of the rope. There must be no let up, and in- a very short time the procession will begin to move in the opposite direction. So, brethren, be encouraged ; be firm in your resolutions, never yield an incb. Brethren, work with your hands and work with your brains and we will be sure to succeed. Alliancemen, don't leave out God, but get Him into your homes, then into your Alliande hall; learn of Him His will to;do and we will surely . prosper. With best wishes for the success of The Progressive Farmer, and the earnest, heartfelt hope that an all wise God will bless the Alliance in its ef forts do good, I am - Fraternally yours, . J. A. Jackson, Ass't Sc'y. LIFE INSURANCE AGAIN. I have noticed recently that there is a disposition among the brethren to establish a plan for life iasuranco for the benefit of the . members of the Alliance. Now it would be a very nice thing indeed for our wives and children if such a plan could be put into success full operation, but I am of the opinion that it cannot be done, and I am afraid that any attempt to turn the Alliance into a big life insurance asso ciation would result in great injury to the Alliance. O crier organizations have tried the same thing, and have not been beoetited thereby, but on the contrary some of them have been very much cripplsd." I notice, too, that life insurance associations that are formed on the assessment plan usually fail. If any life insurance association or company expects to be successful their business must be conducted in a skill ful, business like manner and they must be backed by capital. Now if the Alliance feels rich enough to contribute a fund to start with, and will only insure such candi dates as. could be insured in any first class insurance company, then I think the business can be made a success; but if the brethren think of insuring all the aged, sick and consumptive who now belong to the order, or who might jom hereafter for the benefit of the insurance, and depend on passing the hat aroi ud to raise the money, they will find ; hat it will not work. To sho .v you the magnitude of the undertaking: in the very paper which contained the proposition for each Sub-Alliance to pay $1 every time a member died, also contained, I think eight or nine obituaries. Since that time obituary notices have taken up so much space that the editor of The Progressive Farmer has been obliged to state that hereafter he can only insert a short notice. Now , if the average is only eight per week, it will amount to 416 deaths per year. At$l each, every Sab-Alliance would be taxed $416. Pretty heavy isn't it? Well, one brother at least his seen that his proposition will not do, and so he has come to the front with a new our, to wit: When a member of the Alliance dies each survivor shall pay three cents for the support of the deceased brother's family. That sounds po stole and three cents does not seem to be a very large sum, but let us look into it a little. Suppose there are 60,000 members in the State, and suppose one in every 50 dies each year. " That will amount to 1,200 deaths, and at three cents each will make a tax of $36 to every member of the Alliance. The brethren either have not coun ted the cost or else they have unlimited confidence in their ability to raise money; if the latter I would respect fully suggest that they let the insur ance idea alone, and turn their atten tion to the State bifsiaess agency fund. It is upon that fund, more than any one thing, that the success of the Alliance depends. Alliancemam. FROM LINCOLN. Alliance No. 1,377, Nobth Brook, N. C, Nov. 23, '89. Mr. Editor: Not having seen any thing in The Progressive Farmer relative to the Nor:h Brook Alliance, and at the request of our brethren, I endeavor to send you this communi cation to enable all the brethren to know what we have and are doing. We ara much behind in the great cause of our order, but by true prin ciples and faitnful labor we expect to climb the ladder so long as the Alli ance lives, (which is, we hope, for ever) until the climax is reached. We were organized only one year aaro with 16 members. We have con tinued to increase until our lodge numbers 48 members who are men of the right grit. We have contributed by individual subscription to the busi ness agency fund $10. And at the call for every Alliance to send as much of Treasury fund as possible, we responded with $5 more, and to day our list of subscription i3 com pleted by every member -paying $10 additional which makes $38, with a total to business agency fund of $53. We hope and trust that each Alliance may do their best and the fund will be raised. Tnen, aad then only, can we manage the objects for which we are earnestly laboring. We are glad to know our oppressors in a great measure have been whipped out, and by our .co-operation and union we may be enabled to keep them out. Now, brethren, let us work in uni son and with such men only as 'he Alliance advocate we may be knit to gether and feel as if we are one brotherhood, fighting the battles of those trusts, combines and monopolies under one national flag. We have men who are true, strong, determined and of pure fidelity. The enlighten ing, the moral and social development of our order is being felt throughout the country, and in all Alliances relso lutions against profane swearing, drunkenness, etc., are having its de sired effect. With much love for the Alliance and ' success to. The Progressive Farmer, I am, Fraternally, T. Pate Jenks, Sec'y. FROM WATAUGA COUNTY. Boone, N. C., "Dec. 2, 1889. Mr. Editor: Not seeing any com- j munication in your paper relative to the Farmers Alliance m Watauga county, I have decided to write a few facts about the history and progress of the work. The first two Alliances were organized early in last April by Bro. J. S. Davidson, of, or near, Char lotte. He was in a hurry, and could not remain to prosecute the work. Last of May, without any solicitation upon my part, but at the unanimous request of both Alliances, I was com missioned organizer for the county. As opportunities offered I made ap pointments, and talked to the people from my limited fund of Alliance in formation, and organized five other Alliances, making seven in all. I then invited Bro. W. A. Graham to visit us, make a public address, and assist me in organizing a County Alli ance. This he did to the entire satis foction of all, greatly enlarging my stock of Alliance doctrine. After the meeting of the State Alliance in Fayetteville I was recom missiOned, and have organized seven teen Alliances in all, making 19 in the county, with one or t.vo more to organize. The smallest I organized was with five, and the largest 42. I think the report of the County Secre tary at next meeting of the County Alliance will show us five hundred strong in the county, and growing every week. Possibly we have mide the same mistake that nearly all others have made by getting in material that ought to have been -kept out. However we have, a3 yet, had to sus pend or exclude but very few, and none have withdrawn, so far as I know. Weneed very much the visit of a .good lecturer to better inform I our members in Alliance principles, and J hope some of the brethren will dome this way next spring. We have the promise of Bro. Polk next sum mer, but must have some one earlier than he carr-come. The greatest lears t have are that some of our brethren will be impatient of results, and lose interest This great movement is not the work of a day or year, but of years, and we must be content to hold oh, and must tighten our grip, year by year, instead of losing it. Great reformations have generally come slowly but surely, and will be so with this. I believe the Lord of hosts is in this great Alliance movement, and we must look to him for guid ance, and not forget our dependenco on him We have not yet done anything for the business agency f and, but fel sure a3 soon as our people get a little more information and more light they will do their part. I am encouraging our members .to take the great dis, seminator of Alliance light, The Pro gressive Farmer, and already several copies are coming to the county. I hold that no Sub-Alliance can ever develop in intelligence and bscome a power for good without the informa tion that The Progressive Farmer, or some other paper devott d to the same interest, brings from week to week. Every Sub-Alliance should take at least one copy. J.W.Thomas. ONSLOW ITEMS. Catharine Lake, Onslow Co , N. CM Nov. 25, 1889. Mb. Editor: It has been a long time s nee I have written anything for your paper thinking it best to give way for such valuable articles as come from the pen of Old Fogy and otherq. No 241 holds her own yet. We heartily endorse the insurance feature. Our Alliance seems to think that one cent per he id would fee about right," though we are willing to abide by the decision of the majority. - One thing do know, this small - amount would -leave the moss of - us better off than we are at present. We want the brethren throughout the State to take hold of this matter righft away. Can't it be settled at the county meeting in January. Our next county .meeting" of the Onslow County Alliance will be held at Catharine Lake. Crops are at least one-third short; lots of people won't be able to run a crop another year; can't begin to pay out. The Onslow railroad is drawing all the able-bodied hands from the farm. Should it last next year somebody's land will rest. - A heavy wind storm passed over this section last week doing consider able damage to houses, fences, tember and stock. Our lodge will send about twenty five dollars to the agency fund soon. I will close by saying our order is proud of The Progressive Farmer and its noble editor, and we intend to prove this by paying up our subscrip tion soon. Very truly, etc., , John Thomas. AN ERROR. The notions which so closely con nect the invention and application of rmchinery with the non employment . of Lbor are among the results of a want of knowledge most devoutly to be deprecated. Could the machinery of this coun try be by one stroke of a giant arm annihilated, what tongue can tell the results, the tremendous results, of misery that would instantly be realized? No siege of a city, however protracted; no war, however bloody and desolat ing; no revolution, however wild and ferocious, has ever shown a parallel for the misery that would instantly descend upon the heads of millions, could any such idea be realized. The means, not only of clothing, but of food and migration, would instantly fail us; we should be shut up from the result of the world ; we should be re duced into a state in which it would not be strange if even cannibalism were to ensue. The hostility to ma- rchinery, to be consistent, must be uni versal. Each class of woricmen has the same right; and if the agricultu ral laborer be justifiable in destroying, the threshing machine, the weaver has a right to destroy the power-loom; the printers' pressman would be right in destroy iaz the sieam-press; and so, throughout the vhole compass of so ciety, we shoul i bo thrown back into a stat" of privation, helplessness, and utter barbaiUm. X. Y. Ledger. Xirtue and honor are more valuable than gold and diamonds.
The Progressive Farmer (Raleigh, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Dec. 17, 1889, edition 1
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