North Carolina Newspapers

THE PROGRESSIVE FARMER: JANUARY 5, ISC 2 'HE PROGRESSIVE FABHES. L. L. POLK, Editor and Proprietor. J. L. RAMSEY, - Associate Edisor. J. W. DENMARK, - Business Manag'r. Raleigh, N. C. SUBSCRIPTION Single Subscriber, One Year $ 1.25 Tt " Six Months 75 Tire Subscribers, One Year 5.00 Ten - " One Year 10.00 One copy one year free, to the one sending Club f Ten. Cath Invariably in Advance. Money at our risk, if sent by registered letter r money order. Pleane don't send stamps. Advertising Rates quoted on application. To Correspondents: Write all communications, designed for publi oation, on one side of the paper only. We want Intelligent correspondents in every jounty in the State. We want octet of value, re ult8 accomplished of value, experiences of value, alainly and oriefly told. One solid, demonstrated xct, is worth a thousand theories. All checks, drafts or money orders intended ?or this paper should be made payable to The Progressive Farmer. Address all correspondence intended for this ;&per to The Progressive Fakmer, Raleigh, RALEIGH, N. C, JAN. 5, 1891. This paver entered as tecond-rla matter at the Post Oflce in Ralegh, A. C. The Progressive Farmer is the Official Organ of the N. C. Farmers' State Alliance Do you want your paper changed to i another office ? State the one at which 70U have been getting it. Do you want your communication published ? If so, give us your real name and your postoflice. In writing to anybody, always be sure to give the name of your postoflice, and sign your oavti name plainly. Onr f riends in writing to any of our advertisers will favor us by men- j tioning the fact that they saw the advertisement in Thf Progressive Farmer jr The date on your label tells you vhen vour time is out. N. R. P. A. EDITORIAL NOTES. How much longer will it take you to decide that you ought to vote for .your home and family ? Why is it that free silver papers in the South are turning their coats all at once? Have the bosses spoken? The Kansas State Alliance Bene fit Association saved its members three times the cost of the State Alliance. On apital of only $22,000 the Kansas Alliance Exchange did a busi ness of $1,215,340 during the last fiscal yjear. ' Times are hard. Support reform papers first and then others, if you feel able. Self-preservation is the first law of nature. " Main-Travelled Roads" is some new reform literature out of the usual order. State Secretary Barnes can furnish the books at 50 cents each. Bro. J. M. Gibson, Secretary of Bethlehem Alliance, No. 1,060, Mc Dowell county, writes that they en dorse the Ocala platform unanimously. Two hundred and forty nine new charters had been issued by State Sec retary Freach, of Kansas, for the fiscal year ending October 21. Yes, the Alli ance is dying, x ' Bro. A. II. Perry, President of Chatham County Alliance, asks us to state that the regular quarterly meet ing will be held on Thursday and Fri day, January 7th and 8th. The action of the five Alliance Democrats who signed the ' ' Address " does not bind any one but thempelves. They had no authority from the organi zation, and very few approve of such things. It has been stated (as a blind) that cotton factories are not buying cotton any faster than it is consumed. This is not true. They are buying every bale they can, or having it bought for them. 44 The Alliance is dying," says an exchange. Yes, slowly, but surely dying. But it is gratifying to know that there is more hope of reform yet left in the corpse, than there is in the carcass of the two parties. We have received the annual premium list of the East Carolina Fish, Oyster, Game and Industrial Associa tion. The next Fair will be held Feb ruary 22d to 27th, atNewberne. This Fair has been a great success. Ah! this is indeed good news. The Democrats are talking in Congress of reducing the expenses of the govern ment $100,000,000. Will they do it? Talk is specially easy. Action is the thing, says the Wilmington Messenger. We want to hear from every meeting of the County Alliances in the State. Will not some brother in each county meeting see to it that a brief outline of proceedings of general in terest be sent to The Progressive Farmer. There was a strange affair in Cincinnati the other day. People sup posed that after that day they would be charged cost on their taxes. There was a great rush at the tax collector's 'nice. People trampled over each either, two -women being killed. One I man put a pistol to a clerk's face and told him if he didn't take the money and give him a receipt he would blow his head off. This is the first case heard of where people were so anxious to pay their taxes. A reporter on an eastern paper recently testified in court that, "re porters were paid for suppressing the truth, and printing matter which they know is not true." Our metropolitan press is the most rotten element in our government to-day. The way of the transgressor is hard. The Standard Oil barrel works at Constable Hook, N. J., were burned on the night of the 31st ult., entailing a loss of over $1,500,000. This loss is only a small fraction of what this im mense oil trust has robbed the public of. A number of papers got out "Christmas issues." The Henderson Gold Leaf got out a beautiful paper. The Atlanta Journal was a very fine paper. The New York Herald was printed on the finest of book paper and contained forty two pages of fine matter. Remember that your first meet ing in January is National -Alliance Day, on which you are asked to discuss our demands and to contribute to our propaganda fund, by which we are to spread Alliance literature and secure lecturers. It can and should be male a big day for our cause. The Farmers Alliance are build ing an everlasting monument to truth and justice out of the wreck of old opinions and tyranies. The capstone of this mon'iment will be the converted remains of partisan leaders, who have chosen their own cruel sacrifice to move on out of the liberties of their con stituents. The Atlanta Journal says: With a free silver plank in the Democratic platform, we might carry Georgia and come within 50,000 votes of carrying New York." It is not our fight, but we rise to remark that the quicker the rest of the country cuts loose from New York, the quicker will the country be redeemed. As will be seen in a news item in this issue, C. P. Hnntington has gave instructions that the earnings of the Southern Pacific Railroad Company should not be published any more. The reason is that the surplus f or the year is about $1,000,000. They ddn't want the public to knowbow fast they are making money. Newspaper reporters have been excluded from the floor in the Senate Hall at Washington. We suppose they do this to keep the reform editors and reporters as far away as . possible. Pretty soon Congress and the Senate will want to hold their meetings in a cellar with the door sealed up. But no wonder they are ashamed. We have received a 500 page book entitled "Remarks by Bill Nye," pub lished by F. T. Neelys&hicagoandNew York. Our friend Bill thinks it con tains some of the best thoughts of his life. A hasty glance at the contents convinces us that there is lots of gen uine fun in it. The sender has our thanks, and if he will call around some time he may join us in a smile. In our issue for Dec. 22d there was quite an error. A part of an article on finance by James Murdock, went by mistake into an article on "Money and its Origin," by Mr. Rufus Amis. Both articles were able produc tions, but it is hardly fair to give either credit for tht other's writing. The articles got mixed somehow. ' Such things are To be regretted, but are un avoidable. INCREASE OF PENSIONERS. The increase in the number of pen sioners upon the rolls during the year 1891 was 138,126, though 13,299 have died This is a bad state of affairs. It is now nearly 27 years since the war ended, and yet the number of pension ers increase over a hundred thousand in one yearl According to this in fifty years after the war ended there will be nine-tenths of our population on the pension rolls. There must be reform in this country. The sooner it begins the better. GIVE NO PLEDGES. It is not too early to warn the people against certain political pledging that will be sought in the next few months. "Strikers" will be at work for Con gressmen or aspirants soon. Also for State and county officials. Don't give your promise. Withhold it as you would refrain from an unworthy action. Reverse the order of things. Let those now in office prove themselves entirely worthy of your support. Let those who are aspirants pledge themselves to you and your interests, instead of pledging your support in advance. This is the only way to secure good public servants, and we raise this voice of warning for no reason except for the good of the whole people. THAT CIRCULARWHOSE ISilT? Nearly a month ago the Mecklenburg Times made the discovery that the Third party wis sneaking around in the State that the National Alliance had sent a "secret circular" to all the Sub Alliances in the State, headed, " We the undersigned pledge ourselves to support a Third party in 1892" that the said red tape circular was " being signed by the' Alliances almost to a man." The Times stated that thi3 startling information was sent to that paper by an Allianceman. The Times promised its readers that "the red taped petition would be published in the Times the next week." Of course this discovery by our enter prising neighbor, thrilled the Demo cratic press of the State, as by an elec trical shock, and raised it on the tremulous tip toe of excited expectancy. Bro. Daniel3, of the Chronicle especial ly, bec ime exceedingly nervous, and day after day, with a boldness and zeal commensurate with the despera tion of the situation, proclaimed the danger of "this low-down, underhand, cowardly, sneaking, proselyting meth od of p clitics." The language employed by the Chronicle to characterize this invasion of the State by the Third party under the supervision of the National Alli ance, may not have been of the select type for elegance, but it was certainly as vigorous and emphatic as the most pronounced anti third-partyite could devise. It was immensely denuncia tory. But where is that awful circular? The Times has failed to fullfil its promise. The expectant public is look ing for an exposition of this treasonable plot, concocted by the Alliance for dragooning the State into a Third party. Can't the Times and the Chronicle givOis light on this mysteri ous affair? The Progressive Farmer, with its accustomed desire to keep up with the doings of the Alliance, began at once to investigate the matter to ascertain what these awful and terrible Alliance peo ple of Mecklenburg county were doing. We interviewed several and they knew nothing about it. State Secretary Barnes declared he. was as innocent and as ignorant of any such movement as these nervous editors themselves. A President of a Sub -Alliance and the Secretary of the County Alliance of Mecklenburg, were written to and they solemnly aver that after diligent in quiry, they" fail to find any trace of it. As it was charged that the "red tape circular " purported to have come from National headquarters, we finally ap plied to President Polk and he knows nothing of it, only what he learned from the Chronicle. So, we unbutton our vest and sit down to rest. These papers " make us tired." We know a number of people who believe that the whole thing is "a campaign lie." But we can assure them that the Times and Chronicle will not let up on it until they strike bottom on it, and of course if they find it is a false charge they will promptly correct it by properly notifying the public. Can any of our Mecklenburg brethren tell us anything about this matter? Will the Times or the Chronicle give us the circular? DEMAGOGICAL BOSH. " President Harrison, in his message to Congress, says that tht farm pro ducts for 1891 exceeded those of 1890 by $700,000,000, and have made " a wonderful addition to the country's wealth." We sun pose that he intended by thus officially parading this wild guess work of the Secretary of Agri culture, before the farmers of the country to silence the cry of hard times among them and at the same time to furnish the stump orators of the cam paign of 1892, with an official state ment to be used by them as an argu ment against the demands for relief. We wili grant for the sake of argument that the figures of Secretary Rusk, as quoted by the President, are correct. We will grant for the sake of argument that even his conclusion, that the enormous crops of this year "have added wonderfully to the wealth of the country.". He puts it most adroit ly, when to use his own ambiguous phrase. The labor of the farmers, has " added wonderfully to the wealth of the country." But he fails to tell us how that "wealth" has been dis tributed and appropriated. He fails to tell us who is enjoying this immensely increased wealth the product of the labor of the farmers. He fails to tell us that notwithstanding his tremendous increase of wealth growing out of the toil and sweat of the farmers, that they are to day poorer in worse financial condition than they were in 1891. He fails to tell us why it is that notwithstanding the stupendous earn ings of the farmers, that thousands and thousands of them all over the country are growing poorer every day and every year that they live. He should visit North Carolina and other States, and see honest, industrious, frugal farmers who have worked good lands for twenty-five years whose honest, earnest blows, contributed their full share to this enormously increased "wealth of the country," and hear their pitiful story of poverty and threatened ruin and suffering With thousands on thousands of such farm ers to day it is the all absorbing ques tion : How and where shall I provide bread and meat for my family?" True, Mr. Harrison, your boast that the wealth Of the country has been greatly increased by the products of the farms, but it has been done at the expense of farmer. Why did not the President, like an honest manv with candor and manliness becoming the chief magis trate of this -great country, tell the country in his message that this unjust distribution of the products of labor was pauperizing the great laboring classes, and that their earnings were being swallowed up and appropriated by the few, and that they were enabled to do this through the wicked policy of robbery, established by himself and men like him, who have betrayed the people and sold them out to money power? Yes, Mr. Harrison, your boast ing will be deliberately weighed by the people, and they are going to see why a policy should obtain in this free country by which a few can absolutely control and steal the earnings of the many. They intend to put men in power who will be honest enough and patriotic enough to secure "equal rights to all and special favor to none." They intend that when the wealth of the country is enhanced in one year from their earnings $700,000,000 that they will enjoy at least a small portion of that increase. They are right and they would be the basest cowards that ever cursed their kind if they do not rise up in their might and assert their rights and their manhood. They will go to the ballot box in 1892 and make it hot for the trimmers and schemers. THE COUNTY MEETINGS. Before another issue of The Progres sive Farmer appears, the county meet ings will be held. The winter meet ings are never so largely attended as those in the summer. But we hope there will be a good turnout at all these January county meetings. There is much work that ought to be done. Among other things each Congressional District will appoint a delegate to the Industrial Conference to be held at St. Louis in February. This Industrial Conference is likely to be the most im portant meeting ever held in this country. WHY OPPOSE THEM? Recently the Wilmington Star had the following in an editorial : 4 4 The producer of the raw material simply gets paid for the cost and labor of production, and not always that. Thousands of millions of dollars have been made out of the cotton grown in the South, but not by the men who grew it. Of the $8,000,000,000 which it is estimated the cotton crops of the South have sold for since the war, but very little has remained in the hands of the planters who raised them. If all the money that has been made out of Southern cotton had been made by the South, she would be to day the richest country on the face of the earth." ' This looks as if the Star "preaches one thing and practices another." It has a very clear idea of what the farmers have suffered for the past twenty years and also sees no prospect of any improvenient. But still it op poses the measures and means sug gested by the farmers themselves. The Star is not alone in this box. Hundreds of others are with it in sentiment and practice. The Sub-Treasury will make 44 the South the richest country on the face of the earth," if anything will, but the Star holds to old fogy ideas and opposes the very thing it ought to ad vocate. WHAT WILL THEY DO? ' The Nation, a pronounced anti-free silver journal, says: "The lesson taught by the autumn elections is that the Democrats cannot carry a 'single Northern State east of the Rocky Mountains by adopting a free coinage platform, or by passing a free coinage bill in the House.'' So, according to this paper if Con gress shall conform to the demands of the people, and especially of the South, the Northwest and the West, by giving the country free coinage, it will cer tainly defeat the Democratic party in every Northern State east of the Rocky Mountains in 1892. Well, whatever Congress may or may-not do on this question, the people will certainly give all candidates and all parties in 1892 a first class opprtunity to show their hands. Is it not almost equally cer tain that the party that goes against free coinage, will not be able to carry the Southern, Western and North western States? This question will be a terrible boomerang to some people from present indications The Alliance has no doubt as to where it stands and will stand on this matter, and it is certain that no man or party can get its support, if opposed to the free and unlimited coinage of silver. TO THE SUBSCRIBERS OF THE j RURAL HOME. Having sold my entire interest in the Rural Howe to The Progressive Farmer you will be furnished with that paper for the remainder of the time you have subscribed to the Rural Home I hope this arrangement will be entirely satisfactory to each one of you, as you will thereby get a paper containing much more matter and without increase of cost to you. For the past three months the duties of my office as Secretary-Treasurer of the State Alliance have prevented my attending to the Rural Home satisfac tory to myself. By this arrangement. I am relieved of all the responsibility and labor of getting out the paper, though I am under obligations to write for The Progressive Farmer, when ever it does not conflict with my duties as Secretary-Treasurer of the State Alliance. In the columns of the Far mer, I hope you will occasionally recog nize the 4 4 hand writing" of the ex editor of the Rural Home. It was no pleasant, duty to drop the pilotage of the Rural Home, but we have done so, believing it to be to the interest of our Order. All that is in my power to do for the advancement of our organiza tion and The Progressive Farmer shall be done, and instead of reaching a thousand or two readers weekly as heretofore, what I have to say will reach the thousands of subscribers of The Farmer also ; and it is to be hoped that the circulation of our Organ can be extended in 1892, till it will gladden the homes of every true Allianceman and reformer in North Carolina. Brethren, as your State Secretary, I urge each one of you to do all in his power to extend the circulation of The Progressive Farmer. It is necessary ; it is your duty. Upon the work of this year depends whether your liber ties are vouchsafed unto you or not. Let there be no bickerings or strife among you. Unity must be our watch word. Upon our demands let every one stand unmoved upholding them without compromisii "g the principles they contain. Cowards vote for party, but it takes men of moral courage to vote for principles, independent of party. Stand together on your de mands, as one man, and we will win a victory greater by far than we did in 1890. The . enemy will leave no stone unturned .to divide the organization in order that the feast may go on over our degredation, our complete enslave ment. Be patient but firm, and let us meet our enemies, the enemies of good government, with such a determina tion that the obstacles to victory will be as nothing. In turning over my subscription list, it is a pleasure to say it is paid in full and it is so credited on my books. I thank you, my friends, for your pat ronage." Many of you have been with the Rural Home from the beginning, and have cheered us, as you encouraged us to proceed. Wishing each one of you and every reader of The Progressive Farmer all the blessings that are needed, I remain as ever, Your friend and brother, W. S. Barnes. TOM WATSON AND THE BOSSES. Politics are getting red hot down in Georgia. The Constitution and other papers and politicians became furious because Congressman Watson refused to vote for Crisp for Speaker, and de manded that he should resign his seat. Whereupon Mr. Watson's constituents rose up and notified these self-constituted bosses that they proposed to have something to say in the matter. Meet ings have been held in each of the counties of Mr. Watson's district and in all of them his course was unani mously and warmly endorsed and in some of the counties they even went so far as to declare in favor of the People's party. And the end is not yet. The moral of this is : That the day for whip snapping and bull dozing has passed. - MR. watson's offense. Mr. Watson was nominated on Alli ance principles. A straightout Demo crat was. turned out and Mr. Watson was put in because the people wanted a man who would stand on and by the demands laid down at Ocala. He re fused to go into the Democi atic caucus because he might thereby be forced to vote for a man who was opposed to these demands and to the Alliance. Mr. Crisp was nominated by the caucus and was elected. During the campaign last summer Mr, Crisp opposed the Ocala demands and was the first Georgia Congressman who wrote a letter against the Sub Treasury plan. It is charged by the Georgia reform papers, and it has not been denied, that Mr. Crisp said it was necessary for the Republicans and Democrats of Kansas to fuse together in order to de feat the Alliance. It was a matter of public notoriety in Washington during the campaign for the speakership, that he was being advocated by the railroad power, and Tammany Hall. Mr. I Watson did not go into the caucus and j : .1 i- -r - .... uiu uuu vow lur ju.r. vrisp, ana this ig the cause of the racket in Georgia Whatever else may be said about iw one thingeeems clear that the people of Mr. Watson's district will stand by him. By the way, did not a Democrat from New England vote every time for one from Massachusetts because as he said, he had pledged himself to his people to vote for no man who wpq phot opposed to free coinage of silver? Has the Constitution and other would be bosses called on this fellow to re sign? Has one word of censure against him been uttered ? No. The difference is that he was standing by the money power and Tom -Watson was standing by the Alliance and the people. On with the fight! TWO ARTICLES. Among the many good things to be found in this issue, we wish to call special attention to two articles. One, 44 Cardinal Truths of Democracy," by the well-known and exceedingly popu lar writer, 4 4 James Murdock," is one of the best things ever put in print. It will pay anyone to read it and study well what it contains. On the first page is an article on 4 ' co operation," written by Mr. P. H. Jacobs, of Hammonton, N. J. Mr. Jacobs is not a stranger in these col umns, he having written articles be fore. In this he makes the plans of co-operation and the advantages very plain. No better explanation could be given. Read it with care, and perhaps there may be a general move for co operation among the people on this line. His plan excludes no one. Farm ers, mechanics, merchants, profes sional people, all, may unite and do a safe business, ' according to his plans, wherever they want to. THE SECRET BALLOT. The rapidity with which the great ballot reform bias been adopted in the American States, is not only gratifying as creating an American system of voting, which promises to do away largelywith corruptionists and bull dozers at the polls, but it is encourag ing to those who advocate other great reforms in which the great masses of the people are directly concerned. It shows that when a great righteous measure of reform is presented to the people that it can and will be adopted. The Australian ballot system was first adopted by the State of New York in 1888, and since that time by thirty two other States, but by all of them in modified form to a greater or less de gree. The secret ballot system now exists in the following States: Arkan sas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Del ware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Mis souri, Montanna, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsyl vania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Washing ton, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming. For the first time in our political history the fate of presidential candidates will be virtually decided in 1892 by the secret ballot. This method will checkmate, to a large extent, the corrupt practices of ticket peddlers, political bulldozers and thugs, and will . give to the country a free expression of the will of the people. Men can no longer be marched up to the polls like sheep to the shambles and made to vote under intimidation and dictation from employers or political bosses. The Progressive Farmer is anxious to see the time when in every State where, under the laws, a man is en titled to vote, he shall do so without molestation or interference in any way, and to that end it would heartily welcome the secret ballot system to our own and all the other States where it does not exist. We hope to see the next General Assembly of North Caro lina adopt it. LET THEM DO IT. In an elaborate editorial on the po litical situation the Atlanta Journal, of a recent date, says : 44 Democratic principles and the record of the Democratic party must be freely and frequently discussed as the surest means of defeating the in sidious assaults of those of its enemies who, until recently, have pretended to bo its friends.". Democratic principles and a discus sion of them is all right. There can be no objection to this. But ,what the people want is a carrying out of these principles. Discussion does good, sometimes, but now the cry is " give us relief." A prominent Congressman from this State told the writer a few days ago that he could see no hope of reform in the . present Congress. Some of them are ready to follow Cleveland and his monopolistic silver views and the general tenor seems to be that neither party will risk any reform measures. If bills are introduced by honest repre-. sentatives they will be defeated. J A carrviner out of nromises will dc more good than a 4 4 discussion of pric ciples - just now.