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Show WHERE IT BELONGS. , There is great distress prevailing in the land, in the world in lact, bat by far tbe heaviast part of it is peculiar to thiB country. Indirectly all of it is chargeable to the policy of the republican re-publican party sinee the close of the war. When that tremenduous struggle strug-gle closed a bewildering state of things presented themselves to the real loyers of the country. In more cases than that of the poor negro, the helpless help-less plaything of the war, "the botton rail was truly on top." The suttlers, the camp-followers, the contractors, in fact, the riff raff found themselves million aires. The noxious weeds which grew up about the shambles where men were killed on a gigantic scale, had become an important, nay the leading consideration in arranging the policies of the government after the close of the most gigantic civil war ever waged since civilization dawned. The republican party was in power, remained re-mained in power for over thirty years, and of course is logically responsible for the gigantic mistakes which have at last led to the awful state of things prevailing today. Here is exactly where the trouble began, and here the awful responsibility must rest. These new made millionaires all at once discovered that money was a great thing, that it bought power and consideration, honors and power, as well as fine clothing and rich viands. It must be cared for and as relentlessly relent-lessly as they had fleeced the government govern-ment in its acquisition, they used congress, con-gress, senate and president in tbe fell task of increasing its purchasing power at the expense of the toiling poor who fought ana wrought hon- estly, while they were gorging themselves them-selves with the wealth wrung from tbe tearB, blood and distresses of war. The cry rang out: 41 We must have better money than these greenback rags." Then came the cry, "the resumption re-sumption of specie payment." Soon ''specie" as It was understood in our system of finance became too common for these lordly suttlers and camp-followers, and the cry became, "up with the gold standard, the gleaming yellow yel-low gold alone is the money for us. What of it if there is not half money enough in that metal to do the busi-nens busi-nens of tbe land? We have "t all and let the poor, the email dealers and operators op-erators come to us and rent our millions mil-lions at our own prices. Thus we increase in-crease the value of our gold, at least fifty per cent. It is true it will plunge tbe land into unutterable woe, but we, we the fortunate who had too much sense to do the fighting, and devoted oar patriotic energies to making money, while the floolish fought, will fly high. Soon infinitely above the distresses of our fellows and be rich and happy." Thus reasoned the vultures. The subsequent republican party met every expectation; epecie resumption ahead of time with all its woes, demonetization demonetiza-tion and protection. Protection for whom? For the poor? For the small dealers? For the wage workers? No, no, for the suttlers, for the camp followers fol-lowers who had fattened on the dead hopes cf the country. Bad as this wealer business is, bad as the distresses occasioned by the strikes and their present hardships, the present is not even a foretaste for those which are to come to us, later on. This is all trace- nti1 rtirpntlff tn ihfl nnlirv nf t.hft rpnnh. lican party, and yet it comes into the present campaign without a blush, claims that the democrats are the ' thieves, that the one year of demo cratic administration had in thirty fiye years is responsible lor it all, and there are honest asses among them who really believe that Cleveland has produced pro-duced in one short year what it has taken them thirty loug ones to accom plish. The scales are slowly dropping from the eyes of the masses and soon this wonderful betrayal of the people will, in all of its hideous selfishness, stand out in bold relief before the widely opened eyes of a trusting but betrayed people. |
