The Southern Mercury. (Dallas, Tex.), Vol. 15, No. 8, Ed. 1 Thursday, February 20, 1896 Page: 5 of 16
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FEB. 20, 1896.
SOUTHERN MEBCTTBY.
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POPULAR B0ND8.
Come all ye mud-sillers and get your
share
Of bonds—popular bonds—
They are floating like autumn leaves
down through the air,
Bonds, popular bonds!
They're a gift from generous old Uncle
Sam,
And the masses should rush for
them—get in a jam;
Help yourself, and don't fail your pock-
ets to cram
With bonds—popular bonds!
Dig up your old stockings, buried chuck
full of gold;
Buy bonds—popular bonds—
They will keep you in leisure whilf
young and when old—
These bonds—popular bonds!
Our government, paternal, is kind to
the poor;
It loads down the masses with good
.things in store;
They can now live in comfort—never
work any more,
On bonds—popular bonds!
The farmers need plant no more cotton
nor corn,
For bonds—popular bonds—
Will carry them safely through tem-
pest and storm—
These bonds—popular bonds!
The farmer can forge his scythes into
shears,
And clip off coupons throughout end-
less years;
Let there be no more sorrow, or sigh-
ing or tears;
Thanks to bonds—popular bonds!
The laboring man need not work any
more,
For bonds—popular bonds—
Will feed him and clothe him—keep
the wolf from the door—
Wonderful popular bonds!
His children need not ruin their lives
In sweat-shops or factories—those
great human hives,
Where death is conductor and the devil
drives—
Bless the bonds—popular bonds!
Then sing loud hosannas—rejoice and
be glad,
For bonds—^popular bonds—
Are wherewith we eat and wherewith
we're clad.
Yes, bonds—popular bonds!
The millennial day has surely begun;
We are living beneath a celestial sun,
Our troubles and sorrows are ail on the
run,
Scared by bonds—popular bonds!
NEW COMERS SHOULD NOT DIOTATE.
m
Shall the peoples' party, through its
delegates,
Adopt a platform, or will it delegate
that duty to outsiders?
There is a political faction now seek-
ing to break into the peoples' party,
And that, too, without a pressing in-
vitation to come, and this faction even
asserts
That the peoples' party shall change
its platform of principles to suit this
breachey element.
The peoples' party of course, wants
accessions, but it does not propose to
buy them with cowardice or a sacrifice
of principles.
If the free silver faction desires to
unite with the peoples' party, and adopt
its faith and practice, well and good;
But if the price is one of dishonor
and sacrifice of principle, and even the
jeopardy of the future existence of
the party, then the Mercury says put
UP the bars.
The silver gang are in no 09006 mod-
est in their actions. They propose to
come into the house of a stranger with-
oout ringing the dpor bell, and when
orce inside begin to break up the furni-
ture.
This attempt is to be made at the St.
Louis convention, and if the delegates
constituting the peoples' party conven-
tion represent the masses of the com-
mon "mud-sillers," who send them,
they will not permit any such famil-
iarity with the goods and chattels of
the party.
What would be thought of a man
who would procure admission into his
neighbor's house without a special in-
vitation, and while enjoying the hoe-
Mercury—Gal 4
pitality of the neighbor's family insist
on a change in the rules oí domestic
government; tell the father he must
eliminate family prayer or drive one
of his children out of the house?
If that father had any of the stuff
in him that it takes to make a native
Texan, he would seize that intruder by
the slack of the breeches and nape of
the neck and throw him out into the
night. And that is the way the Texas
delegation propose to do with the in-
truders Into the peoples' party family,
unless they properly behave themselves
and conform to the rules of the family.
HOW CONVICTS SHOICD BE EMPLOYED.
The question of the proper employ-
ment of convict labor, looking to the
interest of the convict as well as the
balance of humanity, is one upon which
there is a diversity of opinion.
Leaving out the question as to how
convicts are produced, and whether
crime is a curable disease or only natur-
al human depravity, the province of
this article is only to examine the
matter of the best mode of employing
convicts. All agree that convicts Should
be compelled to labor, and the only
matter in dispute is, what class of labor
should be chosen in which to employ
the penal wards of the State.
In selecting this employment for the
convicts there are several things to be
considered. First, the health of the con-
vict is probably the most important
matter to be considered, as, though
guilty of crime, the state must be hu-
mane, and not exact labor that
would be calculated to entail bodily
afflictions upon the convict. Then, the
employment should be of that class
of labor designed to the least interefere
or compete with free labor. It would not
be proper for the state to use its con-
victs to degrade the labor of the wage-
earner, or to cheapen articles manu-
factured in the state, or even in ad-
joining states. Then, how should the
convicts be employed?
The Mercury Insists that the only la-
bor possible for the convicts to be en-
gaged in that is absolutely free from
all of these objections, is work on the
public roads. Some contend that this
mode of life is unhealthful, owing to
camp life. This is not an objection
worth considering, as the life of a sol-
dier is all camp life, and ordinarily a
soldier's life is not to say injurious to
the physical health of the man. In any
event, soldiers who volunteer to light
for their country are forced to live this
sort of a life, and the state can hardly
be expected to be more careful of its
criminals than it is of its patriots.
Then, atiother very important reason
favoring labor on public roads for con-
victs, is that it is a class of labor that
does not produce anything to sell, or
that goes into the markets to interfere
with the interests of labor in any form.
If convict labor is used to even produce
the food that It consumes, It Interferes
with free labor; but work on the roads
is absolutely free from this evil.
Another advantage, resulting from
the employment of convicts on public
roads is that their labor enhances the
value of the land, as good roads afford
the farmer an easier and cheaper
method of getting his products to mar-
ket.
Thus, good roads not only increase
the wealth of the state, but also in-
creases the taxable property and en-
hances the ability of the people to pay
taxes. Good roads are an infallible
evidence of the advancement of edu-
cation, intelligence and morality among
the people, and hence if the country pos-
sessed good roads there would be a
higher grade of morality and less crime.
Thus, good roads have a moral bearing.
The improvement of the roads
throughout the country adds to the
healthfulness of the state, as road im-
provement necessitates drainage, and
thus the public is benefitted. There are
many other reasons why convicts
should be employed on public road
work. In fact, every reason and no
objection can be offered in favor of
such employment. Convicts are as lit-
tle exposed on this class of work as on
farms, where they compete with the
agricultural laborers, and certainly out-
door life, and even camp living, is much
more healthy than shop and factory
work. If the state of Texas would work
its convicts on the public roads and re-
move the three-days' labor, or poll
tax, from the people, it would be one
of the wisest things that could be done.
THAT POPULAR BOND SALE.
The administration has worked off
another bunco on the people in the
alleged popular bond sale, the bids for
which were opened by the secretary
a few days ago.
According to Associated Press re-
ports, the bids came in by the hun-
dreds and thousands, and the adminis-
tration would have the people believe
what it denominates a popular bond
sale, is really such a fact, and that it
shows the utmost confidence of the peo-
ple in the government credit.
As the present head of govern-
mental affairs has originated noth-
ing so far that was not sham,
as far as the peoples' interests
were concerned, and "sound mon-
ey" for the money combines, this last
popular bond sale should be looked at
with an eye of suspicion. Let us ex-
amine it for a moment, and see if the
whole scheme is not a sham, as far as
popularity is concerned, and a reality
when it comes to its relations, to the
bond grabbers.
The bids amount to less than 4700,and
if they are examined, only 358 were for
$1000 and less, all the rest being made
by bankers and money dealers for large
sums. Then, the little flsh making these
368 small bids—the popular bids—were
outridden and turned down by J. Pier-
pont Morgan and other Wall street
men, so that only a few of them can
get any of this popular loan, If the sec-
retary is disposed to let any of the pop-
ular follows in on the first floor.
In any event, not more than $50,000
out of the $100,000,000 can go to the popu-
lar bids. As the adult population of the
country Is about 25,000,ouu, an even dis-
tribution of this amount would al-
low each person two mills. This Is the
result of Mr. Carlisle's great popular
loan that so encouraged the adminis-
tration and showed that the masses
of the people were favorable to it.
The truth «boat the whole matter is
that this great popular loan is but an-
other of Mr. Carlisle's humbugs and
buncoes worked off on the people, while
the bond grabbers of Wall street get the
entire usufruct. It Is another "commu-
nism of polf" Illustrated.
Then, as to the object, which was said
to be to secure gold to boost up the di-
minishing reserve, there are grave
doubts as to It being obtained. If the ex-
port balances are in our favor, then the
gold may remain in the treasury for a
time, but if it is the reverse, and if the
foreign exchange justifies the aotive op-
eration of gold gambling, then, with
the doors of the treasury vaults open,
the gold w !l not remain in the treas-
ury, although a billion dollars, or even
tons of it, were collected and placed
therein.
The secretary of the treasury has
made no provision for retaining the
gold resulting from this popular(?)
loan, but like the other loans, it is to
be open and free to all who may desire
to come up and help themselves. In-
deed, in view of a lack of revenues to
meet the ordinary expenses of the
government, Mr. Carlisle depends upon
the currency coming in to draw the gold
out to pay expenses. Thus, rather
admit that the administration is such
a failure as to fall short on revenues,
with a tariff law for revenue in exist-
ence, the scheme to maintain the gold
reserve is worked for current money,
and In order to detract the attention of
the people from the damaging condi-
tions.
Each bidder for the new loan is re-
quired, on the aoeptance of his bid, to
pay in 20 per cent of the amount bid.
There is no obligation resting on the
bidder to take the balance, unless he
Is disposed to do so at his own option.
If he can dispose of his 20 per cent to
advantage, the bidder will very likely
take out the balance of his bid, but If
the bond market should go down, he
will let Mr. Carlisle keep his bonds,
or dispose of them in some other way.
that is the practical business methods
Mr. Carlisle introduces into his depart-
ment—methods that would not hold
water in any commercial transactions
whatever.
As an example: A speculator might
bid 1.12 for $1,000,000 of the loan, re-
ceive, say, $200,000 in bonds; sell them
at the market rate of 1.16, and then
draw the gold from the treasury, prob-
ably some or all of the identical gold
he paid in at first; take another install-
ment, and ho continue the operation.
The only protection there is against
such a thieving operation being car-
ried on, is in the honor of the dealers
themselves, and that such honor may
exist among those dealing with each
other, is no guarantee that it will
be exercised by the thieves in fleecing
Uncle Sam. Carlisle makes no provis-
ion to protect the treasury of the people
against this gang of gold grabbers.
It Is thus seen that the late popular
loan, so-called, is even more objectiona-
ble than the corrupt deal Mr. Cleveland
made in a preceding issue of bonds
with the syndicate headed by J. P. Mor-
gan & Co. In that case much of the
gold came from abroad, but in this
popular(?) loan the gold in the treasury
will be used to get possession of the
bonds, and In the end there will be no
material increase of the gold reserve.
This is the popular bond sale that so
encouraged the administration by evi-
dencing the faith of the people in the
credit of the government
To live an honest life In Washing-
ton one is forced to keep his honor un-
der lock and key.
4
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Park, Milton. The Southern Mercury. (Dallas, Tex.), Vol. 15, No. 8, Ed. 1 Thursday, February 20, 1896, newspaper, February 20, 1896; Dallas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth185647/m1/5/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; .