Democratic Sentinel, Volume 18, Number 37, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 28 September 1894 — WHAT POPULISM MEANS. [ARTICLE]

WHAT POPULISM MEANS.

A TAX OF FIFTY BILLIONS OF DOLLARS ON THE PEOPLE. Equivalent to a Tax of #7OO on Each Man, Woman and Child In the Land. Tile Record of Really Insane Extravagance Made by the Populists Iu Congress. When the McKinley congress went into office Corporal Tanner remarked “God help the surplus.’’ That surplus, as everyone knows, was quickly dissipated and hundreds of millions of dollars appropriated ahead out of revenues to be collected in after years. But even the reckless extravagance of the McKinley congress was but a drop in the bucket to what the country would have to face if the Populists were to be placed in power. Judging by the bills already introduced in congress by the Populist members all the property of the country would be required to pay the taxes mado necessary by the first session’s appropriations of a Populist congress. Just lobk at the appropriations which the Populists would make and figure out if you can where the money would come from to meet them: Representative Davis’ bill to make loans to mortgage debtors and appropriate, $ 10,000,000,000 (Senator l’cffcr has a similar bill). Representative Clover’s bill to loan to states 50 per cent of the assessed valuation of property ■would appropriate ... 12,000,000,000 Representative Clover’ municipal loan bill would appropriate .... 10,000,000,000 Representative Kem’s banking bill would appropriate 1,000,000,000 Representative Hudson’s bill would appropriate 1,500,000,000 Representative Davis’ industrial army bill would appropriate.... 600,000,000 Senator Peffer’s charity bill would appropriate 6,300,000 Representative Boen’s internal improvement bill would appropriate, beside annual appropriations 500,000,000 Representative Boen’s bill to exterminate tlie Russian thistle would appropriate 1,000,000 Senator Peffer’s rainwater bill would appropriate 20,000,000 Senator Peffer’s resolution for government ownership of mines, railroads, telegraph, etc., would require an appropriation of 15,000,000,000 Grand total $50,507,300,000 Eveu this enormous sum does not include the amounts which it would be necessary to raise for the administration of these measuros, in salaries,etc., which would amount to hundreds of millions more. These bills would put a tax of more thau S7OO upon every man, woman and child in the United States. At that rate a Populist government would be a very expensive luxury indeed. As there is but about $10,100,000,000 of money in the world, it would be interesting to know where the balance would come from to meet these appropriations.