the whole system of business; it has submitted itself to their control.  As a result, there have grown up vicious systems and schemes of governmental favoritism (the most obvious being the extravagant tariff), far-reaching in effect upon the whole fabric of life, touching to his injury every inhabitant of the land, laying unfair and impossible handicaps upon competitors, imposing taxes in every direction, stifling everywhere the free spirit of American enterprise.

Now this has come about naturally; as we go on we shall see how very naturally.  It is no use denouncing anybody, or anything, except human nature.  Nevertheless, it is an intolerable thing that the government of the republic should have got so far out of the hands of the people; should have been captured by interests which are special and not general.  In the train of this capture follow the troops of scandals, wrongs, indecencies, with which our politics swarm.

There are cities in America of whose government we are ashamed.  There are cities everywhere, in every part of the land, in which we feel that, not the interests of the public, but the interests of special privileges, of selfish men, are served; where contracts take precedence over public interest.  Not only in big cities is this the case.  Have you not noticed the growth of socialistic sentiment in the smaller towns?  Not many months ago I stopped at a little town in Nebraska, and while my train lingered I met on the platform a very engaging young fellow dressed in overalls who introduced himself to me as the mayor of the town, and added that he was a Socialist.  I said, “What does that mean?  Does that mean that this town is socialistic?” “No, sir,” he said; “I have not deceived myself; the vote by which I was elected was about 20 per cent. socialistic and 80 per cent. protest.”  It was protest against the treachery to the people of those who led both the other parties of that town.

All over the Union people are coming to feel that they have no control over the course of affairs.  I live in one of the greatest States in the union, which was at one time in slavery.  Until two years ago we had witnessed with increasing concern the growth in New Jersey of a spirit of almost cynical despair.  Men said:  “We vote; we are offered the platform we want; we elect the men who stand on that platform, and we get absolutely nothing.”  So they began to ask:  “What is the use of voting?  We know that the machines of both parties are subsidized by the same persons, and therefore it is useless to turn in either direction.”

This is not confined to some of the state governments and those of some of the towns and cities.  We know that something intervenes between the people of the United States and the control of their own affairs at Washington.  It is not the people who have been ruling there of late.

Why are we in the presence, why are we at the threshold, of a revolution?  Because we are profoundly disturbed by the influences which we see reigning in the determination of our public life and our public policy.  There was a time when America was blithe with self-confidence.  She boasted that she, and she alone, knew the processes of popular government; but now she sees her sky overcast; she sees that there are at work forces which she did not dream of in her hopeful youth.