Non Carolina State Library
Raleigh
DR, THOMPSON'S GREAT SPEECH
A Large and Representative Gathering of Popafists of Sampson and
Adjoining Counties at Clinton, N. C., Aug. 19, 1898, to Hear the
OPENING OF THE POPULIST CAMPAIGN.
I>r. Thompson
Теагя
the Mask of Hypoc¬
risy From the G.,1.1 aod Monopoly
Crowd Which is now in Control ef tile
J> mocrallc Ovgarit/.ftiloiL— Xte Proves
TJwir Icslncerlty to the Cause ot Finan¬
cial and Corporation 'Reforms —The
I’rpeliats of Sampson Sfntbiisiastlc— No
Back-Citling to the tVernoeratiC Party.
Ladies an i> Fellow Citizens : — It
lias boon almost two years since I at¬
tempted to make a speech, and circum¬
stances which 1 could not control, for
many months past, have prevented rnj
giving that attention to political mat¬
ters, which t might otherwise have
given ; and recently I have not had
the time to spare from my ollieial du¬
ties to devote to the preparation of a
political speech. I had hoped to enter
the campaign sometime after the first
of September. I bad hoped that by
that time I should find opportunity for
such preparation as the cause ought to
have had. When I was written to to
speak to you on this occasion, I replied
thkt it was not probable that I couiil
come. Afterwards I was written to
that 1 must
ссше,
for the reason that
I had been billed to come; and it was
evident that ! must come or somebody
in the county of Sampson, and that a
mighty good Populist, and possibly a
number of mighty good Populists,
would be accused of having misrepre¬
sented me. I thought then that I
would come and that Senator Butler
would be here, and that be himself
would do the greater part of the speak¬
ing. It so turned out that it was im¬
possible for Senator Butler to be here.
He had an invitation to speak m Tex¬
as, Colorado and Utah, where bis ser¬
vices as national chairman of the Peo¬
ple’s party were urgently demanded.
For that reason he is not here, and I
am iiere— kind of "boss dog of the bone
yard” in tbespeakiDg line, whether 1
am prepared to speak or nor. Now if
I can make my enemies on the other
side feel as uncomfortable about the
speech after it is made as 1 fee! before¬
hand, I shall be abundantly satisfied,
and [ know that some of yoa will be
as weJ satisfied as I. am.
In 1802 the People’s party of the
State of North Carolina had its birth.
I need not recount the conditions
which called into existence the or¬
ganization in this State. Men who had
been educated in the Farmer’s Alli¬
ance; who.had studied political ques¬
tions, and learned that the tariff was
not the sole cause of all the troubles
and oppressions of this land, rose up
and said in that year of grace, that we
will no longer bow down to Grover
Cleveland, the stuffed prophet of the
state of N ew York. You know how it
was said by the then chairman of the
Democratic State Executive Commit¬
tee (who is also the present chairman)
that if you could not swallow Grover
Cleveland, then you were not a Dem¬
ocrat aud you could not enter a Demo¬
cratic primary or convention. Men
who hsd seriously studied great eco¬
nomic questions, men who felt that
gold and monopoly were robbing them
