made by the two old parties; the tariff came in for a share, as usual. Butler, being unpopular with many reformers, failed to materialize much strength, and, as a consequence, the Greenback party practically disbanded with this campaign. But the reform movement continued to grow among the people, and manifested its strength in many ways. BENJAMIN HARRISON, 1888. Received in the electoral college 233 votes. His opponent, Grover Cleveland, received 168 votes. Clinton B. Fisk, Prohibition candidate, received 250,000 votes, and Alanson J. Streeter, Union Labor candidate, 147,000. The question of tariff again monopolized the entire attention of the people, almost to the exclusion of all other issues. The Union Labor party, headed by Mr. Streeter, did all in their power to awaken an interest among the people to their own welfare, but the task was hopeless. Both the old parties saw in the contest that failure meant political death, and they fought with all the energy of despair. After the campaign was over, the country seemed to realize the trap they had fallen into, and organized labor has been gaining rapidly since that time. UNITED STATES Senators. One of the demands of the Farmers' Alliance is for the election of senators directly by the people. It may be interesting to say something as to how the Senate came to have its present form. There was no Senate in the Continental Congress. There was but one house, and each State had a single vote in it. The constitutional convention of 1787, following the model of the British government, then the best form known, was in favor of two houses, but sorely puzzled how to constitute an upper house which would be different from the lower one, and a check upon it. It was a long while before the idea of a Senate was conceived, and it really grew out of the jealousy of the smaller States of the larger ones. But eleven States took part in the earlier proceedings of the convention. Two of the four delegates from New Hampshire came in later, and no delegates were appointed by Rhode Island. The "small States "— five in number-were Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland. The "large States" were Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North and South Carolina, and Georgia. The small States feared that they would be overslaughed by the large ones, and so they hung out stubbornly for equal voice in Congress. Several of the plans suggested did not contemplate an upper house, but the Virginia plan, which was eventually made the basis of Congress, did. It, however, gave no name to the upper house, but proposed that its members should be chosen by the House of Representatives, out of a number of persons nominated by the legislatures of the several States. Three ways in all were suggested to constitute the membership:· 1. Appointment by the chief executive, from nominations by the legisla tures. 2. Election by the people. 3. Election by the legislatures. Alexander Hamilton urged, as an amendment, that the members should be chosen by electors chosen by the people of the States, and that they should serve during good behavior. Pinckney proposed a term of three years. The committee of the whole digested these propositions, and reported in favor of a "second branch"; the members of which were to be elected by the legislatures for seven years, and to be ineligible to any office for a year after the expiration of their term, and the number was to be in proportion to the population. This was the shape in which it appears in the first draft of the Constitution. June 24-25, 1787, the convention adopted the report of the committee, except that the term was changed from seven to six years, and the ineligibility clause was stricken out. The convention then entered upon a protracted struggle as to the representation of each State, and various propositions were urged. One scheme gave Rhode Island and Delaware each one, and Virginia five, with the other States proportioned between these. Dr. Franklin proposed that each State have an equal representation, with a vote on money bills proportionate to its share of the taxes. Delaware threatened to withdraw from the confederation if the small States were not given an equal representation, and finally, after the debate had gone on for six weeks, the plan of giving each State two members was adopted, and the small States concentrated their efforts upon giving the "second branch" the utmost power and importance. August 6 the name Senate" was formally given the "second branch." September 6 the office of Vice-President was agreed upon, and he was made the presiding officer of the Senate, in order to give him something to do. The Constitution was finally adopted September 17. 66 The Farmers' Alliance platform confines itself to a mere demand for the election of senators by the people, and does not specify how this is to be done. Here is opportunity for a wide diversity of opinion. Shall it be by the whole vote of a State, as a governor is elected, or shall each State be divided into two senatorial districts? Shall the present rule of two senators for each State-large or small-continue, or shall each State have a vote in the Senate in proportion to its population? Before any change can be made it will be necessary to get section 3, article I, of the Constitution amended. This reads : — "The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two senators from each State, chosen by the legislature thereof, for six vears, and each senator shall have one vote." To secure this amendment it will be necessary to have it proposed by twothirds of the members of both houses of Congress, and it must then be ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the States. That is, assuming that the house will consist of 356 representatives, it will have to receive the votes of 234 representatives and 59 senators, and be ratified by the legislatures of 33 States. CHAPTER IV. HISTORY OF THE SUB-TREASURY PLAN. So much has been said about the origin of the sub-treasury plan, that a brief mention of its history will doubtless be read with interest. The sub-treasury plan originated with Dr. C. W. Macune. During the session of the Texas State Alliance, in 1888, Brother Macune delivered an address, in which he advanced the proposition of inaugurating a system of trade currency, one that would "purchase goods and make exchanges." His plan was to establish trading centres where goods were sold at about cost; issue currency payable in such goods, and receive nothing but such currency in payment; refuse all other kinds of currency, and force customers to obtain this trade currency in order to purchase the low-priced goods. The fact that this currency would pay for goods at a much cheaper rate than other currency, would induce people to take it in the ordinary transactions of business, and keep it at or above par. Nothing was done about it, however, and Brother Macune came to Washington during the winter of 1889, and started the National Economist. The idea of supplying a volume of currency to the people, free from the tribute of the money changer, continued to occupy his attention more or less. Some time during the summer following, in discussing the matter at home, the idea of the sub-treasury plan presented itself. The more he considered it, the more practicable it appeared, and it soon developed into the true theory of a flexible volume of currency. He reasoned from every point that presented itself, and failed to find an error in the principle involved. Some time in the month of November he wrote it out and submitted the main points to Brother Harry Tracy and myself. Then he prepared it in full, and read it to the men connected with the office. It was received with much favor. Others were consulted in regard to it; among them, Brothers Polk and Livingston, and it was agreed to bring it before the national meet ing at St. Louis, in December. The country seemed prepared for it, as a similar proposition had been made in California and one or two other localities. It was presented and argued before the meeting, and adopted with but a few dissenting votes. The propaganda began in earnest, and in less than ninety days from its presentation at St. Louis, petitions began to come in, asking Congress to enact it into law. The next thing in order was to draft a bill that would meet the requirements. This was no small task. Finally recourse was had to Secretary Windom's silver bill, that he had prepared with great care, and which was then before Congress. That bill was made the basis upon which the sub-treasury bill was drawn. If any one will take it and read in the place of silver, corn, and in the place of market value, eighty per cent, and add the warehouse and help, the sub-treasury plan can easily be discerned. The same principle was involved, and about the same provisions required for the enforcement of one that became necessary in the other. After the bill was drafted, a consultation was held with President Polk, and it was introduced in the House by Brother J. A. Pickler, and, with slight modifications, introduced in the Senate by Senator Vance. Since this time it has become the one economic question, and may truly be said to be the most potent factor at the present time in national politics. It was reaffirmed at the national meeting at Ocala, with but seven dissenting votes, out of a representation of twenty-nine States and Territories. It may be justly considered the leading demand of the Alliance, and the one on which the success or failure of the order depends. It has been thoroughly discussed in another part of this book. 1. No motion is in order unless the person making the motion has the floor, and no person has the floor until recognized by the President. A motion is not before the house for any remarks or discussion until it has been seconded and has been stated by the President. 2. A motion to adjourn is always in order, provided the person making it has secured the floor and been recognized by the chair, and provided the body is a convention or any public meeting that closes its sessions by adjournment. If, however, the body is a secret society, the motion to adjourn may not be in order, because there are usually regular closing exercises and forms that the President is under obligations to see carried out. When a motion to adjourn is properly made, and is in order, it is not subject to amendment, discussion, or modification in any way; it must be voted on. However, a qualified motion to adjourn, as to a certain specified time or place, is debatable, and may be amended. 3. Questions that are subject to amendment may be modified twice and not more; that is to say, the question may be amended, and the amendment may be amended. 4. A motion to lay on the table is not debatable, cannot be amended; if carried, cannot be reconsidered, and requires a simple majority vote. When a motion to table an amendment or a substitute, or any modification of the main question, is carried, the original question goes to the table with it, and is subject to all the restrictions imposed by the vote. 5. A motion to limit debate may be amended, and usually requires a twothirds vote. 6. The following motions or calls do not require a second, and are in order even when some other person has the floor: First, a call to order; second, objection to the consideration of a question; motions for orders of the day or regular order of business; third, question whether subject shall be discussed. A motion to appeal from ruling or decision of the President may be in order when some other person has the floor, but it always requires a second. 7. A motion for the "previous question" is intended to shut off debate and bring the body at once to a vote on the question. It should not be entertained by the chair unless it has three seconds. Large bodies usually require five. This motion should be avoided as much as possible, because it is not generally advisable to refuse any one the right to discuss a subject. When the motion is properly made and seconded, the President immediately says: "Shall the main question be now put?" If two-thirds of the votes are in the affirmative, he declares it carried, and proceeds to put the main ques |