During the fall and winter of 1890, Mary Elizabeth Lease crisscrossed the Midwest delivering over 160 speeches to crowds of angry farmers. Blessed with a deep, rich voice she repeatedly lambasted predatory railroads and especially the Wall Street “money power.” She passionately declared, “It is no longer a government of the people, by the people, and for the people, but a government of Wall Street, by Wall Street, and for Wall Street.” Lease underscored her audience’s rebellious mood by forcefully urging her listeners to “raise less corn and more hell..”
Lease’s message reached a receptive audience. During the early 1890s American farmers increasingly saw themselves as victims of an unjust political and economic system. As their debts continued to mount, struggling farmers became convinced that neither the Democrats nor the Republicans would address the problems caused by greedy bankers and arrogant railroad executives. They increasingly believed that a corrupt partnership between government and big business created special laws designed to benefit Wall Street financiers and unregulated monopolies.
The Populist Platform
The wave of agrarian discontent gave birth to the People’s or Populist Party. In July 1892, 1,300 enthusiastic party activists met in Omaha, Nebraska to adopt a platform and choose a candidate for the fall presidential election.
The Populist Party platform began with a grim assessment of the health of agrarian democracy. It described a nation “brought to the verge of moral, political, and material ruin” by the growth of corporate power and economic inequality. The platform preamble emphatically concluded, “The fruits of the toil of millions are boldly stolen to build up colossal fortunes for the few.”
The platform did more than offer a gloomy assessment of the nation’s current condition; it also put forth an ambitious list of proposals to shift power back to the people. For example, at that time the Constitution mandated that state legislatures choose U.S. senators. The platform addressed this elitist procedure by calling for an amendment providing for the popular election of senators.
The Populist platform devoted special attention to the railroads. Outraged farmers blamed the railroads for their economic plight. They bitterly complained that the transcontinental lines abused their monopolies by charging exorbitant freight rates. In fact, average freight costs increased every year between 1870 and 1893. In one particularly egregious example, the Burlington line charged its customers west of the Missouri four times what it charged to customers east of the river. The Populist platform proposed to rectify this problem by calling for government control of the nation’s railroads.
The Populists did not neglect economic inequalities. They proposed to prevent further accumulations of wealth by supporting a graduated income tax where rates would rise as personal income levels rose. And finally, the platform called for free and unlimited coinage of silver. Populist leaders argued that “free silver” would put more money into circulation thus spurring inflation and promoting growth. Rising prices for farm commodities would increase profits and reduce debts.
The Election of 1892
The Populists nominated former congressman and Union general James B. Weaver of Iowa to run for president. Weaver polled over 1 million votes, more than any previous third-party candidate. The Populist success reminded many political observers of the 1856 election when the Republican Party burst onto the nation’s political scene. Buoyed by their success, the Populists eagerly looked forward to the 1896 presidential election.
So why should you remember the rise of the Populist movement? A number of multiple-choice questions have stressed that the Populist platform called for a stronger federal government role in the economic system. During each of the past 4 years, SAQ and LEQ questions have focused on reform movements between 1880 and 1900. The Populist movement provides a particularly good example of a reform movement that addressed changing economic conditions.