THE NATIONAL ALLIANCE. 143 



By far the most potent and influential power underlying this great 

 revolution of industrial and economic thought has been the reform press. 

 At the earliest moment practicable, the Supreme Council should digest 

 and inaugurate a plan which ultimately will give to every family in our 

 order a thoroughly reliable paper, devoted to the principles of the order. 

 We have a national organ of high order, and several of the States have 

 organs which are doing noble service in the cause ; but as an order, we 

 cannot claim to be properly 'equipped, nor need we hope for zeal, fra- 

 ternity, and unity, so essential to success, until each State in our juris- 

 diction shall have at least one paper to represent us, whose dignity, and 

 character, and power shall command the support of our members and 

 the respect of our enemies. Let us place our aims, purposes, and prin- 

 ciples at the hearthstones of our laboring millions, and thus arouse to 

 activity the dormant brain power of the masses, that they may grasp the 

 grand possibilities and duties of their existence. 



Educate the people in the science of true economical government, 

 and in the great principles of civil and religious freedom, and keep them 

 informed as to the dangers which threaten these inestimable blessings, 

 and we establish a safeguard for the liberties of the people. I respect- 

 fully suggest for your consideration the advisability and expediency of 

 placing the ownership of the national organ with the national order, and 

 the ownership of State organs with their State organizations, respectively. 

 This plan would secure harmonious co-operation and a uniform policy 

 through all the leading organs of the order, and would avoid any possible 

 conflict arising from personal interest. Then the will of the order 

 would be the law of the organ and its rule of action. 



If the Supreme Council shall inaugurate plans or measures for the 

 dissemination and inculcation of true Alliance principles among the 

 people, its existence and power will be firmly established. Let the peo- 

 ple read and hear the truth as we understand it. 



Many of the State organizations have adopted business systems which 

 are being operated with varying success. Some of them are eminently 

 satisfactory and have made large savings to the membership. Existing 

 conditions in the different States vary so widely as to preclude the adop- 

 tion of any uniform system for the transaction of business, but I would 

 respectfully suggest that this department of Alliance work could be 

 materially aided through the investigations of a committee, appointed 

 for the purpose, who shall examine the most successful methods now in 

 operation, and present their conclusions in printed form, outlining their 

 general features for the guidance of new State organizations, and as 

 suggestive of improvements on the systems which have been found less 



