182 
Wisconsin' State Agricultural Society. 
Gentlemen, brother farmers, I thank you for the patient hearing 
3 f ou have given me. I know I have not sufficient power of oratory 
to make the subject interesting outside itself, or command of rhet¬ 
oric to give point to my ideas; but of plain, direct, and truthful 
language, I have enough, and more than that, I have dared to use 
it. 1 pra} r that you will each and all of you receive what I have 
said, with the same tenderness of heart and warmth of affection, 
that have instigated its utterance. Possibly my directness of speech 
has, in your opinions, bordered on an undue severity; it may be so, 
but words cannot express my desire for the full development of 
your strength. If I have cut deep, I have only been like the sur¬ 
geon, who makes the incision deep, because the disease is deep- 
seated. 
I am not a stranger to the many deceptions to which the farmer 
has been a victim. I am not forgetful of the doubt, fear, distrust, 
and extreme caution that have been engendered thereby. But we 
must accept the situation as it is, and to make the most of it we 
must take some risks; to use a homely and somewhat trite saying 
—it is useless to cry over spilt milk. Sitting still and growling will 
not produce results in any way helpful to our progress. The rep¬ 
resentative dog in the manger cannot grow fat. To act intelligent¬ 
ly as becomes representatives of the great basic interest of the 
country, seeking to guard the rights of all other interests, to gird 
on our armor, to stand shoulder to shoulder, and be ready for the 
great battle before us, is the duty that attends us to-day. If I have 
said anything to stimulate and move you to a proper attention to 
that duty, I shall be content. 
t 
The president appointed the following committee on resolutions: 
E. H. Benton, of Bodge; J. W. Wood, of Sauk, John Carswell, of 
Richland; Mr. Adams, of Dane, and Wm. Orledge, of Kenosha. 
Mr. Benton: The gentleman last upon the floor has alluded to 
the contingency with reference to the conflict of interests which I 
hoped would not be alluded to in such an article. It has been al¬ 
luded to upon the floor of Congress and in the papers of Chicago, 
yet it seems to me that such a contingency should never hold a 
place in the mind of an American citizen—that of bloody revolu¬ 
tion. The framework of our government precludes such a con- 
