William Peffer's Scrapbook

In the late 19th century, American tax laws favored Northeastern industrialists, who amassed enormous fortunes, while farmers in rural America found it harder and harder to make a living. The Farmer's Alliance, combined with other labor movements, formed The People's Party and took control of the Kansas House of Representatives in 1890. Kansas newspaper editor, William Peffer, represented the Populists in the U. S. Senate from 1891 to 1897. This podcast is drawn from his editorials, which championed the economic reforms the farmers called for.