New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1848-04-13
Wealth md LubOr.


1t is the msfortune-perhaps inevitsble--oi an
age when every one who thinks is TO some extent
a Radical that many will set up for Radicals who
do not trouble themselves with thinking.
John Jacob Astor is dead, leaving a vast estate
which he bad accumulated dursg a long life OF
eager, assiduous, capable fortunate money making.
Whether it be fifteen, twenty, twenty five, thirty
or forty millions. seems to be much in doubt as
ever. 1t is vast estate however-much larger than
any man could possibly need-lsrger than any man
who had acquired it by his own exertons is likely
t. use benefcently To pile up such enormous
fortune by trade speculation and to use it for
tie glory of God and the highest good of mankind,
are two different things requiring diverse if not
absolutely Incompatible characters nd faculties
IL 10 melancholy, insane pervers on OF a human
life to make it mainly subservient TO the acquire
ment of sush fortune.
Yet we cannot agree with those who openly as
sumo or clearly imply that such an estate could not
be honestly amassed-that aoch aggregation by
one person necessarily involves injustice or depres
sion to others-that such fortune must have been
made o'Q OF the earnings Df others than the pos
SCISSOR. That very rich men often become 90 at
inevitable. We believe man may become very
rch and yet be a blessing through life to the COM
manity-to mankind. Let us illustrate;
There are not iess than One Million Dollars
worth OF property destroyed every year in the
United States slone by steamboat explosions and
burnings. beside some two to five hundred human
lives. Now ct some man devise improvements in
machinery nd construction that would render eve
ry boiler ,soutey proof against explosions, every
vessel sg'.iDs, fire. and let him sell his patents so
az to net him an income of Quarter Of Million
per ann'Im, and he will be growing rapidly, vastly
rich aud yet the world be Three Quarters of
Million tie better for him annually, to say nothing
OF the sewing Of some hundreds Of lives.
Again; A Company is now commencing Rail
road from Troy to Boston, which is to be some
thirty miles shorter than the Western Railroad,
via Albany. But to effect this saving, diminish the
grading, and accommodate an entirely distinct re-
gion of country. tunRei of some miles in length
must be made through the base Of high. hard
mountain. at au estimated cost Of some Two Mil
lions Now suppose some rare genius-one OF the
kings OF industry so numerous and g. mighty In our
day-were to devise q means Of sotteniDg the rug
ged granite to paste. or shivering it by a novel
electric battery, drilling it by steam-proPelled
machinery, so that be could accomplish in half the
tine for Two Hundred thousand Dollars the work
that is expected to require two years aud costTwo
Millions-spd suppose he should contract to do 1t 4
for One Million. clearing Eight Hundred Thousand 1
for himself and establishing enormous value for 1
his pssent-who will have lost much less been de- I
feasded of, the money tina, he makes7
These are by 90 means impossible cases, ss that
Of Bentz's Unbrannng Machine, i've believe the \
name 10y Of which We spoke some weeks since will /
establish. That machine, coating some $500 or
s4oo 10 said to hull peel four thouss nd bushels
e wheat per day. leaving all bat the skin to be I
,,round into Buperhne -four. The hull or kin weighs
some two pounds to the bushel, leaving 6fty.eight
poands OF soar instead Of forty eight or fifty accord
log to the common method OF boiling and grinding.
The saving by the general adoption and use of this
machine (which 10 Of inevitable unless there
il some naw about il that we do not understand
cannot be Less than Two Millions OF barrels of Flour
annually Ia the United States alone in place Of so
much bran and middlings-tAe difference in value
stthe place OF manufacture being not less than Five
Millions Of Dollars. Is not the inventor fairly en-.
uted 70 GOOD per centage OF thai Who will
say that he has not honestly earned more than if b
had been all bis time employed in building stone
wall at dollar day'
Questions concerning Labor and Capital. Wages
and Profits. Wealth aud Want are happily begin.
ming to attract general attention and il is impor.
tsnt ,hs, our elemental ideas respecting Property
should be sound and just Doubtless many for.
tunes have been smsssed by operations rather in
furious than beneficial to the community, such as
Monopoly or Forestalling, whether in Land Pro-
visions. or anything else, bet il by no means fol-
lows that sH iorsanes have been acquired at the
expeose Of honsst poverty. We may recur to the
subject.
MAssAcHuSrrs-A Convention Of the Wings Of
the Second Congressional District Of Mass. was
held IT Sal en- on Tuesday. AsAHKL Husrnsros
was chossia Delegate, and D. c. Baker substitute