Dallas herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1849-1873, 1869-04-24
An Open I.ettert8 iinri. Fssaln.

I Au open letter tu a4liiia ~ sttit
TEsza l-slsri's Hlsiiig, o. AlFfl-EE s,A
/ haFe vey ss7ilas isuhis. Nprk, as d
lie ProFFisiy ~ WFiiing -Olen leiirls O.
piFaie Individuals, % b. published In I
naEariue aul ssni hrosdcsst oYsTihe gsnn
ny, hut slices ysuT nagTsni abEss Of lA'
eouriesiFs " life in yllF letter 10 touua
dom RanleIlilt, Ehieh ! have iist lfFl
Painga 20 read, you esrtsinly eannoi ooia-
plata Should | aldrsss q lev plain words
10 you through the SANE chAnnel,
| lhlnk, Mars, yru have made = gTesi
mlslake ia this Puhlls arraigaueut u 4
Han of the aFs and ohaTaeisF of comml-
toTe NsndsThili, tEen though be hs gully
a tie sin " eagning anl e,aiTollias
gfgEiy piilerF OF dollars, i1Wles, 0f tAg
Springfield Rfguif0IE, made slmilsy
laisiake NheA, Instead of p.irline inio the
0ileial acts 0f ihs manageg OF tie krle
1 Railway, And showing up the euVyn0ns
inlqullies of the "rinE,' lie descended u
the dirty work 0f writing AMI pFluiins q
purely personal and uAWarraniel aiiaek
on "Jlm Pisk, aud Eoiss ihf n that, up0n
a deisheelsss Noman-his wife, "Jim,"
no, whit wiser, Procured the uaWarraui-
able arrest aud imprisonment ~ his as
i
pealed az qpes to The sympathy OF tAe pub
lie, thertlyeoayegling q mallgneT Of prl'
yale elilEens Into representative OF lho
rights OF the press aud OF personal liberty,
Doth these men were grossly wrong, aud
80 the public has decided Aud 50, ! thluk,
will 10 tho decision VI fair mindrl men
Hnd women alio your "!eiIas 10 Cou-Ao'
dore Vanderbilt"
That ga crawling swarm az small souls
10 love TO Rlorify NnnGerbnt 10 print Is
uBquestionably true, bat why SHOULD 10 DO
held responsible Tor what iheso small souls
dot have no doubt, IL the truth were
known, that 10 Is quito rs much annoyed
\ by this whining syeophancy ns oven you
/ appear to be, most ylrluous Maik--or, At
least hc would DO annoyed, Il Le could
spsSs the time from the prosecutions Of his
| great enterprises 10 think about them or
their small doings. Why not uueork your
yials Of invectiyo on those yermin ahne,
and leave the man OF seventy millions,
with his wonderful activity and his inn
mtnse brain power, 10 prosecute the great
interests lie las in hand, thereby inorees-
ing the wealth and prosperity Of tho ma
tion, aud Of hll the men and women who
compose IL. For even you win not deny,
Mark, that Commodore Vanderbilt has ac-
complishcd some grand undertakings in
his day, which not only brought money
TO his purse, but Las made your liio and
mine more pleasant, besides showing thus
to tho young uen who come af,or him tie
possibilities of human effort.
There may be hundreds of "small souls"
Mark, who will read your "open letter"
aud give froihy praise TO your iippnnt
sentences, saying, with nm Dir of joint pro-
prietorship in your rolicking recklessness,
"MGrE stands by the people Mark amt
afraid of money bags" and hosts Of SINH
lar foolish things, which they are to be
blamed for and not ycu-Gnd yet, after all
Mark, are you not quite as much tc blame
for tho rawlings of these scnseless satel-
lites, whose weak minds are cRptiva.ed by
the rounded sentences which you are paid
to write, as is Commodore Vanderbilt for
the obsequiousness Of the "crG wiling swarm
of sycophants who are dazed by the glare
Of his seventy millions2 No, Mark this
holding of any man responsible for what
others may say of him, without his con-
sent, is not only unfair and ungenerous
but very foolish, and quite unworthy Of
one whose profession it is TO aid in the
promotion Of healthy public sentiment
cannot think it necessary, Marx, that
one should bow in abioct vasshlage TO tho
glitter of Commodore Vanderbilt's seventy
millions TO discover that he is n rcmarka-
ble man, and worthy of some consideration,
even if he does not recognize your right or
mine to dictate to him how he shall spend
the money he has honestly earned, His
early history-commencing in life without
money OF friends; his struggles with and
victory over difficulties which would have
crushed less brave spirit; his, unceasing
industry and perseverance, his gradual
accumulation Of wealth; his budding and
eliminating fnarciel genius; his growing
enterprises comprising, finally, tho mau-
agement and virtual ownership of steam
boat lines and railroads; his wonderful
prcscence in the development of schemes
at which timid souls stand aghast, but
which in his hands gre W into the great and
bcneiicont public interests about which the
American people never tire of talking, and
which the very hest of Us like to apprcpri-
ate as something in which we have had
hand-are these nothing to have lived for,
Mark ? Is that useless life which is
spont in projecting and prosecuting enter
prises which give hcalthful and remunera-
tive employment to men who are willing TO
work, and which tends directly to tho un-
folding Of the wealth and power Of this
great nation
All, Mark with all your ability and
reputation ns o writer-and you have n
fair share of bo'h-l cannot doubt that you
would deem it worthy OF your ambition to
have done a quarter of the good which has
resulted-incidentall if you please.
from this battle with the world which has
secured to Commodore Vanderbilt his
seventy millions.
AS you say, Mark, the Commodore is an
old man (anothcr reason why your open
letter should not have been written, over
seventy years of age, and yet hard at
work-with brain as clear, energy as rest |
less, and spirit as unaagging as at the
period which men call the prime of life |
He may not have, as you hehrtlessly pre-
dict, more than ten years 10 livo--possibly |
not half that time--and yet who shall say, !
If he does not that he should put off the |
harness aud sink quietly into the grave |
The fact is, Marx, in the absence Of CON-
pctent young men to take fhe place of this !
octogeharian whom you ridiculc, zee cannot |
do sri hoNt him. We need his energy, his |
Industry, his Xperlence-aye,l and his |
serenity miiiions--to push on the great en-
terprises about which you and J, Mark,
and thousands Of other poor unproductive I
souls, love 10 talk aud speculate, and |
which we take an honest pride in seeing I
carried forward. !
doubt, Mark, that If Commodore Van
derbilt should divide his seventy millions /
between you aud me, and bid-us Ego and |
DO something" with il, we should be able /
TO accomplish so much good ia its charita-
BILE besiowmenis as results from the carry
ing forward Of these great Interests. Tho I
man who creates the greatest demand for
honest labor, with fair remuneration; is
the best friend of his race. You ought 10
know better than to sneer ct seventy mil
lions invested in railroads and steamboats,.
Y on ought 20 be ashamed TO join the ignor-
ant rabble in their cry against rich men
Somebody must gather riches, if We would
have public improvements that cost for
tunes. II those who by industry and
segaeity turn fieir thousands into mil
lions, should be obliged 10 partition 1t
equally among those less fortunate or lees
q - -. = "