, 1873-10-12

J
thom, aud It is D burning Hhamo that thoy
should DO allowed to carry ruin to innocent
victims. II public opinion could not restrain
thom law should bo passed. tint would. lap
Ambition ofton impellod mon to extend thor
buainosB to such an extent tint 1t grow beyond
thoir control. Now md thon q man could OK
tond Ills business to any degree md still control
evcr, ono Of tho dangers Of tho timo was oon-
contration OF wealth. Ue know not why man
should ho allowed au indefinite aceumu
1ation In money and got bo limited in political
power, We watched lost there should DO uu-
Of that In this land. Our special danger Was in
tho aristocraoos tint grow up by monatrous for
tunes. Vast puslnesRes had q tendency to COP
sumo small business, especially in, Nov York.
such man should mount to such height Of
business was not a healthful Sign. It was bot
tor that TINT Bnrne amount Of bnsinosB should bo
done By fifty smnller firms thnn by ono colossal
one. Though less profitable to tho individual,
These acoumulatonp Of monstroug fortunes
wore dangerous, 80 dangerous TINT tho day
must speedily come whom thoy must be limited
by legislation. Let them look at tue results
oumulated landed property. without limit.
It was not good for the men themselves to own
too much land or to add farm after farm to their
eRtatos. It WAS not best that any department OF
QusIuoHb huDtiA W uOlu W 0uD 0F LWD pGT6QnHs
Mouoy,, moro than votes, governed this lind to-
day. Tho groht companies that were organized
over tho lands hold In their hands moro votes
than tho people themselves. It sras in tho power
Of corporations to-day to buy convontionH, and,
AS for Legislatures, thoy were rs yenal as tho
market. The blessed example OF Puritan ances-
tors did not restrain mon, for tho children
Of Now England had wandered, stop by step,
away. Buying legislator was az common as
buying dinner, aud when tho elections wero
tQkan tho 1i4f8 Hya nr,] maj
price was marked over against him. Tho
old men woro nll known, because 1t was
known what It cost to manago thom two years
beforo [laughter], and tho new mon aro soon
found out. The floneatost arc tho professional
men. In Now York; tho lawyers arc honestor
than the farmers. Tho easioBt men to buy were
the farmers. Honesty camo by practice; man
might want to bo honest, and not know how, and
ou,nstancen III lifo waB being very ncar to
Hoavon. Tho farmer had as good nature as
any othor man to start with, but then he wes
raw; while Wall stroet man was an old siager,
and was not 30 easily imposed upon. Flo know
wllero it WAS dangerous to bo dishonest; he
might TO dishonest however, under other Cir
culnBtances. It WIS dangerous for largo nun,-
bera Of tho community to be under tho
control Of corporations who owned countlcss
panies-tho Now York Central, tho Now York
L Eric, and tho Pennsylvania Ceutral with
their Western extonsionB-who could, If they
choae. buy up the nation and put in whom they
1T TT corrupted tho fountains o{ iesiuiiation'
throttlod 1ustico In tho courts, and mato Mann
mon King. tApp}auao.1
Our danger in the near future WAS not from
the old families or old-faHhiongd aristocracies,
but from the organized enterprises that spread
over continents and were in tho hands Of ab}o
business mon who could do what thoy pleasod
with their money. So when, now and then. q
storm arose aud ovorehrew them, and a foN wont
down. he was sorry for it. Still he sud to him
self that it was comfort to find sometimes TINT
t1orc woro schemes in this world that were not
stronger than God, aud that tho dovil could not
have his own way ali the timo.
Tho nost perilous Of all uHages saa that of
putting into the risk Of commerce funds that
woro entrusted to others, not for their own uso,
but for certain specified purposes. There ought
TO be an education on tho sin OF using money
TINT was not our own, to apply to men IN banks,
officers under Government, tiduciary agents, etc.
Tie lecturer then narrated an instance Of Gov
ornment eficor, who onco refused to lend funds
intrusted to him during the war, although ho
could have done 80 on tlrst-clasa security, with
out the risk of beng found out, His reason
waa that tho law would not allow him. II had
rather" said The looturer, "hayo the conscience
millions Of DOLLARS for, nftor all thoro is no lux
ury 30 great as that Of having tile conscience of
nhonest man" [Applause.l Thornotto Of ayoung
Innn should be never to put to risk ono
EGAt kuAk hAh uUk l4l6 QHu, lUE l4Au Euu4A I'LL
what tho result would be. We were coming into
condition whoroin faith in man was boing o.
aontially shaken. By and by We should bo ablo
to nay, as had been said Of old, "An. honest man
ia rarer than gold ITSELF"
Speaking OF tho uncertainties Of commerce, tho
lecturer said that from 90 to 9G per cont OF men
who omharlod In commerce failod once Ia their
uYca. Ho did not know that failure WAS tho worst
OWL that could bofall man. but ho supposed
that few causee Of suffering were equal to that
hope, Of struggling men, thoir desperate resolve,
noryod by pride, not to sucoumb, tho anxioties
for their families,-a man who could experience
thoso things and romain calm must bo ono Of
most uncommon nerve. Young mon. when they
buoyancy Of youth; but 1t was hard, beyond tho
power to tell, for old men at tho close Of thoir
lives to have their fortunes swept away ut O.
breath, may DO by Il bill Of their own indoIaing,
or by a mishnp for which they were in no way to
felt like taking off his hat royorentIy to tbat
man who, with unb!onlibhsd reputation, Ind
been ovorthrown in one Of those quick aqualla Of
commerce. Ipatoad OF going back and pointing
mttted, he would throw tho mantle Of charity
over them,
Seldom did u1en fail when over 10 or 30, and
got again upon their teot becauHo tho habit OF
caution which they cultivated through lifo lad
not possible to thom. Tho atrugglos preceding
their failure often destroyed thor minds.
The lecturer .thon, In a fow stirring phrases,
urged those who were oyortakon by failure to
uso all mea,is TO rally again aud ontor upon m
honorable conflict with life, and tion drew
pleasant picture OF tho Christinn graces Of those
who had onco moved among tho wealthy, and
had boon east down aud could not rocoycr thonl-
nelyoa, walking .unnaurmuringly boforo tlclr God.
IIe then depicted various charaoteristIcs OF
brolen-aown men, instancing first tho wreokel
Clergyman. Among this clRps llo had Aoon as
much bravery aB among any other olaaH Of tho
community, aud If he wero not clergyman
himself lle might perhaps say moro. Among
was tho wrecked ,nan. Of pleasure and
fashion. Ho compared thom to old
fashioned gaudy chariots thrown into
Bleds as absolutely worthless. or to tho cast
off skin Of ta boetle which retained the perfect
form OF tho insect, but bud nothing iu It. Tho
lecturer then iustancod The wreokod politician.
He next spoke Of tho broAon-down merchant.
Let him ,iot spoak harnh or disrespcctful words
in this regard. In that proaonco thore might bo
many aching hoarB-nen who did not know how
to provide for tonorrow'a household. Many
nun carod not for himself brt a Thousand times