The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1875-07-23
AN EVIL OF THE PERIOD

AIN EN- ILL OE En1OO
In oIden times it was not thought
degrading to work with the hands.
| The child of the man of wealth was
compelled to do moderate amount
of physical labor, in consequence of
which, when he arrived at manhood $
estate, he was man physically as
well as intellectually for TIE idea
of a well-developed brain in feeble
and eifeminate corporcal organization
is kind of paradox-a sound mind
requires a sound body. In early days
ooys were taught trades now they
aspire to professions, simply because
they are regarded as nonreputable,
and poor brain work is better pass
port to good society ;han skilled me-
chanical labor.
sWe are peculiarly a people ofthe-
cries. Theoretically we honor the
sons Of toll we speak in clarifying
tones of the sunburnt brow and the
hard hand Of the laborer we become
eloquent when we tell of the noun
tains being reduced, the valIies ele-
waited, the torrents spanned, the for
ests levelled and the wilderness made
musical with the anthems of labor.
But practically we ignore the labor
er's to right recOgnition-and we re-
ceiye into our social circle the doc
tor without patients, the lawyer withN
out clients, and the dead beat with
nothing TO recommend him except
his utter aversion to everything like
honest labor. We venture the asser>
ton that in all communities, with
rare exceptions, if a man should re-
quire the services Of twenty profess
ional men he could get them 10 twen~
ty minutes if he need that many
skilled mechanics he would be at
some trouble to find them.
The average young man to- day de-
tests labor, he believes in fast horses,
and gold watches, bat is not willing
to put forth any effort to attain them.
lie is waiting for something to ''turn
up" instead of turning up something,
aud the man of to>day is as much like
tie man of forty years ago as a pig
my is to a giant. 1t is no pleasant
thing to witness-the decay Of men,
in all the attributes Of manhood, but
the fact stares us in the face that we,
as a people are deteriorating, that our
skilled work men are foreigners, while
our corner ioafers are native born;
that in our senate chamber we have
no Clay, nor Webster, nor Cass,
nor Calhoun, nor Benton, but IN their
stead class Of men who are wonder
fully dwarfed by the contrast they
present with such intellectual giants.
We suggest no remedy-we know
of none.-but with the fact existing
that Jackson and Gay, and Cass and
and Fillmore, and Lincoln and John
son, were children ofpoverty, brought
up to Tabor almost from their ear>
lest childhood, suffering all the pri-
vaiions Of the poorer, it becomes U.s.
as a people 50 to regulate the physi
cal occupations Of the young that we
may be able to raise class Of men
who are fit to rule the State and per-
petuate its liberties. Il is high time
that we should get rid Of some Of our
theories and be more practical that
we so mould society that labor will
be regarded honorable, practically,
not theoretically, and they who give
tone TO society shall honor the labor
er and discounlenance the drone
that a mans passport will be his
moral worth and his willingness to
labor, and that he who will not labor
shall no! at Gazctle d Bulletin.