The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1877-08-06

| ~ VI WA SlShhSS HSAS WSAh WI NA1bouSU
made me q stranger, and necessity . beg
gar. More than 100000 men as decent
a. could tell the came story. Many Of
them accept sympathy from the only folks
who give it-thleyes; and themselves turn
thieves. Many will hang on and rather
die than do wrong. They are especially
hated by the vicious. But the most OF
them will DO about a. am-perhaps
able, amidst the ieers oil the only class
who notice them at all, 10 hold on 10 hon.
esty and seli.respeot, hiding their grief
about their suffering little ones until
their ioruLude gives out; and then they
will change their names and Join the
thieves, hoping their families and old
friends far of 10 New England will think
them dead.
But l tell you, though I am clothed in
rags, totter with weakness, and am foul
with dirt, | am 4 man; a common, aver.
age man; and that | would fight for my
children and my Wiie,-fSht for the right
to be rated above thieves, voluntary beg
gatS, and ySgsbonds, tight for my life with
average courage and spirit, II l had a
chance TO do Il. So would the whole
hundred thousand Of US. But we cannot.
This Is what would fight for: / see very
clearly two great principles in society
one is the sucrednesB Of lie, the other 10
the Sacredne.S Of property. II either Of
these principles came from God, it cannot
be the last Que. But without the RICH! to
labor for the means Of living, there Is no
right to live, unless it ia right to live dis.
honestly. Society denies such right Of
course. But nothing 10 right unless It has
also an obligation on something, or some.
body, or everybody. Your right to your
property carries with 1t the obligation on
me and all the world not to touch 1t.
Without that II would not he yours. But
how Is it about my right TO employment
Nobody Is under any legal obligation TO
employ NE. Therefore l have no right
to employment. But without the right
to employment whereby he may live hon.
estly what other right has a poor man?
His right to the children OF his loins, TO
the vile Of his bosom, his right to their
lives, or even his own,-do not exist, un.
lesS on the theory that he may lawfully
steal 1t follows from all this that in
our free country life Is not aa sacred "a
property. Iwould like t0zsee that prin.
ciplc reversed. | wish property 10 be
sacred, but not as sacred as life. The
principle which would fight for like a
man, father, and q husband, II | could
is this: The right to live honestly is more
sacred than the right to hold property.
Az 1t is now, the rich grant life to the
poor man az long as they can make
money by it, and when not, they drop
him, and his rights are all gene, even that
Of life. As It ought to be, the poor grant
property to the rich As lorg as they them.
selves can live honestly, and no longer.
These are my principles. have no idea
OF there being courage enough among US
poor shuddering outcaSts 10 carry them
out. The people Of uncommon ability
and courage are against us and so are the
thieves; and in our weakness as ordinary
men We 90 down, Thousand upon thou.
sand and unless this is printed there is
never word or sign from us; and, il It
is printed, it 10 but one word from
one poor tramp. Many years ago
God knows before ever dreamed
! might come to my present dreadful
situatlon-l cut from a Newspaper a few
lines, which | have thought had a mean
ing which the people Of this country
ought to heed. do not know the author
Of the verse;. They are soiled and torn
from being 80 lopg carried in my old
empty poCket,book; but have read them
over 80 many times that can make them
out. Here they are:
BeEar,! The T,rlellto o. old, who toro
=, The lou In hts path-whSI, poor aud blind,
HS saw tbs blessed Light Of heaven no more,
Snorn Of his noble strength, ani forced 10 grind
In PhNon SEd At last Id trth 10 DO
p'hdcr to fhll'In0 revelry-
U'Fo1 the pIIl,rsCi The temple laid
His desperate htAd,, add 10 IL overthrow
Dt1Toyei hlnse.t, auh With HIN those who made
A cruel mocker! Of his agntlsss Woei
The Potr blind slave, lhS .cOH and IcsE Of all,
EXPIRED aud thousands peFIShed Ia the fall.
There Isu pocr blind SamIOa In this land,
Saorn OF MS strength add bound Ia bln1I OF
steel
Who may In Ssme grim revSl raise his hanl
And shake the pillars eiths CommonvsI
| III The vast Temple Of our liberties
a th'po'es1 mass Of wreck and rubbish lies.
l an not law.breaker. Do not
wrong ME by trying to put me where l
do not belong. All my early training
and experience were on the side Of order
and law. For four years l served my
country faithfully as common soldier.
| never had penny that 1 did not get
honestly. But know a. only one can
know who is among them the feeling Of
desperation born Of despair that prevails
among the suffering poor who ask only
the privilege that they may earn bread
for themselves aud families by honest Ia.
Dor. And think l recognize only the
inevitable tendency OF things when l say
to all who may read this that, il this
hoartless indifference Of the rich toward
the poor continues, our sufFerings will,
after while set us crazy, and then there
will be insane courage enough, and Sam.
son, blinded and shorn, may" bow him.
self with all his might" under the strong
pillars, and tumble the whole concern
into ruins. Such arc the thoughts Of an
involuntary TRANP