The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1882-08-24
CAPITAL AND LABOR.
BY N. A. HARDAKER.

The advantage OF capital over labor
is an advantage which has been won
and paid for by the intellectual discip-
line Of centuries. Capital has never
made a step OF solid advance without
giving sn equivalent. The practical
intellect which tees how to supply
want or even to create a want. as
well SO to minister TO it. certainly de-
serves to succeed. II all the stages
of development are not apparent in
the successful business man, the
scientific judgment is still certain
that all those stages are embodied IN
him. He stands tor tie accumulated
and Inherited energy of generations
of enterprise and seli.denial. His
misunderstanding brain is the pro.
duct of severe and loDg-sustaiDei
processes of refinement. He draws
the interest upOz ancestral cerebra-
tion, and is the physiological "heir
of ell the ages" Nor can be dare to
dispense with ethical capital. He
must have courage, tsct, power of
adaptation, honor, which will secure
him commercial standing and credit,
decision to act in an emergency, and
caution to avoid rashness; he must be
able TO adjust the clashing of wills,
and act as q frequent arbitrator.
Even the capitalist who is simply an
investor, and not a manager, repre-
sents either inherited industry, per-
sonsl ability, or high character,
supposing the Gum invested to be
borrowed. IL is rare that fortunes
result from accident; still less rare
that they come by dishonesty. Talent
must be on toe spot 10 take sdvan-
tage of accident; and although high
moral ideal would decide some for
times to be fruits of dishOnor, legal
ideals are the ones applied by the
tortune-l ,aker; nor is it the usus. aim
of the money-getteg to develop
idealism. His materialism may
not be the highest product
of human nature. but, such
as it lie, il is an expensive and pain
fully developed faculty. If ne could
realize the immense capital invested
IN producing q capitalist, we could
not begrudge him his gains. For
tunes are sometimes made by in
stinct, by penetration, by sssiduors
devotion to one purpose, by such az
utter conservation of the whole man
that the observer must declare them
legitimately earned. But thsy srs
rarely accumulated by manual labor,
unless in conjunction with good in
tellectual power. The master-wOTk-
man learns to coordinate other labor
with bis Own. he gives himself eight
or ten pairs OF hands instead of a
single Uair. He strikes heavy blow
instead OF light one. quadruples his
product and appeals to a larger
market. Tale 10 TIE embryonic form
Oiindustrial capital. II begins when
a single man has the courage and
Intelligence to employ another TO
carry oct his thought
There IS co legal restriction 10 any
Iccuntry upon a man becoming
loapi;slist, but caste and il older cOun.
tries have erected difficulties. YET
difficulties are always relative, and
are gauged by the strength or weak
ness Of those who meet them. In
this country there Is absolutely nC
reason, except native incspacity, tt
prevent any man from becoming
capitalist. II this were not SO, oul
institutions wCaId be confessed iai!
ures. Thatis is 60. our whole CONNER
cial and industrial record is
dem onstration. Should any onI
attempt to count the number of tor
tunes acquired BY personal effort, h'
would find one fox every 6uger, WITH
going outoi a New England neigh
borhood. The reason why fortune
are 90 rarely acquired by msnua
labor is that manual labor Is To-
smallest factor in economic success
! Hitherto it h&s not been able to rals
itself above The tyranny OF the priml