The Labor enquirer., 1884-05-03


divide with God. They had to make
that pretension, or the priest (the worsl
of the idlers) would have betrayed them
and would have made common cause
with the small-fry. The kings had to
keep good friendship with the priests
because they had to use the priests con-
stantly TO throw sand into the eyes Of
the people, whom they dumbfounded
rto the belief by their pomp and cir
cumstances, and with the help of their
hypocrisy, that they were superior be-
| ings, annointed by God himself, and re-
sponsible to God only for all, even for
the existence of the poor, beastly and
ignorant masses. Thus the kings made
themselves out to be only responsible to
God, and not to the toiling millions,
whom they robbed. plundered, de-
bauched, ravaged and enslaved.
But the epoch in the lives Of the toll
ers came. 1t came on the fourth of July,
1776. 1t broke the spell which had here
tofore enthralled the world and man
kind. This epoch meant: Liberty or,
give to every man the fruit of his own
labor, of his toll of brain and muscle"
Fraternity; or, men who are in the
right are brothers" Equality; or, the
rights of all men are equal" 1t freed
all minds. 1t civilized mankind. It
opened the world with light, science,
discovery and improvement. 1t exalted
mans intellect. 1t opened dungeons,
freed prisoners, liberated religious suf-
ferers. 1t gave hope to thousands of
millions oftoiling slaves. 1t established a
nation of toiIers, and cornerstone of
liberty for all. And yet the idlers are
again at their old practices. They have
experienced that they cannot any longer
govern the toilers. At least, in most
countries of the world-principally in
this republic-they have given up the
old dogma OF "By the grace of God"
But they have found that by sharp prac-
tice they can, through the legerdemain
of political combinations, corrupt means
and influences, use the toilers' money;
combine with one another and again en-
slave them through the means of capital,
privileges, legislation, lawful robbery
fNr ha
working classes are eminent and require
even more watchfulness now than ever.
Tie idlers have given up pretense and
assumed hypocrisy. They are STOPPING
to conquer. Capital to-day is omnipo-
tent because it rules the toilers' only
safeguards, the ballot box, the legislative
bodies, the courts, congress and the ma
chinery of the working peoples govern
ment. Capital hides behind the church,
and the church is used as screen by
the politicians. Candidates for office
pretend to belong to this or that denomi-
nation of religious worship. They, if
they do not, shove forward their wives
and their liberalitv. They pretend to
temperance when they know that they
are secret drunkards. The result of this
sham comedy is that the toilers actually
reward hypocrisy, and elect men to rule,
entirely void of real and genuine princi-
Piles.
The only remedy is for the toilers to
do their own terrible, solid thinking.
The only politician whom the toilers
should trust is the man who is toiler
himself, who is independent, entirely in
dependent of churches, isms and soph-
istry who is an acknowledged opponent
to idlers, capital, monopoly, privileges,
and who has principles which he is not
afraid to state openly and without reser-
vation. Make idling improbable, dis
honorable. Do not reward it and idlers
will be forced to become toilers whether
they wish to or not. Labor must be the
real crown of life. W. x.