Salt Lake evening Democrat. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1885-1887, 1886-09-14
ROSE ELIZABETH CLEVELAND.

The following editorial article from
Miss Rose Elizabeth Cleveland's first
edition of Literary Life, is published, to
give our readers an idea of the calibre OF
the lady as thinker and reasoner, as
well as to show the wide range OF sub
jects she handles:
Indirect blows sometimes reach the right
spot first. A straight line, in ethics and
economies, is not always the shortest JUS
tance between two given points. When the
laborinp class strikes, it is not always the
directest way to return the blow. 1t Is
better to weaken the arm that strikes.
There is no way to weaken the arm that
strikes, like strengthening the head above
that arm, and sottenlng tne neart DeioW
that arm When the brain takes wider
view, and the heart takes kinder view,
the bigotry and hate that nerves that strlk-
ing arm will subside and cause that arm
to waver and to fall from its death-dealing
aim.
ANY plan that looks toward this widening
of the intellectual horizon of the labor1ng
man, will tend to make him more reason
able man; and therefore a more tractable
and friendly man; and by logical sequence
better citizen. Such plan seems to be
that of Rev. Charles F. GoSs, of Chicago
who is planning a series of educational en-
tertainments for laboring people, to be held
in his church (that formerly under the charge
of Mr. Moody sometime in the autumn.
There is real Christianity and real philosophy
and real patriotism in plan like this; one
wonders if it might not be as well worth
taking hold of as some other things.
Even in the line of self-improvement
one may ask ones self a question here.
To be the means of letting In a
fresh, cool thought into the vexed brain
of the man whose head is hot, through and
through, with the one monotonous inham-
nation of study how he can get even with
the hated tyrant who buys his work for less
than its value; to so enlarge his vision of the
social order that he may see the relations OF
things with sane and reasonable sight and
insight; to relieve his mind with a thought
of beauty; to enliven his muddy imagina-
ton with the touches of a master; would not
this be practical work in the way of solving
the problem of how to subdue the strikers!
And would not the reaction upon ones self
of this deed done result in possibly an equal
degree of leverage, as would come from
dissection of TheosoPhy, or an analysis OF
the Elective Affinity?
That Miss Cleveland is an educated
lady, there is no doubt, but that she is
the one woman to place at the head of
literary venture, which addresses itself
and contents tointelligent readers, is, by
reason of the queer logic above given,
very doubtful. The class of people whom
she reaches through this magazine are
those who have come to the surface in
the race of life by giving and taking the
hard knocks necessary in that hotbed of
competition, and who are not at all given
to view such everyday questions as labor
strikes and kindred troubles, through
glasses trimmed with gilded edges.
The subject of self-improvement
OF working men is veritable
chestnut in the newspaper world
and has done duty for two decades in the
hands of more able writer's than Miss
Cleveland, and the dissection of Theoso-
ply, or the analysis of the Elective At
fnity, though they be new factors in the
argument, can in no manner tend to de-
eide the present labor troubles in the
country. or help the horny-handed son of
toll to decide whether $3.50 per day for
eight hours work is not filter for laborers
than $1.90 and twelve hours work. If
Miss Cleveland would devote space in
her next number to the oneness OF the
bears on the grain question, or the de-
cidedly twoness of the fellows who engi-
neer a corner in the pork market, she
would strike more responsive chord in
the breats of her readers than she can
ever do in those of the sons of toll.