The freeman. (Parkersburg, W. Va.) 1886-18??, 1888-09-05
THE REASON WIN
BY GEORGE. W. Balm

81 w " dI Inc DOttn,,
of the crime of this country liss .na
liquor trafic-at the bottom Of we
litical corruption, social diso,dpO ~
and depression in trade. this saui
liquor traffic. What has bean '1 tIs
condition of business Interests t .l
past two years? "Store. bon 'us
crowded with goods WANTING cnass
mers; homes filled with distress y.
want of the goods that crowd t t's
warehouses; banks glutted v jts
money that ought to be used W
conveying the goods from the ova :.
stocked storehouses to the neadrs
We are told it is over production +
do not doubt there are some brancb.s
Of industry overworked, but owe,
production is not the main canoa
Suppose a man very i'll, with siv
consulting doctors around him-onaa
at his head, one at his heart one ~
each hand, and one at eac Oh font
Suppose the doctor at bis hesS
should say, "There is q rush If
blood to the head; y and the doctor
at the heart should say, @There ia
rush of blood to the heartD bpt
those at his hands and feet sbonId
say, "There is no blood down hers
his limbs are cold and bloodless.
would the doctors pronounce that
case of over-production OF blood, and
proceed at once to bleeding? Would
they not say, What our patient
needs is something to get up cir.
culation; to send the blood from
his head and, heart down to the ex.
tremities." Yet here is diseased
trade, rush of blood to head and
heart, money to the banks, goods
to storehouses, but from the ex.
tremities comes the cry, "There is
no blood down heSs-no food. no
fuel, no clothing" and we are told
it lis cover production" Until naked
feet are saod, until there is oil in
the cruise and meal in the tubs of
the homes where dssolation sits en-.
throned upon the hearthstone, it Is
an insult to God to take His bless.
ings, lock them @p in storehousss
and while his people starve cry out,
SOBER production"
Why is it, up ON the hilltop Of
capital storehouses are crowded,
and down in tho valley of poverty,
people starve? 1t is because the
people in the valley have not the
money to buy the wheat, packed
pork, and clothing. Why not ? Lis.
ten. Last year, out of the pockets
of the laboring classes alone, five
hundred millions of dollars for in.
toxicating liquors! Within the
past four years two thousand mil.
lions of dollars. Turn this amount
loose tomorrow on your unsold
goods and they would melt like
mists before the morning sun
Many a now barefooted boy would
soon put his new trousers in bis
red-topped boots, and sing with
pride a king might covet, "This old
world is growing better" while
bright-eyed boyhood, laughing girl,
hood, and happy womanhood would
praise God for this land of plenty
and rlghteously-ruled government
1t is wonder politicians, who have
telescope eyes and skilfully scan
economic skies, do not see this can
Ger eating into the life of this coun'
try. They tell US the solution is to
stop producing. Is it possible idle
ness is the solution of an economic
question Does God, who set the
machinery of worlds in motion,
haye to stop some of them, now ana
then, for others to catch up? LOOK
at the earth in its circuit of tive
hundred millions of miles and never
a second behind time. Every cog
in every wheel of the machinery Of q
Gods universe in its place and all
at WORK; yet we men get things ID
such shape we must stop, 60 ln'o ="
state of idleness, and let things
catch up. No man or nation Of
people can be prosperous in IDLE,
ness, nor could the broadest-wlngea
angel of Heaven be happy in ldle'
ness. Every stroke of honest WORE
is that much added to the wealth