The great West. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1889-18??, 1890-07-04


There are thousands of men and
women who have not the liberty to
do that for which they are most fit
ted; while to many man the door
of domestic relations is shut, by his
inability, under existing conditions.
to support family, and this fact
has given rise to discussions among
some of the (so-called) economic
writer's, as to whether the poor
ought to marry and rear children.
A system that can give rise to such
a question is deplorab!e, to say the
least. There is no instinct in the
souls OF men SO strong as the in
stinct OF personal rights. It en-
phasized itself in our American revo-
luton. 1t has made America the
grandest country the sun shines up
on.
An instinct that is stirring nightly
in the souls OF men now days is that
they have equal rights to the earth
and natural resources, that God has
given no man, corporation, or syndi-
cate a monopoly of these bounties,
that they belong as truly to all men
alike as air, sunshine, and rain from
heaven.
Common to all and not special
to any is what Nationalism en-
phasizes, in it's proposition to give
every man a chance to exercise his
powers upon natural resources for
the full supply of his needs.
What wonder that under the grind
of unsupplied needs in the present
system, a poet should voice the SEN
timents of thousands in these lines :
We want thu drones to be driven away from our
golden hoard;
We want to share in the harvest; want to sit
at the board
We want what sword or suffrage has never yet
The fruits OF his toll God promised when the curse
OF toll began.
What matter if king or consul or president holds
the rein,
If crime and poverty ever be links in the bond
What careth the burden bearer that Liberty
packed his load
If Hunger presses behind him with sharp and
ready goad?
There's serf whose chains are OF paper, there's
king with a parchment crown;
There are rObber knights and brgands in fac
tory, field and town.
But the vassal pays his tribute to a lord OF wage
and rent:
And the baron's toll is shyock's with a flesh and
blood per cent
You might as we'll try to pump
out ship with a hole in her bottom
as to right the wrongs of the work
ing classes under the present system.
An equal division of all property
which nationalism does NOT advo-
cate would make the lot of the work
ing people no better but worse
under existing conditions. Allow
competition then or now, full sway,
and of course the weakest would go
to the WALL"
Profit sharing, of which we hear
considerable, would prove no remedy
for existing wrong. Profit sharing,
in it's last analysis is the hook OF
competition with a bait on it. The
fellow who puts out the baited hook
catches the most victims.
A business man of St. Paul re-
marked that "profit sharing seemed
to him a smart trick OF employers to
get frmer grip on the men,
know minister in this state who
was in the habit OF making costly
present to the bride at the weddings
at which he was. called to officiate. l
said to him: 81 don't see how you
can afford it," His answer was: cit
comes back to me again fourfold. y
l am sorry to have to use a minister
to illustrate the baited- hook-feature
of profit sharing. but, alas; we are
all in the mess, and under the spell
of competition with the rest OF you.
The enormous waste of the present
Industrial system where competition
is the law of action is a weighty rea-
son for urging the naturalization of
our industries. Take an Illustration !:
In the little city OF H., not many
miles from St. Paul, there are, l
think, nine small grocers, all Compel
ing with each other for living, hav-
ing it ''n1p and tuck" with all the
''tuck" they want and more nip"
than some OF them can we'll stand.
AS a matter OF fact, one first-class
grocery could easily supply the town.
Suppose the nine were all to combine,
from a cooperative company, open
one first class establishment, and do
business for each others welfare and
the good of the public.
Look at the results in the matter
OF saving:
LIST. Rent of eight stores, together
with their fuel and lights.
I'd. Eight separate items OF adver-
Using.
3rd. The hire OF three-fourths of the
clerks needed.
4th. The mental strain and worry
incident to the fearful competition
necessary to live.
5th. Larger profits, because more
sales, even at reduced prices.
9Th. The public would be better
served at less cost for products.
Rut toLo onOthor Wow of this SOW