The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-02-03
TO THE RICH AND THE POOR.
Two Messages of Counsel. OF Promise
and OF Threat.

Two Messages of Counsel. of Promise
and OF Threat.
Victor Hugo.
/ am asked what has been the lesson Of
nv life, what hare learned in my years
Of living 10 bequeAEh as my most precious
legacy 70 humanity I only reply that
my soul has two messages Of council, Of
promise and Of threat. 10 6eliyer-one TO
the rich, the other 20 the poor. The two
contain the sum of human wisdom.
TO THE RICH.
The poor CRY out TO the wealthy. The
slaves implore their rulers. And as much
nov IS IN the days of Spartan HeIots-
! arm one of them. and | add my voice 10
that Of the multitude: that IL may reach
the ears Of the rich. Who an z One Of
the people. From whence came II From
the bottonless pit. How arm ! narnedz /
ara wFetchedneSS- Ny lords, l have some
thing 10 say 70 you.
Ny lords, you are placed high. You
have power. orulenee, pleasure. the sun
immoyable al your zenith. unlimited au-
getfuiness of Others so be il. But their
Is something below you. Above you. per-
haps. Ny lords, / iTupart 10 you novelty.
The human race exists.
] am he who comes from the depths.
Ny lords, you are the great and the rich.
the night. But have care; there is a
greater power-the morning. The dawn
cannot be vanquished. 1t will come. Ii
comes Itslas within it the outbreak OF
irresistible day.
You, you are the dark clouds Of privi-
lege. Be afraid. The true master Is about
TO knock at the door.
Whist is the father of PRIVILEGE Chance.
What is his SOM Abuse. Neither chance
nor abuse Is enduring. They have, both
OF them. an evil tomorrow.
/ felt il requisite that / should come
among you. Why Because OF my yes
terday's rags. 1t was in order that my
voice might be raised among the satiated
that God commingled me with the hung
cred Oh, have pity, Oh, you know this
fatal world, whereto you believe You be-
long. So high you are outside of il. /
will tell you what il is
Abandoned, an orphan alone In bound
less creation, made my entry into this
gloom that you call society. The first
thing saw was law, under the form of
gibbet; the second was wealth-if is YOUR
weaiih--under the form OF woman dead
Of cold and hunger; the third was luxury
under the shape of a hunted man chained
10 prison walls; the fourth was your
palaces, beneath the shadow of which
covered the tramp.
The human race has been made by YOU
slaves and conviets. You have made of
this earth dungeon. Light is wanting.
air is wanting. virtue is wanting.
come 10 warn you. / come TO denounee
TO you your own bliss. 1t is made out of
the ills Of the others. Your paradise
Is made out of tie hell OF the poor
/ come TO open before you, the wealthy,
the grand assizes of the poor-that sover-
eign who is the slave, that convict who is
the Judge. | am bowed down under what
have 10 say. Where to begin? / know
II har axzsgl cd ina a
ence of suffering. my vast though stray
Cling pleas. Now, what shall ! do with
ihem2 They oyerwhelm me and | throw
them forth pell-mell before me-
I am diver and bring up from the
depths a pearl, the Truth 1 speak be-
have seen. Suffering? No, the word is
weak, o masters in bliss. Poverty
have grown up in il: winter have shiy-
cred in it; famine-I have tasted sit; seorn
Il have undergone il; the plagile-I have
had il; shame-I have drunk of it,
The workers of this world, whose fruits
you enjoy, live in death. There are little
girls who begin at by prostitution,
and who end at ID by old age Who
among you have been to Newcas-
tle-on-Tyne? There are men in the mines
who chew coal TO ill the stomach and
cheat hunger. Look you in Lancashire
Misery everywhere. Are you aware that
az the Hartech fishermen eat grass when
the fishery fails? Are you aware that ut
Burton LAYERS there are still certain lepers
driven into the woods, who are fired al if
they come out of their dens. In Peck
ridge there are no beds in the novels, and
holes arc dug in the ground for little chill.
dren TO sleep in, so that in beginning with
the cradle, they begin with the tomb.
Mercy. Have mercy on the poor, Oh,
implore you. have pity. But, no, you
will not. | know We all Devils bred in
hell and dogs with hearts of stone. Up
ward to your golden thrones for ages has
gone the cry of misery, the groan of hun
ger and the sob of despair, and we Needed
not. What mercy thou hast given shall be
melted ont 10 YOU in turn.
Bear in mind that the series Of kings
armed with the sword was interrupted hy
Cromwell, armed with the ak
Tremhle The ineorruptible Gissolutions
draw near; the clipped talons push out
again: the torn out tongues take to flight,
become tongues of lire scattered To the wind
OF darkness, and they howl in the Infinite.
They who are hungry show their idle
teeth. Paradises built over hell totter.
There IS Sutiering-there is suffering and
that which is above leans over, and that
which Is below gapes open. The shadow
asks 20 become light. The damned dis
cuss the elect. 1t ~ the peopie who are
on-coming. tell yon il is man who as
cends. IL Is the end that is beginning.
II - tklt Ecl ulNHAfE Oh CItASfrDpRe-
All this society Is false. One day. and
soon, the true society will come Then
there will be no more lords; there will be
free, living men, There will be no more
wealth: there will be an abundance for the
poor. There will be no more masters
but there will be brothers. They that
toll shall have. This is the future
No more proStration; no more ahase-
ment; no more beasts OF burden: no
more courtiers; no more kings-but light
TO TIE POOR.
Shall now speak to the poor after hav-
ing IN vain lmplored the richg Yes, il Is
hitting. This, then. have | 10 saw 10 the
dlslnherlted Keep watch on your
abominable jaw, There is one rule for the
rieh--to do nothing: and one for the poor
Ito say nothing. The poor have but one
monosyllable: Yes. To confess and 70
concede-this Is all the rights" they
have. Yes, Ia the Judge. YES 10
ihe King The great, If il SO pleaseS them.
l.