The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1891-12-11


chat YOU might enioy such a course.
Happily, tits not necessary for practl-
cal % to know all that every one
has said on a subject. Common sense
is better than roundabout logic and as y, y.
old DR.. Moses Stuart used to say, 1T
isn't necessary to eat u whole fitch o
bacon to find it Is tainted" IL
Nearly all the attempts to solve the
question:. as | believe, involve socialism m
in one OF it's forms. ii l can giveyou ina 81
few minutes a brief outline OF socialism
and then in a few minutes more can give q
YOU the principal objections to It's as
%sump+ions. | shall be furnishing you the
kew, l think, to the labor question.
am moved to this discussion by the TACT II
that have been asked by the knights Q
Of Labor to address them on Sunday I
night on this subject. 1t does not
COMFORT with my views OF the design OF
the Sabbath service to discuss secular :
questions on that day. l have no OBJ +
lection however to discuss them at the !
proper time and have thoughtthe present
occasion a suitable one for taking up
this subject. {.
Socialism is an attempt to adjust
wrongs. Had there been no wrongs this
) phase OF modern thought would not
been heard OF. Socialism has therefore
e an earnest purpose which demand our
respect, it cannot be poohed away, 1T
must be heard for it speaks in behalf OF
J; humanity, its theories must be answer
ed and if they cannot be answered, like
men, we must accept them.
In the present discussion 1 do not
;, claim any originality for my arguments.
a They may be found scattered through
IS the latest works on the subject.
Socialism has been defined as q pro-
III test misunderstanding forms OF industrial
6 organization and an attempt to create
u institutions on the basis OF essential and
y impartial justice. Socialism may be
u said to have passed throughits ideal and
experimental stages and to have entered
a on it's political stage.
"a The first or ideal stage, was where 1T
~ was discussed by philosophers. You
~ may be surprised if told that the
iui first attempt to reform society was
ny made by Plato. He constructed an
~ ideal state whose arrangements would
seem strange to this audience. The citi
w. zens were to be maintained by the labor
al OF slaves and were to devote themselves
to the public veal. All goods were com
ope mon property and hence private prof.
till erty disappeared. Money was to h'
sia abolished as useless, and private mar
ms. riage was done away; children beln'
'ac- brought up by the public and ignoran
the OF their parents. All this sounds chin
the erical but one thing he did say wllicl
ace. laid the foundation for sound thinkins
an "Social Justice" said Plato, sis slmpl
her every man doing his own business, mail
EN- tanning the harmony OF his own natu1
Ear and earnestly prosecuting his own cal
pre- ing" This is all the state is to try t
IAN. secure him and all each man can AS
With viz, to have the right to his W pc
sonality, andyto be content to be hlr
sell. You will see before long that S
still cialisln has a different idea OF the dut
the OF government than simply to secure
rtit- each man the right to be himself.
the The experimental stage OF socialism
Sla- rcry interesting. What was aimed
Ike a WAS so to associate people together tl
. as they could live and could transact /
that business OF society more economical
who cause them to live as one family. Whe
1Oll- it did not seek SO close Il Dond us til
to it endeayored by co-opcr;tive prod,
me1l- ton or by cooperative stores, etc,
rd to cconomiZe capital, to do away with t
lg OF middle man, and to keep the money d
llght- community, as far as possible, IN t
hands of the consumer. We see this S,
this c~essfully applied in the family where t
boys all work on the farm together IL
,ivili- the girls all work in the house, where
ates, eat from one table, are paid from G
rail. common purse and have an equal sllt
hical Of their father's estate. The plan v
u in work very well so long as the boys Il
God girls will work and so long as they fol
,oun- one family as the family was made
uited God to exist. But suppose one Of t
, and boys married, then there are two fa1
Jhris- lies instead OF one, and the old hon
ilizer stead must be remodeled to suit the n
have arrangement. Then one OF the dau,
egiti- tiers is married and another adjustme
uses. must take place, and so on. This Y
g for sometimes work pleasantly because til
raise are still one family as God intended
and that idea. But when people withc
, and natural family ties are to be crowC
erica together into Il sociallstlc family, it /
always been found that the idea OF
o,nt- family, as God ordained It, must
tates Niafflase h'us0 DC aoollsheo ana on
kota one hand, promiscuous association
emn- adopted, as IN the Oneida communi
y the or celibacy must be the rule, as with
aivad Shakers. How sad that men and won
IT,. should feel compelled, simply to make
lonal ll'ihs' 10 ;toollsn d pam institution
/ tbe God. Such societies do not multi
nc which is a plain indication that God
fami- signed that mankind were to obi;
with their support and find their spirit,
hath development through the family.
r cup! soclallSih tha1 touches the laihlly
@ TO not prosper. There may be forms
foith cOmmunistic lie which retain the fam
4 we idea and which may be carried on 81
,ood- cessfully. The tribal relation among t
the indians is 1t loose communism, thou
n the even there, each Indian reserves his O
pony and gun, which IN most cases is
+ this he has to divide. But where much Pre-
,ossi erty is to be divided, and where cheerl