Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1891-05-13
A Suggestive PrODhpcy.

| Some thirty-five years ago the famous
historian, Thomas Darlington Macaulay,
wrote remarkable prophecy on socialism
concerning this country, or at least por-
ton of it. "Tbe dav will come" said he,
"when IN the State of New York multi
| tude of people. not one half of whom has
| had more than half breakfast or expect
| to have more than half dinner, will
choose a Legislature. Is it possible to
doubt what sort of legislature will be
chosen On one side is a statesman preach
ing patience, respect for vested rights,
strict observance of public faith while on
the other hand is demagogue, ranting
about the tyranny of capitalists and usurers,
and asking why anybody should be per-
mtted to drink champagne or ride in car
rage while thousands of honest folks are
in want of necessaries. Which of the two
candidates is likely to be preferred by a
werkingman who hears his children crying
for bread 1 seriously apprehend that you
will, in some snch season of adversely as
have described, do things which will pre-
vent prosperity from ever returning.
Either some Caesar or Napoleon will seize
the reins of government with a strong hand
or your Republic will be as fearfully plur-
dered and laid waste by barbarians in the
| twentieth century as the Roman empire
was in the fifth, with this difference, that
the Huns and Vandals who ravaged the
Roman empire came from without, and
that your Huns and Vandals will have been
ergendered within your own country and
by your own institution"
This prophecy was written in 1857; and,
while the twentieth century has not yet
come, what has already transpired and is
transpiriDg around Us every day in our
history cannot fail to make it a subject of
| serious reflection and to suggest to the
thoughtful reader the instability of the
best and strongest forms of government.
Radical changes have taken place in odr
Republican system within the last thirty
years and others are threatened every day.
The bold attempt in Congress last winter
to fasteu upon us the Infamous election
force bill showed to what desperate ex-
tremes the enemies of the Republic are
anxious to go in their purpose to subver'
our institutions, and we only escaped the
catastrophe by a mere accident. The fact
that the last Congress squandered more
than billion of dollars and left the federal
treasury almost bankrupt-an extrava-
gance that never occurred before in our
history-shows what fearful strides cor
ruption is making in all departments of our
government
But let us look for a moment at the
troubles and dangers that beset us in the
matter of socialism. Portions of the coun-
| try are ripe with the spirit of socialism, as
has been shown in Chicago and elsewhere,
in its most violent form and rs Macaulay
said, there are millions of people in the
country, especially in the large cities, who
are glad to get one meal day and are not
always assured of that. They are "Clamor
GUS for bread" and are very apt in cleo
TONS to f,''ow thu lead nf tha demag rer az
Acd then look at the present lAA 7 trouo es
that prevail over large portions Of cur coun-
try in almost every trade and branch of
business. Ga the frst of this present
month of May there we're thousands of
''strikes" from New York to Illinois, and
in some States as many as 5 900 strikers.
They too are more apt to follow the ap-
peals of the demagogue and socialist than
the wise statesman and cautious patriot
In short, wild and socalistic disorder an6
discord prevail all over the country al
never before, and if they keep on growing
what may be the result, even before the
commencement of the next century
With oppressive tariff laws and monopolies
on top may not our republic be as fearfully
plundered and laid waste in the twentieth
century as Rome in the fifth, and may We
not have "Ceasar or Napoleon to seizt
the reigns of our government 2" Far les
probable things have occurred. -Lynchburt
News.