The advocate., 1892-02-17

It Is worth to the man from whom | buy
it, or what did it cost to produce 1t, but
what can / induce or force him TO take
F6fit? The buyeriS is not to blame as
rule, for it is the method of business, the
spirit Of intense competition abroad in
the world. To illustrate Suppose we
compel the ready made clothing dealers
In most Of our large cities to pay living
wages to their poor seamstresSes, and all
they employ, and owing to the fierce
competition and the small margins, most
of them would have to quit business. ]
refer here to real, honest, Christian men,
who desire to do right, but there are
sharkp, human fiends, who knowingly
"ground the face ofthe poor" to unreas-
onably increase their profits. Since
have been investigating critically our
obnoxious business methods l have won.
dered how any one could be a consistent
Christian and consciously follow them
without continual protest. One cannot
be truly unssl6sh-have the Christ spirit
In It's purity, who is constantly taking I'D
vantage of mems necessities and condi-
tlons, and compelling them to sell prop
erty and produce for less than Its value
or cost to produce II. I condemn no man
personally In thus speaking unless he
Is dishonest and takes more advantage
than our system allows, or unnecessarily
takes advantage Of the needy, but our
vicious, defective war methods of doing
business, which are the relics Of barbar
ism, the growth of ages, and are en-
trenched behind custom, prejudice and
show Of reason, and cannot be over
thrown without deranging business, and
possibly endangsrlng all private proper
ty. do believe that during the coming
years, and possibly soon, change will be
gradually effected, and an industrial
revolution will be brought about that
will make II much easier to live an un-
selfish life than atpreSent, yes will make
life thousand times more desirable in
every way. Until then we must dothe
best we can and fght this demon with the
weapons we now possess.
FIN our business relations, as well as
In our Christian, we were thinking and
planning as much for our neighbours well
fare as our own-wllling in all thingsto
let live 40 we'll as live, honestly endeavor'
ing to promote the good OF others as much
as our own, this would be all that the
Christ spirit would demand, and IL such
actions would become universal, this in
dustrlal revolution would come very soon
and 1t would be a peaceful, bloOdless
one, WITH Jesus as Its leader. But some
one might say, "thiS is not human ma
ture." ] know II. Human nature, aS
thus spoken of, is another word for the
devil, the unregenerated nature which
no Christian has q right to harbor or
give way to for one moment. Our busi-
ness is to be "lmitators Of Christ" and
when we fall to do this our Christian
character Is In danger, II not our souls.
Yes, friends, "if Christianity means
anything It means the eradication of the
effects of elm 10 economic and social re-
latlons of man as well as the conquest Of
sin In the human heart" / would ex
hortyou TO put forth not one less eff ri
ln this individual warfare, but In addi-
ton, to double, yes, quAdruple your Of
forts to eradicate 1t from our social lnstl.
tutions, for if we do not, as I before re.