The Globe-republican., 1893-12-22

the state Of New York Seventv-tvo years
afterwards Sh ikespeare lived and John Milton
made the age illustrfous. But when Shake
speare penned the dramas which have become
immortal and Milton wrote the epics which
everybody praises and nobody reads, there
were not 5.OOo. ~ people in the world who
could read the tongue in which they were writ
ten Now there are IS .OOl0O0 of them and
they cover one-third the space Of the civilized
world
The Hard Times.
am not here nor elsewhere to claim that the
Anglo Saxon race has solved the problems Of
humanity. We are confronted to-day b one
OF the most formidable catastrophes that e er
befell the race A year ago this nation vas in
the foodtide Of a career of the most unpar-
a!leled and unprecedented prosperity. Money
was abundant employment was stable, wages
were ample, prices were good, the markets
were satisfactory ana we were assured that
the times were to become even better.
Suddenly, without premonttion or warning.
as when cyclone bursts from the horizon Of q
western prairie, the whole condition was
changed and the country was plunged into .
profound apathy, distrust and despair. The
wheels Of the mills ceased to revolve The fires
in the foundries were extinguished Wages
were no longer accessible Money, like beer
and whisky in a prohibition state, became q
nat-r-l ---iosity And there is no immediate
prospect ior d rvturn uf this prosperity.
am told that there are in { is country p
00), 30 men, able and willing to work out Of
employment was told that in Detroit there
are l2.5D0 families dependent on charity. In
Philadelphia few weeks ago was told that
$3.50 people will perish before the winter is
over unless E-ivate charity comes to the rescue.
In Johnstown. o. the center Of q growing.
scientific iron industry. l5.t0J men have had no
emplo: ment since last August
Two million men unemployed are one-sixth Of
the entire population of this country, the rich
est most powerful most intellectual and pro-
gressive OF nations II is rather a critical con-
sideratou and no question more Immediately
affects the politics of to-day than the causes Of
poverty and the cure and remedy for poverty
While am here to preach no gospel OF pes
simism. TO rim, no alarm bell, 10 sound no cry
OF fire at midnight, yet 4 firm that the great
momentous, serious and formdab lie problem Of
the day is the fac that one-sixth OF the people,
in the midst OF plentr, with abundance on every
hand are starving venture, nav may con-
tend that this is the result of legislation. Of
our political institu ions the inevitable GU tfow
of our An-lo Saxon civilization But never,
that, deteStable are the doctrines. bsurd as
are the remedies proposed unless he thought
full. intelligent and patriotic take hold Of the
problem, is it possible to avoid the catastrophe.
1t is well enough to sheer at the ideas form
ulated as the cure for evils. but 60 American
citizen will hesitate to say that these condi-
tons must have immediate amelioration polit.
icaily. I'm every hungry mans hand Is \ most
formidable weapon. II would not mean so much
in Russia, or in Germany. or in England even.
for in the latter place is heredity. a stratifcar
ton o. society. A standing army and navy in
the control OF kingiy power.
But here, what more formidab e weapon could
there be than q hungry and exasperated ma
iority.
The Rich and the Poor.
1t seems unjust and unreasonable that one
man should have suparfluity beyond the ca
pacity Of extravaganza to sQuander, while an.
other should not have bread for his family to
eat But deny that the government should
furnish employment But we are charged with
the exercise Of our duties. Dynasties are dan
gerous, the cyclone is dangerous the turbulent
torrent of the Missouri seems dangerous But
there is something more dangerous in the de-
termination OF an indignant, exasperated and
hungrv majority, with feelings Of discomfort,
and injustice in their hearts
Ii is no crime to own \ million dollars, but
doubt il any man ever earned in the sense of
giving an equivalent, million dollars There
was a time when there were no milionaireS-
and no tramps: no socialists, no anarchists and
no populists. lLaughter.l l am painfully
aware that there are many Of the latter
[laughterl and hope they will disappear some
time. But they will never disappear until the
causes which brought them into existence dis.
appear. have no faith in the dogma that the
rich are growing richer and the poor are grow
ing poorer The contrary is true. There
has never been an hour since the angel
stood with flaming sword before the gate OF the
garden. when the dollar of the rich man
brought so little return for his inves tment, and
there has never been a time since man began
to toll when the dollar Of the poor man fought
SO much OF the necessities OF life. But it is
harder than ever before to acquire q compe-
tency.
There is a great gulf fixed between the rich
and the poor, between the laborer and the en-
ployer till il is almost as if they were in two
hostile camps During the past year 500, 600 =
900 has been destroyed in loss of wages de
struction Of plants and deterioration of capital
This great sum is enough to par the national
debt and instead of the condition becoming
ameliorated it is becoming intensified. There
is hardly day when there is not some new
contumacy. some new struggle between some
corporation and laoorers in which the people
and the patrons suffer
One of the most popular explanations which
has been offered is that on account OF competi-
ton and individualisrn. root-ho e ordis. o free
chance for all and the devil take the h;ndmost
there has been an overproduction. but it is an
explanation that does not explain 1t says that
the reason that there are so MANY barefoot
men IN the country is that too many shoes have
been made in the factories OF the east, and the
reason there are so many hungry men is that
too much wheat and corn has been grown on
the prairies Of the west
The trouble has been. not in over production,
but under-consumption- While I am not be-
lever in the forcible distribution of the assets
OF society, yet Law down the axiom that our
institutions must b. so modified that any citi-
zen able and willing to work should have the
opportunity.
1t is a social and political question. Ulti-
mately it is something that affects the doctrine
OF protection. not from a republican or demo
cratic point OF view, but whether the best way
TO keep our men employed is to have what we
need made abroad [spplausel; that the way to
increase our agricultural products is to send all
our labore:s 10 the farm Applausel There
must be consideration aside from the sen
tence that it is condition and not a theory
that confronts US
have heard il asserted that there are 800 d.
COO0o0 people on the earth and that half of
them wear no clothes 1 saw 49, 900 people
stand on four acres Of ground without serious
Inconvenience. All the people Of the world
could stand on the soil of the state OF Texas
and would still have room to NOV around.
The United States is capable OF supporting
1000, 0oo.0O people in plenty and nappiness. So