The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1894-05-16
THE MIGHTY FRENCHMAN.
His Appeal for Justice to the Ric
lNirtnr Iuqa'S AdlrnSSl

His Appeal for Justice to the Rich.
Victor Hugo's Address.)
The poor cry out to the wealthy. The
slaves implore their rulers, and as much
now as in the days Of Spartan heots. /
am one Of them, and l add my voice to
that of the multitude that it may reach
the ears of the rich. Who am |? One Of
the people. From whence come 1? From
the bottomless pit. How am 1 named?
1 am wretchedness. My lords, l have
something to say to you. My lords, you
are placed high You have power, opu-
lence, pleasure, the sun immovable at your
zenith. unlimited authority, enjoyment un-
divided, a total forgetfulness of others.
So be it. But there is something above
you. Below you, perhaps. My lords, l
iinpart to you novelty. The human race
exists. l am he who comes from the
depths. My lords, you are the great and
rich That is perilous. You take advan-
tage of the night. But have a care; there
is greater power, the morning The
dawn cannot be vanquished. 1t will come.
1t comes. 1t has within the outbreak of
Irresistible day. You, you are in the dark
clouds of privilege Be afraid. The true
master is about to knock at the door
What is the father of privilege? Chance.
what is his son? Abuse. Neither chance
nor abuse is enduring. They have, both
Of them, evil tomorrow. 1 come to
warn you. l come to denounce you in
your bliss 1t is made out of the ills of
others Your paradise is made out of the
nellS of the poor. / come to open before
you, the wealthy, the grand assizes of
the poor-that sovereign who is the slave,
that convict who is the judge. 1 am bowed
down under what | have to say. Where to
begin l know not. l have picked up in
the cruel experience of suffering my vast
though struggling pleas Now what Shall
| do with them? They overwhalm me and
L throw them forth, pel-mell before me. l
am diver, and l bring up from the depths
pearl, the truth. : speak because l
know. l have experienced. l have seen.
Suffering? No, the word is weak o mas
ters in bliss! Poverty! 1 have grown up
in it; winter have shivered in it; IA
nine-I have had it; shame-I have drunk
Of it. l felt it requisite that l should
come among you Why? Because of my
yesterdays rags 1t was in order that my
voice might be raised among the satiated,
that God comng-led me with the hun
sered. Oh, l know not this fatal world,
whereto you believe that you belong. So
high, you are outside of it. 1 will tell
you what it is. Abandoned, an orphan,
alone in boundless creation, l made my
entry into this gloom that you call society.
The first thing that L saw law I'M
der the form of a gibbet; the second was
WEALTH. is your wealth under the form
of woman dead Of cold and hunger; the
third luxury under the shape of a
hunted man chained to prison walls, the
fourth was your palaces beneath the sha-
dow of which covered the tramp. The
ntlildl1 race mas DSen mace Dy you slaves
and convicts. You have made Of this
earth dungeon. Light is wanting, air is
wanting, virtue is wanting. The workers
Of the world, whose fruits you enjoy, live
IN death. There little girls who be-
gin at by prostitution and who end
at 20 by old age. Who of you have been
to Newcastle on-Tyne? There are men in
the mines who chew coal to fill the stomach
and cheat hunger. Look you to Lanca-
shire. Misery everywhere. Are you
aware that the Harlech fishmen eat grass
when the fishery fails Are you aware that
at Burton LAYERS there are still certain
lepers driven into the woods who are
fred at if they come out Of thir dens?
In Peckridge there are no beds in the
novels, and holes dug in the ground
for their children to sleep in; 50 that in
place of beginning with the cradle they be-
gin with the tomb. Mercy, have mercy
On the poor! Oh, l conjure you, have pity.
But no, you will not. l know We all;
devils bred in hell and dogs with hearts
Of stone Upward to your golden thrones
for ages has gone the cry of misery, the
groan Of hunger and the sob of despair
and We heard it not What mercy thou
hast given shall be meted out to you in
return. Bear in mind that the series of
kings armed with the sword was inter-
rupted by Cromwell with the ak. Trembe!
The incorruptible dissolution draws near;
the clipped talons push out again; the
torn-out tongues take to flight, become
tongues Oh name scattered to the wings
of darkness, and they howl to the infinite
They who are hungry show their idle
teeth. Paradises built over hell totter
There is suffering and that which is above
u ans over; and that which is below
gapes open. the shadow asks to become
light The damned discuss the elect 1t
is the people who are oncoming. l tell
you it is the man who ascends. 1t is the
end that is beginning. 1t is the red dawn
ing of catastrophe All! 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 win
be no more masters, but there will be
brothers. No more prostration, nc more
abasement, no more ignorance no more
wealth, no more beasts Of burden, no more
courtiers, no more kings--but light