The Irish standard., 1894-03-31
SATURDAY, MARCH 81, 1894;
SOCIAL Discomfort.

SOCIAL Discomfort.
The pilgrimage Of Coxey and his fol-
lowers to Washington illustrates the
misconception which some people enter
tain of the function of government.
This Is not the first march to Washing
ton thai has been undertaken. Time
and againE Congress when dealing with
the tariff has entertained interested pill
prins from the man ufacturing centers OF
the country. Mckinley and his COM
mittee in the Fifty first Congress granted
everything to the manufacturers that
was asked. 1t is no uncommon thing 10
have delegations and committees visit
WASHINGTON for the avowed purpose.o
lobbying. Washington has become the
Jerusalem of the modern crusader IN
this country. Every one who imagines
he has grievance plans trip 70 Wash
ington. Manufacturers, railroad corpor
ations and Office brokers have long been
in the habit of doing this, and too often
these modern crusaders have differed
from the crusaders ct old in that they
accomplish the purpose OF their pilgrim
age.
The Republican newspapers are now
ridiculing the Coxey undertaking, but
they should remember that this ill ad-
vised plan of converting period OF ma
tional depression INTO one OF prosperity
is the legitimate outgrowth OF what they
and their party speakers have been
teaching. For many year the Republi-
cans have been promising to all. high
wages under their high protection
scheme, Notwithstanding the fact that
history shows conclusively that tariff has
little to do with wages. The object OF
the present crusade is to demand gov
eminent AID for the unemployed. Cox
ey,s plan is to have the government is-
sue $500, 100000 of fat money bearing no
interest secured by county bonds; This
money to be expended OH the improve
ment Of roads, each laborer to receive
$1.50 per day.
The Coxey show is the logical result
of teaching which makes the govern
ment everything. Party speakers have
been promising SO much that large
class Of people have become convinced
that the government can relieve every
distress by proper legislation. This
much can be said in favor of the Coxey
crowd-they have as much right to go
to Washington in their own interest as
did the protection barons in 1890 Re-
publicans ridicule the present movement
and at the same time complain because
the protective interests are not allowed
to dictate changes in the Wilson bill to
the senate finance committee. Party
zeal is responsible to a large degree for
the ominoue unrest that is agitating the
lower classes. Party press and party
speakers have attributed power and
function to government it does not pos
sess. until at last socialistic equality has
become an alluring vision to him who ali
his life has toiled and served without
hope. That society is responsible for
his condition, that the state can alter his
condition if it only would, is the ready
conviction of half enlightened reason.
There is a class of people to-day who
have abandoned everything for the hope
Of better things, which they expect to
attain through legislation wholly. This
unfounded hope is largely grounded on
unfulfilled party promises. And now
that armies of the unemployed have
taken up their march for Washington to
demand all those good things that high
/ tariH..was to give us ought not to be sur
prising. But the fact remains that gov
1 eminent CANDID little towards equalizing,
B and il ialwell that it cannot. The COM
{ munistic idea which seems Just now to
B be 90 popular in certain quarters repre-
sents plan which, i put into effect,
would be as despotic and destructive Of
4 indiyidualiem as Russian serfdom ever
swae. TO rely entirely upon government,
@ divide the products Of the earth and Of Of
& personal industry equally would be to
slestfoy MI Individual efforts and 70 en-
lleoulsee #so noat de-
4 political