The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1894-05-03

CAUSES on GoNtAlNM.
Can any one find. in the work Of any
American author ar n the speech OF
any American orator mean Of the
free states pr.or Oh She civil war
any utimat'on tha. We should have,
fully developed on American sou, within
the present century, what has long been
known 10 Europe us 1.-The labor ques-
tiong" la 500 nobody here was seri-
ously troubled 10y the condition or eX-
pectations Of the working classes. In
fact. Americans we're not IN the habit OF
thinking OF workngmen as a class al
al. An American citizen who wrought
with his hands in any calling was looked
on, like other American ct.zens, az a
man who had his fortunes IN his own
keeping, and whose Judgment alone de-
cided in what manner they could be
improved. Nobody thought OF him rs
being in a special degree the pro.ege Of
the state. In fact, the idea that he had
a special and peculiar claim on state
protection was generally treated as
piece Of Gallo folly, over which Anglo
Saxons COW we'll afford to smile. There
was no mention Of the free laborer 10
political platforms Of that day, except
as an illustration 70 southern slave
holders Of the blessings OF which their
pride and folly deprived their own soci-
ETY..
We have changed all this very much.
Under the stimulation Of the war tariff,
not only has there been an enormous
amount Of capital invested in industrial
enterprises Of various sorts; not only
have mills and furnaces and mines and
protected interests Of all sorts greatly
multiplied, but there has appeared in
great force, and for the first time on
American soil, the dependent. state
managed laborer OF Europe, who de-
clines to take care Of himself ia the old
American fashion. When be is out Of
work. or does not like bis work, he looks
about, and asks bis fellow citizens sui
lenly, il not menacingly, what they are
going TO do about it, lie has brought
with him, too, what is called The labor
problem" probably the most un-Ameri-
can Of all the problems which American
society has TO work over to-day
Now this labor problem which so
many statesmen and philanthropists
and economists are trying their teeth
on, is every day made more difficult,
every day further removed from so.u-
tion, by that fatal lesson Of government
responsibility for the condition Of
particular class Of community, which
every believer 10 high tariG, every mat
uf0cturer who depends on the tariff, is
compelled to preach. OF all the novel
ties which the last twenty-five years
have introduced INTO American politics
and society. decidedly the most danger
Gus is tie practIce 81 telling large bod
les Of ignorant and excitabIe voters at
every election that their daily bread de-
ponds not only On their own capacity or
industry " ingenuity, or on the capac-
lty or industry OF ingenuity ~ their en-
p.oyers, but on the good will OF the leg
islature, or worse still, on the good will
a. the administration. In othor words,
the "tar.G issue, aa it is called 10 every
canvass, Is an Issue filed with tho seeds
Of social trouble and perpiexity.
The truth Is, that the first field ever
offered Tor seeing what the freedom OF
the individual could accomplish. ia the
art Of growing rich and Of diyersifying
industry, was offered on this continent.
II was blessed with the greatest variety
q soil and climate, with the finest ports
ami harbors, with the greatest extent o.
inland navigation, with the richest sup
piy ~ minerals, ~ any country Iu the
world. The population Was sinyularly
daring, hardy, Ingenious and self reliant
and untrammeled by feudal tradition.
Ihat opportunity has, under the pro-
teclve system, been temporarily allowed
to slip away. Tho old European path
has been entered OBJ. under tho iuHu-
euce OF the old European motive. tho
belief that gold is tho only wealth. that
iL trading with the foreigner. unless you
sell him more 30 specie value than ie
sells you, you lose by the transaction.
that diversity Of industry being neces
sary o. sound progress. diversity oi iu
dividual tastes, bent and OPACITY can
not be- depended on 90 produce D.. that
manufactures being necessary 90 make
tho nation independent n foreigners ia
time o. war, individual energy and sa
gac.iy cannot be- trusted % create
them.
The result is that We have during The
last quarter ~ tho century delberatel,
resortei % the policy - forcing capita
into channels into which Do did not mt
urally flow. We have thus stumble,
ourselves with manufactures ou q lare,
scale, but iu do.ag s0 we have brolgA
society ln most % the largo towns. b.
the east, az least. back % the OLD Eu
ropean model, divided largely into ",
classes, the one great capitalists, thl