People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1895-02-21
BOOKS AND BULLETS.
THE INFLUENCE OF LAWS RE-
LATINO MONEY.
.... .yIC
Some OF the Books Which Have Shaped
the Destiny OF NatiOns-BOOks and
Papers Doing a Great Work To-
day.

day.
Only one hundred and twenty years
ago the first book, the first earnest in
vestigation, on political economy was
written. No man had ever attempted
before to study out and write down
the influences of laws and customs, re-
lating to money, land and commerce
Of nation. That was Adam Smiths
Wealth of Nations" Think how crude
would be the science Of medicine, geo.
logy, geography, astronomy and all
sciences if they had so recent start!
1t was fifty-nine years later-1Sl7-be-
fore the next work of value appeared.
Since which time, however, works OF
increasing value have appeared with
phenomenal rapidity. 1t is one thing
to discover a truth, but quite another
to get the people to understand and
act on it. But today the number OF
books on money, land, commerce and
labor are multiplying like leaves OF
the forest. 1t is nothing for me to
receive half a dozen new books, all by
men who think, in a single days mail.
l have one catalogue which, though
printed several years ago, contains the
title to several thousand works Of some
phase of the social problem, and since
that time more books of greater value
have been issued In all the blackness
and oppression, the apparent hopeless
ness of the masses, this one fact gives
me comfort and hope for the future.
The civil conditions could not be
changed until the people knew the ma
ture of the ills and the remedy; they
could not learn these until they had
books and teachers; these they could
not have until men had studied, wrote
and published. All these have been
done and men and women are teaching
the truths with the enthusiasm that
can only be born of sincerity. These
books show that the educated, the rs
fined, the well-to-do, become adherents
first. Every book reaches and appeals
to certain strata of society and the
millions and millions of books are do
ing the work of turning the people into
thinkers into mere followers of sense
less and harmful customs, usages and
ideas. Books and papers are today do
ing the work of getting the people out
Of crude, barbarous ideas regarding
money, land and human rights, as they
have slowly been enlightened on other
subjects. Judging from the influences
at work, the advance made so far, and
the temper of the people. / cannot
think that most radical changes in So
ciety can be delayed beyond 1900. If
the conservative classes oppose 1t, as
kings opposed any change that any
wise affected their privileges land a
large class is benefited by the ignor-
ant ideas on these subjects held by the
masses), l say if the tactics of kings are
adopted to suppress this growing intel
ligence, it will be carved out in a man
ner that our forefathers rid themselves
of kingcraft, or that latter sense of JUS
tice and harmony wiped out chattel
slavery. One way or the other the
ideas that are at present gaining a
majority will find expression in laws
to some extent within the next decade.
If in the peaceable, sensible way it will
be little by little, feeling the ground
carefully at each step, but if this way is
suppressed, the other way will as GER
tainly result as our forefathers APP
pealed to it when the king spurned
their petitions, or as they wiped out
chattel slavery with the best blood of
the north and south, because capital,
represented by the slave, refused to
bow to the awakened intelligence of
human rights. l am for a peaceful
solution, but l am satisfied that the
monopolists-the real rulers Of the ma
tion-prefer to chance the results of
hiring part of the people to shoot the
other half to death to making any con-
cessions That's what they have Great
ed navy for, and that's why they are
bowling for a greater standing army.
1t is books against Coming
Nation.