The midland journal., 1895-08-16
LIVE ISSUES.
A Parallel.

men.
The distinctive spirit of early
Rome was patriotism. The ambi-
tion of her heroes was to achieve
honor in the service of the state,
and the greed of personal wealth
wasaccOunted beneath their dignity.
The early laws established limits
to the occupancy of the public
domain; "each citizen had his little
homestead plot, which was inalien-
able" as Henry George says, "and
the general domain was subject to
common use."
AS Rome became powerful and
rich there sprang up class of
greedy and selfish aristocrats, who
coveted both the wealth and the
power of the republic.
The just laws were overborne and
became practically obsolete.
The great public "corn lands'
were sliced up and drawn into
private property.
The rich landlords absorbed the
small proprietors and drove them
into tenantry and bondage.
Then came the Gracchi and their
attempt to cut short the lust of
wealth. They were murdered by
the vulgar and shameless pluderers
and monopolists.
In the elimination of her destiny,
Rome produced Caesar; but Caesar
lived for Caesar, not for Rome.
"The mistress of the world could
no longer give birth to god-like
men, but only the active and
powerful human swine"
America also introduced to each
other, as her own subjects, all
varieties of men.
The distinctive spirit of early
America was patriotiam. The am
bition of her great men Gin the
early days. was the public good.
Under the administration of the
laws Gin the early days. the citizens
were secure in the occupancy of
homestead plot, and the right to
life, liberty, and the pursuit of
happiness were declared to be in
alienable.
The right to life, liberty and the
pursuit of happiness includes the
right to land and all the means of
sustaining life.
AS America became powerful and
rich there sprang up herd of
gluttonous capitalists who coveted
both the wealth and the power of
the republic.
All just laws ereOverborne with
the consent and cOnnivance of those
who had been trusted to administer
them, and became practically
obsolete.
The great public domain was
sliced up by corrupt congresses,
without constitutional sanction,
among corporations whose managers
carried on an aggressive warfare
against the people.
The rich landlords absorbed the
small prOprietors and drove them
into bondage, so that in 1895 50 per
cent of the people of America were
homeless, and the same proportion
of the population owned only 5
per cent of the country's wealth.
Then came Edward Bellamy,
Henry d. Lloyd, Eugene Debs,
Thomas Watson, Lyman Trumbull,
Henry George and others to speak
for the people and against the lust
of wealth.
But the shameless and vulgar
mOnOpolists had no regard for a re-
vival Of the early American con-
science; they used a subsidized press
to murder reputation; they denied
seat in their congress to men
who were fairly elected, and with
the aid of their own judges they
threw others into Jail on blanket
injunctions invented for thepurpose
of intimidating honest people.
In the elimination of her des-
tiny, America produced one Cleve-
land; but Cleveland lived for Cleve-
land, not for America.
The mistress of the western
world could no longer give birth to
gOd-like men, but only to active
and powerful human swine.
The cure for it all is direct legiS-