Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1896-12-31

" off. The curious spectacle is seen
of large crowd of well-fed and we'll
dressed men. smoking good cigars and
wearing costly iewelry. applauding a
speaker who pictures their condition
in the blacklist cOlors We are getting
to be lazy people. Stories Of the
hardshipS and labors of our fathers are
either discounted as idle tales or speed
lily forgotten We somehow expect
money TO roll in and oyerwhelm H.
while we are complaining because it
doesn't come. Our grandfathers took
their axes and guns and cleared homes
in the wilderness, thankful if by unre-
hitting toll and watchfuness they were
able to keep their families from hun
ger and the tomahawk of the savage.
Their degenerate grandSons Toll about
in cosy parlorS or marbled offices,
watching the slow motion of the clock
that shall bring them to a sumpuous
dinner or theatre party, where all
hands can join, between the courses or
acts, in cursing the administration, no
matter what il is, for the hard times
that are upon us
The young man goes to college and
energies with the idea firmly rooted
that he Is too learned to labor in any
but the higher walks of life-the region
Of spotless linen and rlvishing neck
ties. lfsuccesS isn't ION draught" for
him Immediately, he becomes a mis-
anthrope and swells the ranks OF the
disconnected. Because some of his ac-
quaintances started under better auspi-
ces. or have been favored by fortune. or.
perchancc, have acquired standing by
their merit, the misanthrope decides at
once that something is wrong with our
laws or our customs that prevents his
rising the same way. Hci is kecnly en-
vious OF everybody better Off than him
self, apd regards il his mission to hum
BILE the prosperous. Nor are the col
lege graduates more than a small frac-
ton of those who Join in the dcspond-
cnt wall They are met among all
classes. Some of them have done the
best they could and given up in de-
spair, but the great majority never
made an honest effort to- succeed.
While we cannot fix the exact time |
when this billow of diSquict first
formed, it assumed definite force some
ten or twelve years ago. Since then
we have seen the Chicago Anarch- !
lists numbering policemen and Them
selves sacrificed. only to he made mar
tyrs by considerable portion of our
population, including one governor.
who pardoned all that survived. We
have seen the Homestead slaughter.
he Pullman strike. the BROOKLYN riots
and dozens of similar occurrences.
showing the spirit ofunrest. We have
seen free trade propaganda at first
'epulsed. then accepted. only to be
again defeated. We have seen so
alarming doctrine as that of chcapl
money and free riot gain millions of
adhercnts. We have been
evcral times on the point OF war with
oreign nations. in obedience to popu-
ar clamor promoted by those who +.
a@crly hope for some great cxcitant
n the selfish eXpection of personal
.lory or reward. We came near firht- Ii
ny Chill over the Itata incident. We
we're on the brink of hostilities with
treat Britain. first over the fisheries
md next ON account of Venezuela. We
hall now be fortunate IT we cscape
var with Spain over Cuba.
These are only incidents showing ,
he trend Of the sentiment-incidents !
hat generation AGO would never have
or nc least. never have I