The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-09-20
WHEN WILL
THE TIME COME !?
Ogden, Utah, Sept. 10. 1896.

OSuSlii Otdnf Oepl' Los 1o5o'
To the Editor of The Herald:
In mental and moral capacity and in
surrounding circumstances, mankind is
divided in a general way into four fairly
well defined classes, although these
classes blend into each other to some ex-
tent.
In framing or evolving government
OF the people especially designed to Sc
cure, as far as possible, the welfare and
happiness Of all its members, all of these
| classes must be taken into consideration
In their relation to each other
The first class consists of those who
are incapable. of taking care of them
selves from birth to death, or from some
period in life until death, and a very large
class ii is.
The second class are those who, partly
on account of the first class, are so cir
cumstanced that they must either make
the best part OF life a sacrifice or DELHI
erately crush the deepest affections and
hottest impulses of human nature.
The third class are those who may or
may not have any marked talent in any
particular direction, who may or may
not be actuated by the best intentions
and Impulses, but who are foot-free and
unhampered to make such use of their
time and abilities as they choose, with
no interests to serve but their own
The fourth class are those who inherit
great wealth and those who, be they self
ish or generous, scrupulous or unscrupul-
Gus, possess abnormal faculties for ac-
curing wealth.
Under our present system, it can hard
~ be denied that all other aims and as
plrauons are, TO greater or less de-
gree, Subordinated to the ambition to ac-
quire wealth. And, indeed, it could not
well be otherwise. Without money there
is hardly a possibility of political prefer
ment. Money means independence;
money means social recognition; money
nd
luxury Tor ourselves and families. To the
educated. money means travel in foreign
countries; 1t means all there is of music,
art, literature: in short 1t means nearly
everything that makes life worth living.
1t all amounts to a tremendous premium
set upon those qualities of mind and
heart that combine to make a money
getter. The logical consequence is that
thoroughbreds, SO to speak, in the acqui-
sition of wealth, while many of those
who seek to emulate them without the
opportunities or talents TO do so success
fully, commit all the crimes in the cata-
logue in their mad efforts
But is the thoroughbred money-maker
the best type Of man?
Men have learned to cultivate the best
qualities of animals and plants under
special and carefully selected conditions.
Human beings alone are left to the merci-
less and memorable law of natural selec-
ton or the survival of the fittest under
cles of character to the one overshadow-
ing quality of aquisition. The small and
ungraceful broncho lives and thrives
where the Clydesdale and Hamiltonian
would die. And yet horsemen would
hardly claim the broncho to be the su-
perior horse.
Long periods of universal peace, posi-
bly, only within the last one hundred
governmental system of the world a
class of men who. by their wealth. have
become superior TO all governments, and
who, in effect own allegiance TO no flag
Kings and rulers ask their permission to
make war or peace, and legislatures con-
suit their interests rather than the in
terests of the masses. This class is grow
ing with terrible rapidty, both in num-
bers and power, and as they grow. the
common people are also growing in num-
beers and weakness.
Napoleon once said, "The Almighty is
always on the side of the heavy battaI-
ions The millionaires of the world say
in effect, The Almighty is always on
the side of the heavy bondholders;' and
the poor man. in his shanty, in spite OF
a soul prone to faith, is sometimes COM
PEELED to respond, Even so. Amen"
Upon the theory that human beings live
in this world only to the extent of their
power of locomotion and their capacities
and opportunities for receiving conscious
impressions through the medium of the
senses, poor man is already three
fourths dead; and in proportion to his
intelligence and his knowledge of what
is beyond his reach, he is in hell. That
measure of pleasure only is his that can
be derived from living plainly (often
scantily) in a plain (often miserable)
house. eating plain (often unwholesome)
food, wearing plain (often Insufficient
clothing, sleeping what time he can spare
and selling the largest part of his life
for pittance 10 a master His life is
a story of daily Sights and humiliations
his only society is his wife and patient
and trusting little ones. The godlille Joy
of unrestrained locomotion and transpor-
beautiful sights, of listening often to
multiform combination of sweet sounds,
of habitually tasting the innumerab BILE
sweets that appeal TO the civilized palate
! of smelling the thousand sweet perfumes
that emanate from nature and products
of art, of feeling the soft contact of rich
clothing. are all denied to the poor man.
Such a life, except for the glorious ex-
altation of self-sacrifice, is not worth liy-
ing Once break down the barriers that
the Christian religion has built around
the gulf of self-destruction, and the civ
| ilized world would stand aghast at the
multitudes who would plunge over to es-
cape the unutterable dreariness of this
life
What are those barriers?
! A self-sacrifciHg hope to do something
to better the lot of his helpless LITTLE
ones for whom the state does little.
The desire TO spare his family the dis
grace that would attach to them on &C
count of his cowardly Reputation of hi:
/ duty towards them.
A sincere desire to obey what he be
! lieves 10 be Gods law and to bow Il
what he believes to be his will.
A hope that by performing faithful.
his duties in this world under the con
ditions which surround him, he may NEE
his dear ones in another world. where thu