Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-07-03
A LESSON IN CAUSE AND ErFstr.
The Process of Making Paupers and
Then Feeding Them.

The Process of Making Paupers and
Then Feeding Them.
John Clark Ridpath, in the June Arena.
Athens had no poorhouses The reason
why she had none was that she did not
supply the material with which poor
houses are filled. Rome had as many pris-
ons. pro rata of her population, as Boston
The reason why she had as many was that
she supplied the material with which to
fill them. Rome thought she was doing
well when she apprehended her criminals
and put them in the Mamertine caves: Bos-
ton thinks so also. Rome and Boston have
both hatte-ed themselves with the notion
that they protect society" by first pro-
ducing and then caging their criminals
Paris has as many almshouses as New
York, and both Paris and New York have
drift IN shoals along the streets. The reason
why Paris and New York have invented
the almshouse Is because they first in
vented the beggars. 1t is no doubt a fine
thing to make paupers and then to feed
them!
Observe how it works: The magnificent
ladies OF 9th avenue hold a charity fair:
they put thousands of dollars into the cof-
fer, to be used in feeding the saualid
Wretches in their husbands tenement
houses. They sleep that night on their
husbands breasts, thinking how good they
are! The great merchants and greater
gamblers organize inconsistencies. in
which the poor and half-starved bankrupts
may pawn their goods in order to get the
money to pay rent to the very men who in
vented the big shop. l know of nothing
more beautiful; 1t is positively romantic.
What does all this signify? 1t signifies
that certain influences dominant over
mantle and certain organized powers in
society, have come down to US from the
middle ages, and that these influences and
powers are so depraved that they must in
scll-defense do something to remedy the
results or their own abuses. They must
trammel up the consequences a little, to
the end that they may continue to despoiI
mankind. They must make practical
apology to the human race by furnishing
doubtful antidctes for the very diseases
with which they have inoculated the sons
or men. They must save their forfeited
regulations by taking up and fond!ing the
poor wretches whom they themselves have
hrst begotten and then disowned!
Monarchy is brute of this kind 1t fs
monster that brushes down. some mil
lions or billions of human beings enslaves
them, robs them of their liberties takes
away the fruits of their toll. consumes the
residue IN war and husband then goes 10
work to make the condition of the slaves
SO tolerab.e that they may still live and
have children.
A medieval church, with its gothic tow
ers and marble palaces, with it's swarm of
on-hangers and its fat men in fashionable
relment, Is another creature now busily en-
gagged throughout the world in trammelinc
up the consequences of its own work From
flling the world with paupers and slaves.
this splendid Renaissance of darkness and
despair now turns in self-defense to take
care OF Its own progeny. The great rcmin-
1scence ought to do as much; for 1t has
never been regarded as particularly merito-
rlouS to feed ones own. How fine IT is for
the fruitful mother Of outcasts and beg
ears to give them little counsel and cof-
fee.
Plutocracy that snatches the wealth Of
the world from TIE hands of them that
produce it is another such monster-nIutoc
racy that sponges up the ocean in order to
water Sahara with six drops. One drop is
library; one is a college: one is a hospl-
tai. The library Is to perpetuate the mem
DRY of the sponge: the college is to teach
the system of political economy by which
the sponge sucked up the ocean; the hos
pital is to receive the broken bodies of
nose 10 whose families the sponge might
otherwise have had to pay damages.