The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1897-08-14
Stories of an Inland State.

|
All this time John Wright was working or
his plan. He had decided to strike blow
The conditions must be ripe. He depended
upon and waited for condition of lawless-
ness and public alarm. This he expected
to secure through the labor leader, Oliver
Willis, whose interviews and authoritative
utterances John Wright read in the news
papers with many a sneer and smile of con-
tempt. His fear that the labor leader
would not carry the strike to the last de-
gree of rebellion was wiped away by Nell
Everett's relations with WILLIS. If his
resolution wavered she would maintain, re-
freshen and strengthen it.
The old mans movements were mysteri-
oUs. Nell Everetrs keen curiosity had
been baf'led.
She watched him reading, and wondered,
| when he tossed the book aside and climbed
the stairs to the upper story and locked
| himself in room into which she had never
gained entrance although she had attempt
ed to enter it by stealth and by open re-
quest many times In this room securely
! locked John Wright would remain for hours
together. sometimes late into the night.
He carried many books into the little closet
and for long time. Nell Everett believed
he was seeking quiet. But this explana-
| ton was not satisfactory. The one servant
whom Nell questioned closely, was never
| invited into the room or ordered to sweep
J or clean It and gave ii as her opinion that
| the room was haunted and he kept it clos
! ed in order to maintain the price of the
| house because mo one would buy haunt
ed house with haunted room in it,.
! This was the end of her discoveries as IL
was the beginning. Every day, old John
Wright would come into the house with
book or package and disappear in this Sc
cret room. Once Nell crept very close to
the door and listened, but could hear moth
irg because of her fear that he would sur
prise her while she was eaves-dropping.
She might have gained a hint from his
continual threat against society and the
course OF his thoughts, but for some reason
the connection of these and the room escap-
ed her.
He had talked to her FOR hours on this
subject and that, but always with a recu--
renee TO his passion of subverting society.
As time went by he avoided references to
the oppressed portion of humanity and talk
ed abstractedly of power, assuming no
doubt in his own mind that the oppression
was a conceded fact, as power. and the
one controversy was the destruction Of the
latter.
He had said: Power is tyrranously un-
fair. Giving no protection il demands in
vulnerability. The elevation of a man
above his fellows by MS fellows contains
no provision for protection in the compact,
and no provision of power. When man is
elevated, he undergoes no physical change;
he is not physically improved above his fell
lows. He IS as liable in power as out of it.
But he demands invulnerabiiity. He who |
steps into power, accepts all the glories of |
position, all the plaudits of the crowd as |
of individual recognition, of personal SUI |
perority and self-supremacy. The people !
Horshiped the image on the donkey's back, |
but the donkey thought they worshiped |
him. Power takes the plaudits but VIII |
not take the penalties. 1t may be that We |
must have always rulers, but as the world |
weaves at the loom of time, the rulers must |
lose power, always power, until at last
they stand powerlessly equal, and without |
power. except they be powerful IN power
lessness. Nature intended equality and |
man must come to it, The right of the |
humblest citizen must be as sacred as the
rights of the most powerful. So Nature
intended, and so it will be. The rights OF
the humblest citizen, being those of humi-
lity, the ruler must share by himself being
humble. So power will be in powerlessness.
Men are greater than systems. but only the
powerful know Il. There is as much free
dom in a president 10 break custom as a
monarch; that the English language uses
seven letters for one title and nine for the |
ether, prevents neither from being of equal
disposition for the assumption OF unrisht-
eous power The best citizen of a country
is its poorest citizen. Whether from per-
sonal unfitness or misfortune, he is the
farthest away from power, and is the most
against, and justice is owing
TO him. Poor fooli The system which the
great ignore, they tell him, is inviolable.
But he will learn and power will learn. The
time will come when the greatest power will
fear the reprimand of the humblest citizen,
when protection will become nil. The time
will come when the greatest officer will
retain his Efe as favor extended from his |
poorest subject. The time will come when
office will have but one shield-righteous. |
,odly action, one thought-justice, one desire
the equal good of all. one motive-love OF !
The time will come when power
" i'll be no more, but the ruler, by whatever
name he may be known, will be a common
brother with mankind, who can not sleep
while one out of many millions suffers I'M
Justly. who shuns appreciation knowing his
who invites condemnation
/
v strive TO attain universal equality. The
line will come when law shall disappear
md equality reign"
Nell Everett regarded this outburst as |
fancy, more of language than of thought.
She did not connect il with another out
BURST from him several days after, when |
lie said:
"Our brother lives by or consent. His I
aw and its servant detection. Every man
lolis a penalty in mis- own hand and is |
aw unto himself. Life is as much chat ,
el of your me- ghbor as OF yours. Science |
5 making punishment obsolete. In the
ky above us and in the ground a. our
Get lie chemicals harmless apart malicious
md destructive If you mix them Some /.
lay the size of this mixture viii DOT be of
consideration. a drop. the minute particle
II drachIn will be sufficient to wipe out |
,ity. The time viii come when such a
mite of compressed violence may be dis
PATCHED and deposited ir q desired spot as
We now send our voices over a telephone !
wire. The time viii come when the harm ,
ess atoms may be joined into their awful
lnion by the sympathetic vibration OF a.,
ii gle note, miles removed and nc, to be {,
,nown or detected. Science ha. outrun
aw and left il in the distance. The time !,
vas when We could not think how We ,
night send orr voice over a wire The
ime was when we could not think how II |
vas possible 10 preserve our voice forever
Ne can nor think now how Il would no | '