The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1897-10-14


The danger Of the day does not arise
from rich men, but from those who APP
prehend danger to the people at large
from men becoming rich. Accumulated
capital does the public no harm, but
want Of accumulated capital Kills every
One.-RichmOnd Times.
Infinitely more harm is done the public
10y the insane jealousy OF and narrow
prejudice against rich men than by the
simple accumulation of wealth. no mat
ter how enormous. II rarely occurs,
though sometimes it is true, that rich
men live wholly for themselves. invest
ing their possessions IN such form as to
yield returns only TO themselves. As a
rule. the rich men 0f the country are
large employers of labor, as was the case
with the late Major Glnter OF Richmond,
and TO the successful conduct OF their
enterprises they BRING resources of intel
lect tEat are not common 10 all men, and
that are as essential to the business as
the manual labor OF the man who has no
Managerial qualification. but who has
been taught by red-mouthed demagogues
10 look upon his employer as his natural
enemy.
TINS feeling Of envy and hatred is not
confined to the laborlng classes in their
treatment of rich men, but seems to
peryade. in a greater or less degree, the
whole community Of those who have not
been equally successful or deserving IN
the affairs of life. Rich men have con-
slant experience OF this enmity, and IL Is
no wonder that they seclude themselves
from the concerns OF the community,
and that they sometimes retaliatc. IL
thus otter happens that communities lose
the influence and counsel of their best
and most successful members, because
l,.. hnfr-
ing grown rich is such that they could
not, as a rule. be elected by the popu
lar vote TO a seat even in a city cOun-
ell. That prejudice Is sometimes over
come by the very means which engen-
dered 1t, and seats in councils. legisla-
ture and congress are bought, but these
are the exceptions and we are speaking
of the general rule
We have in mind two notable instances
in which this foolish prejudice cost COM
munites dearly. Some years ago Will
liam Rockefeller. the Standard oil Com
pany millionaire. lived in Greenwich,
Conn, and was necessarily a large con-
tributor to the revenues of the town. lie
encountered this spirit Of injustice there
in the shape Of purpose 10 impose eXtor-
sionate assessments lie was looked upon
as a bird Of full plumage and could yield
rich pluckings. Mr. Rockefeller said moth
ing, but removed himself and possessions
10 Tarrytown. y. Y, where he purchased
about seven hundred acres OF land. and
built a magnificent country seat which
was assessed at one million dollars. In
addition 10 his personal expenditure he
spends about sixty thousand dollars an
nually in Improvements alone. Mean
while the Greenwichians are out In the
cold kicking themselves 10 keep warm.
A more recent case is that Of Mr. John
A. Bookwalter, OF Springfield. Ohio. the
largest manufacturer Of agricultural i'm
plements in the world. and the most pO-
tent factor in the growth and prosperity
of Springfield. But he was a rich man, and
under the malign teachings OF the
Georges. the Debses. the Bryans and the
Sam Smalls, became a fair target for the
shafts OF popular malice and envy. But
Springfield suffers more than Mr. Book
walter. The latter has instructed his
real estate agent TO sell all his property
in that city. and while he will necessarily
be a loser. he is rich enough not 10 feel It.
But the fools who drove him out will
feel It. and feel II keenly
Wealth carries its responsibilities TO the
community. and they ought 10 be met
with a liberal public spirit, but 1t does
not warrant the practice OF injustice and
extortion. There Is an innate feeling in
the bosom OF every man which resents
oppression and wrong. and the rich man
Is no excepton.-Petersburg Index-Ap-
peal.