The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1898-05-31
TUESDAY. MAY 81. 1898.
THEY WILL NEVER RULE ~
FUN.
TINES BUILDING
TENTH AND BANK siNhEiS'
RICHMOND. VA.

"a. cbicaro platform in which we
showed that its leading and Distinguish
,,e characteristic was an attack upon
ing characteristic was an attack upon pro-
De,,v Fiat money and more freedom to
the lawless are It's two leading Ideas ana
each Of these is an attack upon accun'i-
,,,el proporty. Whether therefore we
wish 10 concedc it or not, the Chicaso
platform has drawn a line in this coun-
try between those who believe a people
4 advantageous by allowing perfect iree-
dom 10 all men 20 use their talents anu
energies for accommodating as much prop
ertv as they can and those who believe
that this works TO a peoples injury ana
that the law should force those who nave
made great accumulations to surrender
some Of what they ave to others who
covet it.
realization OF this as the actual
ANALYSIS Of the situation is rapidly grow
ing in the public mind. The Washing
tom Star for instance recently said that
the silver issue was dead and hat OF
imperialism is now the coming one and
the Star IS a supporter Of Imperialism
BY which we understand 1t 10 mean noth-
ing more than that the law shall protect
all In what they a once acquired.
This led the Springfield Republican to
say that II this were true q great oppor-
tunity had suddenly come TO the Demo-
cratic party to plant itself in the path
OF miitarjsm, oligarchies and aristocracy.
The great party OF the common people
could rally, IT said, with tremendous
force in behalf of home interests, labor,
low taxes.
But we do not az eli understand the
Stars conception Of Imperialism In this
sense We understand IL to be nothing
more than a demand for the absolute
authority Of the law and the extension
of the laws TO absolute protection TO all
men I'm whatever they ave once acquired.
In this sense The Times Is as much Of an
1mperialist as the Star is or as any other
one could be.
That brilliant but most erratic para
grapher Henry Wattcrs0n made an ad-
dress last Friday az Lexington. Ky, upon
the occasion Of % review by the Governor
OF Kentucky's soldiers. in which he said:
but there IS something even worse
thar war. To become q nation OF shop
keepers. 20 wear ava our lives beating
one another out OF a few degrading dol
lars the more or less; 10 find in the
boosted arts OF peace nothing nobler
than the piling up OF riches. ana the graft
incatlOn Of pr0pensities growing more
and more ignoble With Increasing lux
ury ana wealth. these things seem 10 me
tyep worse than war;
This Is very fine IN the way Of heroics.
but at bottom # s. little better than the
philosophy Of the Buccaneer. it comes
pretty close TO q justification Of the o.
sentiai idea Of the Chicago platform that
It IL a wrong TO the others for one 90
make great accommodations. The Times
utterly dlssents from OH such theories.
Mr.. Wat,erson may sheer as he VIII at
the methods OF trade and commerce as
a qualification OF ignob.e pr2pen-
stiles" and he may laud as far "nobler''
the disposition to carry ovory thing with
the high hand that IS cultivated In Che
clash Of arms. But the difference be-
tween tho smiling land that We see all
around US and what It was when roamod
over BY predatory savages that practlocd
no arts but those that are part OF the
cut-throat game OF war. has all arisen
from the dcspised disposition to pile up
riches" n to Increase luxury and
wealth"
For the past three or four hundred
years Engiishmon have been drawing
themselves further ana further OF from
all idea OF mliitarlsm ana devotlns them
selves more and more 10 the methods OF
trade and until now there are
but few Engilshmen who are not striving
with all their might 20 accumulate
wealth and TO increase what they have.
II IL the motif Of the entire people. No
Englishmen will now tolerate the
thought OF disorder or contempt for au-
thori,y and no Englishman ever thinks
for a moment Of combat except as a
means OF protecting property rights once
acquired. yet the Englishman OF to-day
Is the highest type OF Englishman that
has ever lived, aud the process OF re-
nnlng and cievatihg his character is
steadily progressing all the time.
We insist that the instincts and better