New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-12-20
THE CASE OF UNCLE SAMUEL
HIS ADVISERS AND THEif'
ARGUMENTS ABOUT ADOPTED
CHILDREN.

To tho Editor of The Tribune
c,. Cu- J'nclo Samuel Is In quahdar!'
cor,obodv has brought to his door three OF ioui
or cranish children They are pretty anu
,,.ou .ovorsd nv nature but look sickly and haii-
.od They had been maltreated by tneF
,,rerts who cursed and sworc at Uncle oaii"ei
whom no demonstrated with Them. and theh IN
co,tinentlv fed. abandoring the children 70 MS
charge. The first impulse Of his great. hohes''
kindly heart was TO take In the little waits feeu'
cIothe and protect them against further abuse
In fact that Is what he Is doing to-day
Some of his own children approve his benevo-
lent purpose but others bitterly oppose IT.
Turn the foreign brats out into the street.
thev say They will never come to any good
Let them bog borrow. steal or fight for living
"But. don't you think" says Uncle Samuel.
that with a good home and care. and a right
education they might grow up 10 be honest ana
useful people,
"Whatr' cry the Mortified opposers do 20"
mean to say you want to adopt them INTO ycu'
own family? Never, Never. We know your
Constitution and your character. They both
forbid your adopting any children. We are the
family and nobody else can come into IL
"Wfy." says Uncle Samuel, Il have been
adopting YOU one after another. for some years
back There are forty-hve OF you now IN HI.
that have come of age and are taking care Vi
Yourselves. besides the minors that we are Keep
ing at school yet
ooh that is different" is the reply we All
lived next door But these outcasts were oo'"
and brought up on islands great way OIL
81 see saws Uncle Samuel. and mighty poor
bringing I'D they have had. too But they heeu
not come regularly into the family. You Know
iptn
vote to have them"
"rhat vculd be worse vet" say the directors
"You have no business 20 have dependents ana
alians Of ignorant. subject races. You would
certainly maltreat and misuse them just as
those spaniards did You always do. See how
badly you have been treating those lhoiahs anu
negroes and Mormons and Chinese
"Uave -" saws Uncle Samuel Il dld not
moan TO- | wonder" he remarks meditatiVeiy'
that none Of them have ever gone away from
here and left me"
"Oh pshawr' IS the answer. They know
they are better off here than they would be any
where else in the world
"Wel. there is comfort in that" says Uncle
Samuel though IT does not exactly tally VIII"
what YOU were saying just now,
lyon see" continue his advisers, they are
os an inferior race that has to be governed anu
ensaved and tyrannlzed over by schepous
They can never learn to teke care OF them
selves People Of dark complexion. born In not
countries, never can.
Then II turn them adrift somebody else
Will get hold OF them. and enslave ana tyrahh'~e
over ,hem?" says he
"Of course they WILL" is the answer. But
then YOU won't be responsible for IL. you ca"
inst stand round and shake your head ana
lament over IT,"
Uncle Samuel has taken down from the upper
shelf some old. wellworn books that Tie oc-
casionally looks into. though the young foks
| tbipl, they are not half so interesting as the
Sunday newspapers and French novels ne says
,bov contain solid chunks Of good advice In
ono q, them he reads. Hath He not made or
one blood all the nations of men, ana 10
INTO others as We would they should do unto
van" And in another he reads: "Al men are
horn free" and have equal political rights
and Neither race, color or previous condi''on
| Of servitude" shall prevent And IN announcer Il.
| .eThe Federal Republic is the best system Oh
| government. because it is made up or seh-soV-
erning communities steadily increasing In num-
ber'
Then laying down the books and looking OUT
Of the window Uncle Samuel sees large bronze
figure standing at his front gate ana hoioins d
torch This he calls Liberty Enghtenng the
World" All his children admire this figure as
nrettv conceit though they say. Of course. 1t
cannot really be done. because charity begins az
| home and candles are so expensive
Uncle Samuel is continuing to ponder over
! those things He thinks it Is really one or the
most puzzling questions he has met with since
he first staked out his farm.
FREDERICK ". SEWARD.
! Montrose -on the Hudson, Christmas time 1913