The evening times., 1898-11-11
The Gospel of Work.

For many generations one of the IA
vorite topics of the charitable in their
conversations with The poor has been
The gospel of work. 1t has been point
ed out that if man does not work he
must not expect to eat, and the enthusi-
astic have been enjoined against giving
people food without making them work
for it, The virtuous millionaire has
told stories of the days when he used
to rise at five o'clock in the morning
and work hard till nine at night, there
by earning a much better nights sleep
than he is now able to buy. Things
have been said about the comparative
comforts of the poor man with brood
of healthy children and the rich man
with the gout and no children at all.
although the speakers have overlooked
the fact that rheumatism induced by
eXPosura IS about as painful as gout,
and that poor folk sometimes tIay-
sickness and death in their families as
well as the rich. Altogether. the glor-
ious state Of the workingman has been
exploited about as fully as possible.
A sermon preached by New York
clergyman last Sunday is a slight varia-
tiUn on this theme. He took occasion
to point out that however desira ble and
necessary work may be there are thou
sands of men and women in this coun-
try just now who want it and cannot
get it, They have always been honest.
dustrious, and thrifty, but they are
IS suffering from a period of enforced
Idleness so long as 10 eat up all their
little savings. What is TO be done in
case of that kind?
1t is Of no use 10 utter platituGas
about mamma and the ravens, for the
poor man who does not know where mis-
next meal is coming from has usually
had experience with the wilderness OF
hunger and cold. and he knows that no
ravens ever came to help him 1t is
useless TO illuminate against the rich
man who has closed down his factories.
times he is not. He is a product of the
conditions of a commercial age What
is to be done about it?
In any difficulty, the first thing
necessary is to know that something
Is the matter: the second is 10
know what is the matter. and the
third is 10 know what to do.
This country has arrived at the
first stage. The majority of our people
are well convinced that something is
wrong with the body polite. A country
is not in a normal condition when large
numbers of Workingmen are tramping
the streets, hungry and homeless, and
For some time there were attempts to
gloss over this state of things, and pre-
tend that when Mckinley and 4protee-
ton came into power il would be all
right But il is not all right; and the
people know il. The next step, in
country seif-governed, like this. is to
find out what the matter is; and that
is why the last two or three political
campaigns have been called educational
campaigns. The people are studying
the problem. They are not going to
leave it to the bosses and the poll
ticians, and the syndicates. and the
trusts. And when they have discovered
where the leak is-why money which
ought to buy bread for the working
man is going into some ones else
pockets-then they Will arise in their
might and put an end to the evil. After
that it will be time for the preachers
of the gospel of work to resume the
abuse of the lazy and thriftless. The
New York clergyman is on the right
track. Work is the salvation of man
kind, and every man has the right to
add. so far as he can. to the comfort
and well-being of his fellowmen. by do
ing his part OF the worlds work