The daily morning journal and courier., 1898-11-21
MEN,S CLUB LECTURE.
John Graham Brooks Describes the
 NObIeman of Luxury

. NODlemnn or Luxury
 The first of the series of lectures be- fore the Mems club was given at the United church last evening by John Graham Brooks of Cambridge, his sub ject being Practical and Personal Problems of Modern Luxury.' He said among other things that he wished to correct a common error that luxury is a sin which is restricted to the rich. This is not so in the least; it is common to all
 If I was asked what is the greatest superstition of the age,' said the speaker T should say it is the common superstition that 1t does not make any difference how they spend their money, as it makes money fly about the com munity. The theory that making mon ey fly about the community is good for poor people is one that is rejected by all economists of to-day. This is illus- trated by Parisian who said if it was not for the 10000 rich Americans who
 
 come to Paris and spend their money for such purposes we could close the houses of vice, but as it is organized vice is supported here by those 10000 or more rich Americans who spend their money for such things. What the man said is true. Another French publisher r,1ro Ia lirI foi " book and replied that it was because of | the demand which there was for it. The l persons who bought the book were in reality the publishers of it. Just in the | same manner we are the makers of the sweaters den if we spend our money in l buying what is made in such den. Thus we make a sweaters den, or a we'll managed factory, by the use of our money. We stand here as it was with our money--a little horde of energy life which We can use as we see fit. | You and I are in real sense the | makers of what we buy. To illustrate this, take the case of a man who in vests ten or fifteen cents for glass of i whiskey He sets his empty glass down | on the bar and he has in fact created | a demand for another glass of whiskey. | Or suppose that man buys picture. The storekeeper sees that there is de- mand for that picture and orders an- 1 other to take the place of the picture
 the man bought. The man has really made another picture.
 1 The same principle holds in the mat ter of charity. It is true that we may
 make paupers by our charity. A Wo- l man who is possessed of intelligence | was asked by a woman to purchase a | poorly executed piece of lace made by her daughter, as she was in need of I help. The woman saw how poor the | work was and answered, I can't buy it. for if I did your daughter would make
 another one But she helped the
 daughter in wiser manner. Hers was
 the right way of looking at the matter.
 The woman who buys a bird to put on her hat kills the bird just as much as though she had held the gun with which l it was shot
 The speaker then spoke of an organ
 ized effort that is being made to secure
 the wise expenditure of money. Sev- eral of the largest merchants in the
 country, he said, had said that they | would not buy of the sweat denS II the
 public were opposed to it. The govern
 ment of England has taken the stand
 that purchases of the government
 should not be made carelessly. He said
 that the idea. was not opposed to cheap
 ness, but only against that form of cheapness which is connected with death He said further that he believed it was important that organizations having for their object wise expenditure of money should exist in every commu-
 nity, and ventured the prophecy that
 the future art to be perfected would be
 that of so expending the money that il
 would accomplish the most good for sod
 ciety.
 The lecture next Sunday evening will , be by Judge Simeon E. Baldwin on the subject "The Relations of Religious Be lief to Religious Life in the Light of ] American History"
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