Brookings weekly register. (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1898-1903, 1899-04-06

w uioHopoilZe In2 eaftD. Inc hungry stOul-
| aehs OF the starving people are temporarily
| appeased with bowl oil bilious soup and
the promise OF painted prosperity which
IS TO follow the election OF the monopoly
| candidate; and with the assurance that
they VIII thrive II they viii but work hard
enough and save their money, the wage
slaves embrace their chains and believe tae
man who forges them.
DECLARATION BROAD ENOUGH.
We have no reason TO complain Of the
| declaration which is the fundamental law
OF the land. 1t is broad enough to cover
| past and future development, and it is the
re'atlon OF this law to the demands OF tie
luture which we are about TO consider.
IL is not difficult to determine what the
needs or the future are. but 1T may be lu,.
| possible to convince the people we are
STRIVING tC serve that they Will be better
IA undei Christian laws than they are un-
ar present outrages, which have president,
| that strong weapon OF ignorance and super
stition, to sustain them. There are many
| WhG seem to prefer to endure their sur
t4rLnts rlthsr lldn try something new.
IGNORANT FEAR BLOCKS PROGRESS
Thousands seem to fear that they will
get relief through some channel not APP
| proved by their prejudices. Millions are
| totally Indifferent to their own wrongs and
the wrongs OF their fellow men in spite OF
1
| than at any time IN the history OF the
world. We are doing more talking and
| thinking and less acting than any race or
| people that ever lived, which raises the
| question If We are not the most profundly
| immoral people civilization ever produced.
| One thing is certain, however, this indif-
| ference cannot long continue. The time
| has arrived when the furniture in the house
| of industrial bondage must be smashed.
Old notions and obsolete prejudices must
stand aside, and the guarantees OF the de-
claration must be made TO mean something
| more than an empty sentiment to be drag
ged out every year and drenched In tears
which lack the spirit OF comedy, and the
| sincerity of superstition. III our form OF
| government has any merit 1t Is time the
| people were finding it out. If 1t is better
| than other governments where an arlstoc-
racy of blood rules less brutally than our
own aristocrary of money, then IT Is time
| to demonstrate the fact and stop felecitat-
ing ourselves upon the freedom of coun-
| try which is free in form only, and which
never will be free in fact until the people
themselves have been educated to a higher
standard Of political and social ethics.
RECONSTRUCTION DEMANDED.
l contend that reform should begin
with the creation of public sentiment
which will rid our system of the tagrant
inconsistencies between our declared policy
and our policy in actual practice. Let there
| be reconstruction of public sentiment, a
| reconstruction of public and private morals,
| a reconstruction of a dwaried and outgrown
constitution, made by those who feared the
people, reconstruction and limitation
| upon the powers OF congress and the eXecu-
| tive, and last and most important recon
struction and limitation upon the powers
of court which was falsely gwen too much
power at the Outs.t, and which by con
NE ,,l,oia1 lay al ha Z
| ever been the last refuge Of tyranny. Then
the aspiration of popular government and
majority rule may be gwen rem IN TINS
country for the first time since the lnde-
pendence was declared.
| ly obnoxious, was introduced into the SEN
ate with Mark Hanna's blessing. Again the
court declared that the Bell Telephone
company could monopolize the entire tele-
phone business of the country. because the
court was willing to find fraud in the neg
| ligence of the patent office, a negligence
which could not have been otherwise than
corrupt because it conferred great monop-
oily power on one company at the expense
of the people, and whether corrupt or not
was of such effect that to fail to protect the
public from the results thereof was crime
| in the court which will never be excused.
| The sugar monopoly enteres the senate, su.
CARS our senator's, deties investigation, and
while its little brokers and satellites are
pnched with cushioned pincers, in velvet
cells its officers for like offenses are turned
| loose upon the public with court decree
| that investigation of sugar trust methods
| is an unwarranted prying into the affairs OF
the company Is it any wonder Mr.: Have
never swells up and questions the decency
of the people who do not endorse his easy
letting loose? Yerkes goes to Springfield to
renew his cinch upon the, city, OF chicago
for fifty years. and Immediately the air is
filled with charges OF legislative corruption;
His bills are defeated but are dug up and
ps sssed in worse form than ever. And these
crimes were committed bv men who conse-
Grated their lives to abuse OF John Z. Ait
GELD.
CANNOT BE SUBJUGATED WHILE IN
PRIVATE HANDS.
The Standard Oil company has cleaned
up a dividend of eighty millions since the
new administration was inaugurated, there
by illustrating the fact that prosperity has
returned TO those who paid ransom Tor
the states and the civil power everywhere
seems impotent, if willing, to stop ITS
greedy march. I might multiply illustra-
tions BY the hour, but why take up the
time? The trusts cannot be destroyed or
controlled by present methods. They can
not be subjugated by the government so
long al they are permitted to run the gov
ernment, and they will run the government
so long a. they are in private hands.
HARNESS THE TRUST BEAST.
The trust, per se. is not bad thing. It's
principles are socialistic. Ii il economical
in the hishes. degree 1t is nlethodical in
mana nagement and wonderfully systematie.
It's managers, when honest, know nothing
hut 20 earn dividends for their employers;
In the hands Of honest men 1t 10 q splendid
thing for those who own the stock. but its
very kindness to is stockholders makes 1t
a bad and dangerous institution for the
public. While it Is to be dreaded and de-
plored a. leech upon the public for pri-
yate benefit, we must not overlook the
fac< that it could be made . very useful
agent Of the people il run by the people and
| for the people. Instead OF railing at the
trusts, therefore, we had better rea!iss the
inevitable and seek TO harness and bring
under .ubjueation the monsters which we
have been vainly endssvoring TO slay.
Rather than waste time in fraihsss effort
to forssssll the course al evolution. we had
better exert our effort inventins practicable
methods TO yoke the trust beast and make
i haul wood and water for the peSpls.
MAKE TT WORK FOR UNCLE SAM.
The monopoly monster which works 20
hard for Rockefeller viii work Just as faith
fully and make Just as much money for I'm
&c Sam The forty millions which are accu-