Evening journal., 1899-05-30

America. and settled IN England, where
ne subsequently became merchant.
banker and philanthropist And the name
Of George Peabody. who was born in the
State Of Massachusetts. was. IS. and ever
will be, a revercd and household word in
England. The late Judah r. Benjamin,
native Of one Of the Southern or Confed-
crate States, where ne was not appre-
ciated. went to London--where he was
apprecia ted-and acquired both riches
and fame. A. r. Stewart. a native Of
Ireland. came to this country, and
amassed an exceptionally large fortune
IN the avenues OF trade And II the great
Napoleon had not left his native coun-
try, Corsica for French soil, the world
would never have known hm-perhaps It
would have been as well, I'm his case, II
It never had And so on. ad inhnitum.
If Mr.. Astor had elected to remain a
resident Of this country, and II ne had
chosen to prolong his fight in the field OF
American politics and to expend a por-
ton Of his wealth In the Illegal purchas-
| ing Of votes-as Is the uniform custom
then these very writers who to-day level
their venomous shafts against him would
have been the very frst to beslaver him
with a false and altogether fulsome adu-
lation Mr.. Astor was not beaten for
Congress because he was under the Inn
preston that anything a man wanted
could be bought" Nothing OF the kind.
Mr.. Aston simply suffered defeat. as
either this or that good and Independent
unprofessional politician has both before
and since suffered defeat because he re-
fused to be led 10y the nose by scala
wag political machine, and because no
refused manfuny refused to make con-
cessons to- and be dominated by. a set
OF equally scalawag politicians. Mr.. AS
tor, when he ran for Congress. was in
the same position as any financially in
dependent and unprofessional Phnadel-
phia politician would be were he to seek
the Mayoralty. for Instance, Of that city
without first making concessions to, and
consenting to his adoption by, the po-
litical machine controlling the City and
State politics Of Pennsylvania. Mr.. VII
liam Waldorf Aston was born and bred
a gentleman, and that Is much more
very much more, than can be said Of such
political knaves and tricksters as Matt"
Quay, Tom" Plat. and "Dicls" Croker
IA commonplace murderer. The only
wonder to as u.s. that Mr.. Astor should
have ever soiled an honorable name by
associdting that name with the decidedly
venal and corrupt politics OF New York
State.
Mr.. Astor is simply a cultured Amori-
can gentleman, and man Of colossal
wealth. We don't know that ne ever as
pired TO be anything else. And we have
yet to learn that the possession Of either
the one or the other OF these qualihca-
tons is in the least degree detrimental
to Mr.. Aston We don't think II is In
face. we know that 1t il not An inteli-
gent men are opposed to everything
breathing forth a soclalistic spirit. They
are opposed 10 anything and everything
savorlng OF the down with everything
that's up. and up with everything thats
down sort OF feeling. a feeling which
wrongfully and invariably antagonists
plutocracy the aristocracy OF wealth
Opulent or rich men, though the world
may regret that many Of them are not
actuated by decidedly phllanthropic mo.
tives, have their incontestable rights
rights which neither VIC nor anyone els,
can AFFECT TO disregard. The working.
man. alias the journalist, Is all very well
In his way but there are times when he
doesn't weigh very much. One of those
times Is when he senselessly lnveigh.
against the advantages accruing &c
wealth. and when he goes into rapture.
concerning the blessedness Of poverty
All that sounds very weli-on paper. Blu
one cannot buy bricks" with empt,
plautudes. The Good Book tells us tina.
Vt Is easier for camel to so through tn,
eye OF needle than for rich man I,
enter the Kingdom on Heaven. Withou
specializing upon the size number Of Tn,
needle required by the aforesaid gym
nastic camel, we may as well state tina
there are times when we. like others. ar,
apt to think that we shouldn't half min,
taking risk on the rich mans chano,
OF spending a blissful eternity instea,
or on that OF tho camel being able 4,
penetrate the eye Of a needle. Mr.. An
drew Carnegie-another man who. bv tn
way, left his native land, Scotland fo
ms own goods reported as having said
The man who dies rich dies disgraced.
we would not presume to question Mr.
carnegie's dicium where steel rail a
concerned but II IS safe TO state tina
only few men will be willing TO sub
scribe TO the famous Pttsburghian'
latest and extravagant declaration. I
we're easy to cite the names OF scores a
men who died rich, but who aid not al
disgraeed. And 1t is TO be hoped that MI
carnegie's generoslty-for he Is a gener
! Gus man-wiil not run away with nj
head to such an extent as to induce mir
TO quit this world as hnacally naked a
{ he entered IL. Plenty of us will do "a
: that without Mr.. Carnegie being desb
Gus Of swelling the number
Let these acrid and comparatively mar
niless crltics-these scurrllous nigh,
hawks Of the American press. and /
whom naught on this side Of the grav
= and very little on the other. Is sacred.
= let them remember that the amenlti,
demand that a certain amount OF defe
ence be paid not merely TO rank an
wealth (such gifts being but the me-
accidents or opportunities Of Hfe) I'm
rather. 20 the more legitimate and matt
= raj prerogatives OF every man-those
- Mr. William Waldorf Astor included. NJ
Aston Is to be congratulated upon his I