The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-04-21

ihB on upon us editorial page discussion
as to the real authorship of the golden
rule. III some foolish Christians have
claimed that the Golden Rule was original
with Jesus. it may be well for wiser Jews
and wiser Cinnamon TO correct them. Wise
Christians will say. What matters it who
first stated the Golden Rule? We receive
it, as Christians, not because Jesus taught
It, not as a discovery of something in
ethics. but as a sight of something as old
az the moral order of the universe He
opened his eyes and saw that there it Was
in the spiritual universe. a law as univar-
sal, as fundamental, as the law OF gravita-
ton in the physical universe. Jesus was
no dealer in ethical novelties. He never
sought to create a trust i'm truth. His sin
gular glory is that He absorb from Israel
as from humanity. it's innermost, most es-
sential, most vital, ethical and spiritual
truths, states them perfectly lives them
beautifully, and so bequeaths them as the
heritage of all the ages to posterity.
AnG now concerning this rule of life as
The basis for business. one would suppose
from the practice of Christendon that the
revised version of the New Testament
reads. Whatsoever We would that men
should do unto you, do ye to them
except in business" But, for the life OF
me, l can't find any such saving clause in
the Scripture records. ri stands there an
Universal law-"All things whatsoever.
For aught that L it is the law of
trade aud commerce as we'll as the law of
family and of friendship. 1t could not be
an ethical law if it was not all-inclusve.
Our Scotch friends speak of certain doc
trines the five points of Calvinism, as
the fundamentals. Jesus has His fun
damentals'' too, but they are not quite
these five points of Cavinism. They are
the ethical aphorisms of the Sermon on the
Mount. al the heart Of which is the Golden
Rule. That rule, then, is fundamental to a
Christian society, to a Christian world OF
business, if Jesus knows anything about it.
NOT a SHINING EXAMPLE.
Archbishop Tillotson long ago said of
the new comma ndment to love one an
ether that it had been so little used that
it was TO all intents and purposes st;r
new. After eighteen centuries the Cold
Rule would seem still TO he a stranger
in the realm of business. 1t certainly is
not the basic law of business in Christen-
dom-despite all the beautiful things we
say about Christ. We evidently do not
take Him seriously in this teaching.
The Christian world OF business is sure
ly a shining exmaple of the appli-
cation of the Golden Rule Too many
business firms would seem TO he branches
of the great house of Gouge q Grab
Advertisements written by experts in
the art of lying politely; they fool simple
folk into buying what they don't want. at
prices which they do not mean to give.
Stock is watered so that companies can
go paying dividends which the public
would not justify them in paying upon
the actual capital invested, while they
keep down the wages of the workingmen
under the pretense of the necessity of
paying just interest on capital. Every
where it is one and the same story.
One of our comic papers a while ago had
a picture of q verdant youth applying
for a position in a business house, a copy
of the Golden Rule under his arm On
the walls meeting his eyes he entered,
were the braZen rules of political economy
Buy in the cheapest market and sell in
the dearest. Look out for No. 1. Every man
for himself and the devil take the hind
most"
What an irony of history, Eighteen CEN
turtles of Chrstendom, and single out
for fame a man who when his working
men tell him that there are rules in the
factory has the Golden Rule printed and
posted in his establishment and makes his
men believe that he really tries to carry
work on according to that rule. We label
him-"Golden Rule Jones'" One Golden
Rule Jones. and myriads of Brazen Rule
Smiths, Browns and Robinsons,
Wise political economists and experienced
mo Of o us 10
Rule is inapplicabe to business. A Sunday
school teacher asked her boys what was the
Golden Rule do others as others would
do YOU" said one. Then the teacher sadly
expounded the real rule. Whereupon, one
of her street arabs CONTEMPORARY re-
torted-"Naw. that won't work. Certainly
the Golden Rule is not easy to work in
business which is conducted under the
stress and strain of competition. For COM
petition is nothing more than the struggle
for existence. the strife for life, in which
the weakest goes under and might is right.
But, in that case, so much the worse, not
for the Golden Rule. but for our competi-
tive civilization. 1t is not Christian. hu-
man-that is it's judgment before the bar of
conscience. II must give way to something
higher and better. The conscience of man
is slowly WakenlnS. Inc sOCldi sur
this and nothing else than this. When the
conscience gets reused and enlightened Ii
will force our competitive civilization into
something better. where it will be possible
for the Golden Rule to be the basis for
business.
THE THING NEEDED.
Perhaps what is needed for Golden Rule
organization of industry is to come from
without. by way of legislation. That way
means revolution. Perhaps also it may
come from within. by way Of life. That
vay means evolution. And in this way of
social betterment the Masters rule is thus
beginning 10 work-reconstructing the
lations of capital and labor.
In a little town OF France-Guse-there
is an industrial establishment for the man.
ufacture of stoves and allied industries.
over a generation ago a joint stock COM
many was formed under the wise leadership
of a man who thought himself an infidel
and was called by others an infidel. In the
nreamble of the articles of the association
vas written. as the principle of organiza-
tion-the golden rule. For thirty years
Monsieur Godin lived up 10 that principle.
He established kindergartens, schools, lee
ture halls libraries, and every form OF
social betterment for his work people he
took them into copartnership by enabling
them TO take stock in the association He
steadily increased the proportion or stock
w4..I 49,