Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1901-02-22
Aggregation and individuality

there is great complaint thereat.
Enough to make books of lamentations
and denunciation have been written OF
those suddenly grown rich by agsregai-
ing the skill aud muscle Of men, aud
through improved tightening machinery
and other means accomplishing enor-
nous productions. One would think
that few men like Carnegie aud Rocke-
Teller were responsible for all the ten
denotes of aggregation. \ feverish de-
sire to aggregate aud run others has
taken possession of the minds of the
whole country and, perhaps, the whole
world. and any man in these times may
as well be man without a country as
to be one without corporation, society
party. or out of the control of more or
less fellows in congregated capacity.
There is disposition to congregate
others and a disposition in Others to be
cougregated. With the world so full Of
associations and combinations as to Im-
pede the movements of each other there
never was time when still another
could have been organized more easily
than now. The mass see the good pur-
poses and designs of these combinations,
and they see also that the workings of
them almost invariably tend to personal
results and benefits. The politician
bends them to his purposes. The
proselytizer uses them to the more easily
incline men to the truth and truthful
WAYS; and men and women use them for
gain, pleasure. entertainment and pro-
motion. Miscellaneous organizations are
fast usurping functions formerly eNer'
cised by the church and state. Besides
they do not accumulate or acquire
means, because if the running expenses
of such, including foreign delegations
and expenses of sinecures in almost any
community were saved it would hall
support the churches in that community
But aggregate efforts and means are not
ALWAYS systems OF waste or extravaganza
although it must be confessed that thoSC
which are, are the most popular anc
numerous. But business corporations
and aggregations are different. To pro
duce the most with the least physical
toll has always been the study OF man
kind Now the men who have suddenl,
grown rich are just the men who have
discovered capacity to do that. VIVA
so much and so suddenly benefits or en-
riches community, large or small, a:
for some man to combine men, mean
and capital in such ways as to CONVEX
raw material into the comforts and luXu
ries of life at the least expense and t.
the greatest advantage? So on tn
whole the present tendencies to aggrega
ton are in the direction of economy
production and plenty so far as produc
ton is concerned.
"But," says somebody, "what grea
benefit is an enormous production II
is to be taken away from the mass o
mankind and divided among the few
If the few should gobble it all up an
could not carry it off and there wa
twice as much of the overflow as all @
it used to be, even then the mass woul
be benefited by the increased facilitie
for production and accumulation. ''But,
says another, "a few men running tn
whole country in large combinations de
stroys incentives to individual enter
prise and development. There are tw
views of that feature of the subject. !
taking single view we look upon
combination as extinguishing all ind
vidualities except the head, while tn
combination itself requires the brain
and genius and individuality of man,
graded down from the head according t
ability, just as they would be if doin
business each for himself, ranking thel
according to the capacity Of each will
out the advantage of their combine
means, skill and capacity to execute the
designs. A strong vindication of tn
view of the subject may be found in I'll
fact that there are now more men wit
energy, enterprise and push than Their
ever were before. In our day at lea
the land has never before been file
with such plenty and abundance as nov
nor has there been a time when til
whole people, rich and poor, have Ell
ioyed such comforts and luxuries {
now. No man exercising the SAN
trugality and economy that men did b.
fore the changed conditions of doin
business but would possess double thu
he would under the old regime. Thri
and economy will increase the substant
of and elevate the working classes, viii
there is nothing like extravaganza
turn the wages of the laborer back I'M
the hands of grasping and designin
men. The vital question is now wheth,
we can bear prosperity, for
all fares the land to fastening ills pre-
When wealth accumulates and me
decay"