Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1901-09-02
MUST GOVERN THEMSELVES.

Faith In People.
Henry VollGer, ex-mayor of Daven-
port wss the next spezker. AT err
DIV cling at some length on the spirit
of The observance OF Labor day he
said:
ut would be an idle waste of your
time and mine to indulge at length
in these glittering generalities and
trite truisms at this time-at this
time when the greatest contest of the
age is on between man and his own
creation, between the people and the
giant trust corporation created under
laws made by the people. How will
il end? Shall labor Organization be
crushed under the heel of the grest
steel Moloch or shall the indepen-
dence of the toilers be preserved
Shall this fair land of ours be turnt d
over bound in gilded chains to the
mercies OF the most contemplate form
of oligarchy the world has ever seen
All lovers of humanity await the issue
of this momentous oIilict with throb-
bling hearts. They will urge modera-
ton and self-control, patience. per-
severance, prudence. All shall bs
heard who have an earnest thought
and sensible word to offer on the
problem before which statesmen and
ECONOMISTS stand sghast.
Should this course not be followed.
or if followed, should this method
fail in the end, fear there will be an
appeal to force, which involves a re-
version to barbarism; civil conflict,
which will dwarf into insigniticance
even the fearful catastrophe of the
French revolution. ShoulI the Lord
have in store for us that dies irae,
that day of wrath. the sun of Ameri-
can civilization will set behind a sea
of blood. God forbid. To save us
from such calamity it requires the
earnest cooperation of all classes, of
all sorts and conditions of men.
First, the workingmen must learn
to govern themselves. Is it not
about time for them to get their eye
teeth cut? If they catch like gudg-
cons at every tempting bait that Is
thrown them, If they can be bought
off by the trust by the promise of
favors here to fight against the cause
of their brethren there, as it j.
claimed has been done at South Chi
cago; if at the ballot box they desert
their true friends and allow them
selves to be voted by their masters
like so many sheep. they cannot ex-
pect to win. with a more sure eter-
nal tendency seeks not the stream the
ocean than q corrupted people its own
devouring slavery
Kuows of Cases Close to Home.
IL know of cases that have occurred
in mills not q thousand miles from
here. where the men have been in
duced to vote against their own con
victions by the reading of bogus tele-
grams and pretended conditional
contracts on election day. Those
who would be free. hemselves mu st
strike the blow Not only must we
improve in political sagscity, not
only must we increase among the
workers the feeling of solidarity. but
as citizens we must ever refresh in
our minds the truths taught by the
fathers when they laid the Foundation
stones Of this government. We must
cling to our ideals We must not
admit the statement of Chicago pro
fessor that our declaration of indie
pendeHce is a string Of glitteriDg
falsehoods.
remark that while ike to give credit
for the charitable impulses of our
multi-millionaires when they give out
of their super to endow
schools and colleges. L can clearly see
the danger that the mad competition
of our university presidents for en-
dowment funds will lead to the filling
of the chairs at our seats of learning
not with independent. fearless think
ers, but with a lot of trucu'ent syco-
plants. who will preach that the
economic world is round or dat as
desired.
Amerio ans Natural OptimIsts.
1--WE Americans are optimists by
nature. A happy-go-lucky faculty Of
expecting things to turn out right in
the end anyway leads us to tolerate q
good many things in ways that the
European cannot understand. 1 con-
fess myself to share this Americanism
in temperament; but If my reading of
history has taught me anything, it il
that il is not safe for US to RELY too
much upon our fortunate experience
in the past. / believe that a free gov
eminent like ours il more easily lost
than any other.
Given q condition OF gross in
equality in the distribution of wealth.
wnere great fortunes concentrate 10
the hands of the favored few and the
struggle for existencs seems to be-
come more intense for the manv,
where thousands Entrusted with cit
izenship and the high prerogatives of
the ballot box are so oircumstanced
that few dollars easily made on