The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1902-07-21

pendent upon man than man Is upon
capital
OUGHT TO BE SATISFIED.
5. Still another fallacy controls the
minds of good many good people, and
1t Is this: 1t is all right for the mer-
chant doctor, lawyer, teacher, clergy
man-the well-to-do classes--to desire and
strive to Increase their daily and yearly
income, but the less wel-to-do class
those who receive the least daily and
yearly income, and who do the worlds &
dirtiest, hardest and extra hazardous
work-ought to be satisfied with what
they get II is SO much more than their
fathers got. All, consistency, thou art q
jewel! / would to God more men pos
sessed thee.
6. A sixth fallacy rolls itself UP in this
form: Capital in furnishing men work,
food, clothing, shelter, Is a phllanthroplst.
Some say 1t Is so especially through the
company store' About this I do not
know, never having had an experiences
with such stores. Leaving them out of
the account, therefore, let us look at this.
What do men go into business for? Where
men go into business, have always un-
derstood 1t is because they think they see
reputation, fame, power or money to be
made in it, or possibly all four. Now. ]
may be wrong: II so, l shall be too glad
to be corrected. If my understanding is
true, then it Is for self, first that cap
ital goes into business.
But, some one says. "see all the labor
capital employs Yes, but capital can't
make reputation, fame, power. money
only through men, SO of course 1t must
have them. Though absolutely necessary
to capital, judged by the main purpose,
labor and what it gets are but incdentals.
When capital makes all the reputation,
fame, power. money 1t can or wants to
with fifty men. 1t never employs very long
hundred. What are so many industries
turned into trusts for? Why. be-
cause capital is thereby enabled to
and cut down expenses, by the dis
charge of hundreds and thousands,
no matter how much they need
work. money. food. clothing, and shelter.
Some capitalists are philanthropists; but
capital as such is far from being a phil
anthropist. / wish it were. believe tho
day will come. when men will take more
pride in dealing generously with labor
than in pling up vast fortunes to give or
leave to churches. colleges. hospitals and
libraries; when that day comes then. but
not till then, has capital a right to be
called a philanthropist.
There are many more of these fallacies,
dear friends, which l should like to pur-
sue and show to you, at this time, though
some of them are most subtle and Elusive.
Time forbids.
THE A. B. OF IT.
The A, b, C of the Capital and Labor
problem, dear friends, IS right here: In
the sight of God, in the sight of man,
which should be more highly thought
Of receive the greater interest, SYM
pathy. help. the man or the dollar? Cap
ital commits mistakes, Is selfish and ty-
rannical; labor commits mistakes, is sell
fish and tyranncal; now I ask you as
honest and humane and Christian men
and women in spite of it all, which
does God think the most of, in spite Of
all their faults. the man or the dollar?
The one you honestly believe God thinxs
the most of, in spite of all his faults,
you ought to think the most of.
Now, in a sort OF unconscious way,
all men agree to this, and yet, the mo-
ment many people begin discussing the
question, and think of the Ignorance,
selfshness, passion. sins of this or that
individual laborer," they lose sight of
the fact that that very individual has a
value in the sight of God infinitely above
the value of all the dollars in the world,
sinner as he is.
But this is the problem in outline only,
after all. Let us cut through the skin
and get into the very heart of it. Pos.
sibly, we can do this better in this way.
This Is a wonderful world In which We
dwell Who made 1t? Cod we say.
Which is the greater and more wonder
full? God or the world He has made?
OF course we say, God" But, the as
tronomer tells us that the most powerful
telescope reveals and counts 20O0OO,0O0
worlds, the vast number of them larger
than this earth. Now put those worlds
all together over here, and God over
there, are not all those worlds plainly
greater than God? "Why, no." you say.
A God that can make so many worlds is
simply declared still greater than all Of
His works combined. Yes, that must be
So,
WATCHES VS.. MEN.
hold in my hand n watch. It is one
of the Waltham company's best, that
some friends of mine once thought ! de-
served. as I was about to leave them.
Who made this watch? man, watch
maker. A watch Is wonderful thing; it
is most delicately constructed; it is Of
great value to the world. We could not
get along without them we say. Which
Is of the most value to the world, watch
es or the men who can make watches?
Which Is the greater OF the two, the
watch, or the man who made the watch?
You say the man. But over here in a
warehouse are billion gold watches.
Over here in factory are few thou
sand men who made those watches.
Which is the greater, which Is of more
value to the world. that billion of
watches or the few men who made them?
You have no hesitancy in saying "the
men are greater are of more value to
the world" Let us go step further
over on the other side are 100 men who
own that billion of watches; over on
the other"side are the 1000 men who made
the watches. They get into quarrel, a
contest; the 100 men and the 1000 men.
both do foolish, unwise, selfish unjusti-
fable acts. Which Is worth to the world
the most, the 100 men and their billion of
watches, or the 1000 men who can make
another billion of watchesp
! hold in my hand n five-dollar gold
piece. I got 1t at the bank the other
day. 1t seemed to be the largest piece
of gold / could get there, for some rea-
son. How did this five-dollar gold piece
get here. You say "men made it," Which
Is the greater thing, In and of itself this
gold piece, or men who can make gold
pieces? Your answer, of course, 'why,
men who can make gold pieces" But,
over there In somebody's vault there
are billion gold pieces, Are not a
billion gold pieces worth more to the
world and greater, therefore, than the
few thousand OF men II takes to make
them? Now, some people think they are.
BIT IL a man who can make one gold
piece Is greater than the thing he has
made, then, that one man, though he
remain only one, is greater than a mill
ion billion gold pieces billion times the
value of this one in my hand, And IL.
that million billion gold pieces and that
one man get to fighting between them
selves. because the man is greater In