The independent., 1903-04-23
SUBMISSION AND SILENCE

fundamentally wrong and so opposed
to democracy in it's generic sense,
that it seems worth while to call at
tention to it. In speaking of the dis
cussion of economic theories and
terms he says: mo one is competent
to discuss them who is not thoroughly
versed in history and master of
style" If that were true, the great
mass of the people, the very ones
who by their votes decide wnat eco
nomic theories shall be the policy OF
this government, must forever remain
silent, and probably among the silent
ones would be Mr.. Theobald himself.
The editor of The Independent does
not pretend to be thoroughly versed
in history" although he has read
some hundreds of volumes on that
subject, neither does he claim to be
"a master of STYLE" He, for one, OBJ
jects to being assigned to the silent
throngs who must not discuss politi-
cal economy.
What the editor of The Independent
knows of history leads him to be-.
lieve that every great reform, every
theory that has advanced the human
race, either in philosophy, ethics, me-
chanics or government, since the days
of the fishermen of Galilee to the
present time, has originated among
those mot thoroughly yersed in his
tory and who could not claim to be
masters of style" Especially is it
true that every protest against false
political economy, every effort to
throw off the burdens which it i'm
posed upon the toilers, has originated
among the common people, not one OF
whom could claim to be "a master OF
STYLE" or thoroughly versed in his
tory" Neither Ricardo nor Mill or
iginated anything in political econ
omy. as every one knows who is at
all acquainted with the uproar among
the people of England occasiOned by
the distress which followed the Ma
poleonic wars and the doubling Of the
value Of bonds by the shrewd manip-
nlations of the house of Rothschilds.
These things were all thrashed out
by discussions among the people be-
fore either one of them ever put pen
to paper. What these masters o.
STYLE did was to take these ideas
that originated among the common
people and express them in good
English. The discussion" occurred
among the people and among them
the ideas originated. t.
The Independent is somewhat farnll-
lar with this claim that the common
people should leave the discussion OF
the money question to another class
of people. We were told that by all
the great dailies from 1893 onward.
Members of congress and senators
we're in the habit of rising in their
places and declaring: Il don't pre-
tend to know anything about the
money question. That matter ought
to be left to the financiers and those
who deal in money" The absurdity
of the proposition that none but
masters of style" should discuss the
money question, should be apparent
to every man when he reflects that
those who are not masters OF style
are the ones who will, by their votes,
decide what sort of money system
we will have in this country. 1t is
the revival of the old theory that the
few should rule and the mass Of the
people should submit and keep silent.
SSS%
The Independent has several times
called attention to the anarchistic and
revolutionary acts of several repub-
lican legislatures. 1t is by no means
through with the list. The Rhode ISL
and legislature was attracting atten-