Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1903-05-02

used bad 1anguage-and those that did
live in the houses 1 built were always
complaining about something. If door
came off or a roof wanted mending,
you would think there was something.
serious. They used to make sarcastic
remarks about model houses and jeer
every time anything went wrong. The
Won en- used to go to the cooking lee
lures at first, but after time they
quit. They didn't seem to care about
them. l had a clergyman come and
give series Of lectures on Social Or
DER the idea being to show how much
better things are now than they used
to be and how much can be dope by
contentment, and so on, and they in
terrupted him with rude questions. and
the boys threw snowballs at him in the
streets. / am through trying to do any
thing for those people. Model towns
don't go with me any more. l have
sold out the lyceum for theater. and
anybody can have the houses at cost
and interest on the investment"
We take the space to print this little
narrative because it is worth thinking
about
OF course model towns 'don't go"
with American workingmen. If they
did, we should be back in the middle
ages. OF course there are very few
American workingmen willing to be
treated like children. If there were
many: it would not be worth while to
think of better conditions
The model town. the benevolent lyce-
UNI. and the paternal interference de-
vice has been tried in many places In
this country, and we believe it has new
er resulted in anything but failure.
Persons that indulge in these patron.
izing schemes do not understand very
much about the American people. If
Americans generally were willing to be
organized into model communities and
have their ways of life regulated for
them and be under hourly instruction
and advice, this would never have be-
come the greatest manufacturing ma
ton in the world nor the American
Workingman famous for his skill and
efficiency.
There is a certain condescension in
volved in the model town idea that
sets an Americans teeth on edge. 1t
Is practical recognition Of modern
feudalism not easy to tolerate-as if
the people for whom model towns are
provided were unable to look out for
their own interests and must have
guardians from among the wise and
good. In this country the public school
has made most people Of about the
same degree of intelligence, and those
that produce the wealth Of the land do
not usually need to be cared for by
charitable idlers.
The Pennsylvania mine owner prob
ably never thought of it, but as mat
ter of fact very few Americans in pos
session of health and their reasoning
faculties need to have things done for
them. They can do things for them
selves. They do not need any paternal
care and shepherding about. All they
need is an opportunity. an equal chance
In life, and they can be depended upon
to take care OF themselves.
In this particular instance if the mine
owner had seen fit to abolish his CON-
pany store and it's varied and ingen-
1ous system of grand and petty lar
ceny and had done away with the time
dishonored methods of plundering prac-
ticed on the miners, he could have
spared himself the expense of his lyce-
UNI and lecture hall and other improve
ments. The miners would have attend
ed to those things themselves.-NeW
York American.
Correct.
sS'Tho pl,,ro1 than of s,,;fo, is x,,h a -