Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1904-06-27
Low MORAL STANDARDS.

Senator Hoar believes that the stan
dard Of private and public morals has
greatly improved In this country dur
ing the last 30 years. But In one par
ticular he admits that public morals
have degenorated, and that Is IN regard
TO the use ~ money to secure nomlna-
lions and elections. lie dwells upon the
desire Of rich men 10 obtain seats in
the national legislature, and declares
their accumulations 10 be the greatest
danger threatening the republic. lie
thinks no punishment too severe for
the men who corrupt an electorate, and
yet admits that the ofense is not treat
ed with the execration II deserves, and
commonly escapes punishment though
"a corrupt and rotten republic cannot
long be saved and viii not be worth the
saving"
II viii be readily admitted that no
censure can be too strong upon the
evil here pointed out The unscrupu-
lous resort to bribery, and all forms Of
corruption constitute real danger to
free Institutions. But Il would possibly
be wrong to conclude that the use OF
money to obtain influence is a proof OF
modern degeneration In morals. The
fact ls that, as far back as history goes,
we learn that some people have OBJ
tanned more than their due share Of in
nuence over their fellow-men. The
thirst for power IL hardly any more
intense now than In the early ages.
There have always been Shareholders,
kings, tyrants. The means OF obtain
Ing power have not always been the
same. There was time when the most
successful slugger became the leader
Of other fighters, AMI through them he
obtained influence and wealth. Others
have obtained prominence by crafty
appeals TO the superstitions and fears
Of men, Today wealth Is more album
dant than ever, and It Is used to salts
fly ambition with, Men, formerly en-
shaved by physical force, or intellectual
iugglery today fan under the yoke of
Mammon. IT Is very much as II ever
was. The aims and objects are the
same the means OF obtaining them diff
fer.
But In one respect It appears that our
age is fast degeneratlng and that Is
In regard to the value placed upon hui
man life. AS one illustration of this,
It is said that hundreds of craft were
aAoat In the East River OF New York
at the time OF the Slocum disaster, and
not one cared TO render assistance, until
1t was too late. That sounds almost In
credible, and yet the story Is vouched
for. The news reports say that yachts
men engaged In smiling for pleasure
ugmen busy at their trade and other
persons IN charge OF craft moving
about In the immediate nelghborhood OF
the scene Of the horror refused to re-
spond to the appeal made to them by
the perishng victims. Scores Of men,
It Ia said, who might have saved hun
dreds OF lives declined to be turned
away from the pursuit OF business or
pleasure until Il was too late 20 do
any good, They refused, It appears to
lend aid in the beginning, but when
hundreds had persisted and hundreds
more were In peril the morbid curlos-
lty for something horrible impelled
them to draw near the scene.
Now, not even cannibals would have
acted thus toward their own kind. There
Is a general Indifference as regards hui
man life. which indicates that moral
standards are being lowered The
proofs Of this assertion are numerous.