The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1904-12-25


shocks come when equal meets equal,
and there is no war worse than civil
war. But that which above all things
else hinders men from good under
standing. is pride. 1t makes a man a
hedgehog, wounding every one he
touches. Let US speak first of the pride
of the great
What offends me in this rich man
passing in his carriage. is not his
equipage, his dress. or the number and
splendor of his retinue; il is his con-
tempt. That he possesses a great for
tune does not disturb me. unless | am
badly disposed; but that he splashes
me with mud, drives over my body,
shows By his whole attitude that |
count for. nothing in his eyes because
] am not rich like himself-this is what
disturbs me, and righteously. He heaps
suffering upon me neediessly. He hu-
initiates and insults me gratuitOusly.
IL Is not what is vulgar within me- but
what is nOblest that asserts itself in
the face of this offensive pride. Do not
accuse me of envy; 1 feel none; it is
my manhood that is wounded. We
need not search far TO illustrate these
ideas. Every man of any acquaintance
with life has had numerous experiences
which will Justify our dictum in his
eyes. In certain communities devoted
to material interests. the pride Of
wealth dominates to such degree that
men are quoted like values in the stock
market. The esteem in which man
is held is proportionate TO the contents
Of his strong box. Here society" is
made uD of big fortunes the middle
class of medium fortunes Then come
people who have little, then those who
have nothing. All intercourse is reg
ulated by this principle. And the rel
atively rich man VINO has shown his
disdain for those less Opulent, is
crushed in turn by the contempt of his
superiOTs in fortune. So the madness
of comparison RACES from the summit
to the base. Such an atmosphere is
ready TO perfection for the nurture Of
the worst feeling; yet it is not wealth,
but the spirit of the wealthy that must
be arraigned.
Many rich men are free from lnis
gross nception-especially is this true
OF those who from father To son are
times forget that there is a certain del
icacy in not making contrasts too
marked. Suppo=2 there is no wrong in
enjoying a large superiority; is il in
dispensable TO display ii. to wound the
eyes of those who lack necessities, to
Haunt ones magnifcence at the doors
Of poverty? Good taste and sort of
mOdesty always hinder a vel, man
from talking of his fine appetite. his
sound sleep. his eXuberance of spirits,
in the presence of one dying of con-
sumption. Many of the rich do not
exercise this tact. and 50 are greatly
wanting in pity and discretion. Are
they not unreasonable to complain Of
envy, after having done everything to
provoke il?
But the greatest lack is that want of
discernment which leads men 10 ground
their pride in their fortune. To begin
with. il is childish confusion Of
thought to consider wealth as "a person
al guality.-it would be hard to find
more ingenious fashion of deceiving
ones self as 10 the relative value OF
the cOntainer and the thing contained.
I have no wish to dwell on this ques-
ton: it is too painful And yet one
cannot resist saying to those con-
cerned: Take care, d. not cOnfound
what you possess with what you are.
Go learn to know the under side Of
worldly splendOr. that you may feel its
moral misery and its puerility.' The
traps pride sets for US are too ridicu-
lous We should distrust association
with a thing that make us hateful to
our neighbOrs and rObs us of clearness
of vision.
He who yields to the pride of riches,
foTgets this other point, the most i'm
portant of all-that possession is j
public trust Without doubt indiVid-
ual wealth is as legitimate as individ-
uaI existence and liberty Thes, things
are inseparable. and it is a dream
pregnant with dangers that offers bat
tie to such fundamentals of life. But
the individual touches society at every
point. and all he does should be done
with the whole in view. Possession.
then, is less a privilege of which to be
proud than "A charge whose gravity
should be felt. As there is an appTen-
ticeship, often very difficult to serve.
for the exercise of every social office,
so this profession we cali wealth de-
mands an apprenticeship. To know
how to be rich is an art, and one Cf the
least easy of arts TO master, Most
people. rich and poor alike, imagine
that in opulence one has nothing to do
but to take life easy. That is why so
few men know how to be rich In the
hands OF too many. wealth. according
10 the genial and redoubtable COMPARE
son of Luther, is like a harp in the
hoOfs of an ass. They nave no idea
Of the manner Of its use.
So when we encounter a man at once
rich and simple, that is To say, who
considers his wealth as a means of full
filling his mission i'm the world, we
should offer him our homage, for he is
surely markwOrthy. He has surmount-
ed obstacles. borne trials. and tTi-
umphed in temptations both gross and
subtle. He does not fail to discrim-
mate between the contents of his pock-
etbook and the contents of his head or
heart and he does not estimate his
fellowmen in figures. His exceptional
position, instead of eXalting him,
makes him humble, for he is very sen
sibIe Of how far he falls short of
reaching the level of his duty. He has
remained a man-that says it all. He
is accessible, helpful, and far from
making of his wealth barrier 10 sep
arate him from other men. he makes it
means for coming nearer and nearer
to them Although the profession of
riches has been so dishOnOTed by the
selfish and the proud, such man as
this always makes his worth relt by
every one not devoid of a sense of JUS
tice Each of US who comes in contact
with him and sees him live, is forced
to Look within and ask himself the
question, What Would become of me
i'm such a sitnatiop? Should / keep
this modesty clis Hat1ralness, this up
rightness which uses It's own as though
il belonged to Cthers2 So long as
there is a human society in the world,
so long as there are bitterly conflict
ing interests. so long as envy and ego
ism exist on the earth. nothing will be
worthier Of honor than wealth per
meated by the spirit of simplicity. And
il will do more than make itself for
given; it will make itself beloved
AAORE dangerous than pride in
A'X spired by wealth is that in
spired by power. and / mean by the
word every prerogative that one man
has over another be il unlimited or
restricted. | see no means of prevent
ing the existence in the world Of men