The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1904-12-24
Plea for Popular Ownership of All
Z-==.Public Utilities---


mousy rich with the saving truths taught by the
Catholic church would. obviously. prove at once the
most direct and the simplest means of restoring the
benchcent rule of good viii, Justice and equity to
corruption-reekiHg political zealots. But this is
manifestly impossible The miuistrations of Holy
Church have at all times been freely profered to
these, as to all men; their present goddess attitude
Is therefore manifest exempihcation of the truth
of the words of divine Savior, indicating that
the heart of the rich man Is prone to obdurateIy
icct the kingdom of God.
The stupendous power and the diaboIicaIv self
ish and reckless spirit in which it is welded would,
of verify. seem to be the most formidable weapon
at the command of the arch enemy of Holy Church
in this day and age BY their means does he
compsh the wreck and ruin of souls. The ordjn-
airy mortal seems no more capable of withstanding
the soul-bghting and demoralizng influence Of
predatory wealth than Is the hopelessly confirmed
incbriate able to resist the temptation lurking i'm
the flask when it IS placed within his reach
If the craving for alcoholic stimulants were as
universal allpervading and Unsuitable as is that for
wealth the part of mankind would not all Ie-
gitimac and available of preventing its graf
ifcation be restored to by the devoted shepherd of
souls even though this involved the annihilation of
all alcoholic beverages, let the loss fall where it
might.
Is not forsooth the application of this moral
TO the problem under consideration rresistabIy OBJ
viousl
So long as the sins of the men of many millions
supposed to be those of omission only and
the deplorable distress caused by the accumulation
of stupendous wealth the inevitable result Of pure
negative forces, it natural that the ministers of
God, commissioned to apply the truths Of salvation
to the souls of the race of men, should earnestly
counsel pious submission and abstention from all
radical measures that in any sense savored OF
hscaton. But that it has become clearly and
painfully evident that the transgressions of the stu
pendously rich perniciouslv active, relentlessls
positive and inexorably demoralzing what shall
henceforth be the attitude of these men of God
In the light of recent revelation above alluded
to it must be evident to all intelligent men that the
diabolical influence of predatory wealth Is waxing
more and more despotically potent and its OK
erclse more and more rapac1ously aggressive.
As this pcrncious power is all but absolutely ire
sistibe in its soul-blighting influences and Is
ingly not i'll the least amenable to the godly InHu-
ences of religion, il not well to earnestly strive
to accomplish its utter annihiatonl
Not by violence or unlawful means, to be sure;
for these must always be abhorrent to those who
sincerely profess the religion of Christ.
But are there no lawful, entirely legitimate and
irreproachabc moral means by which the deadly
fangs of the monster of iniquity might be eHcc
tually drawn.
Measures of this character have been proposed.
have from time to time been eXpOunded and
now being more or less persi5tcntly and potentlv
advocated; or at least, such IS the conviction of
the writer.
"The public ownership of public utilities for
instance. would have a powerful effect in crushing
the ruthless rapaeity of corporate greed. 1t Is in
the nsatiablv selfish interests of the private owner
ship of railways city transportation, lighting and
water supply facilities that the legslature-and ju
dciary-corrupting influences have been most per-
niciousIy active. By the conversion of the owner
ship of such utilities from private individuals to the
nation. state or municipalities, much of this species
of corruption and iniquity would at once be effec
tua1lV eradicated from body DOlitic That the
new regime would give rise to increased corruption
Of another kind many affect 10 believe this Is,
however, by no means selfevident proposition,
those now managing the affairs Of the concerns I'M
der consideration have the same incentives and
practically the same opportunities for plundering
their employers as would have the servants of the
public in the same capacity But be that as it
may the petty populations that might thus occur
would not be comparable in their injurious effect
upon society is the debauchery of the Legislators
Continued on Part Three.