Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1905-03-10

ests and lot are virtually equivalent.
On the contrary. rs every one knows.
the most violent shocks come when
equal meets equal. and there is no
war worse than civil war. But that
which above all things else binders
men from good understanding is pride.
1t makes n man Il hedgehog, woundinS
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 eQui-
page, his dress or the number and splen-
dor Of his rctinue. 1t IS his contempt.
That he possesses great fortune does
not disturb me, unless am badly dis
posed. But that he splashes me with
mud. drives over my body, shows by
his whole attitude that l count for
nothing in hts eyes because 1 am not
rich, like himself-this Is what dis
| turbs me, and righteously. He heaps
suffering upon me needlessly. He hui
initiates and insults me grntuitously.
1t is not what is vulgar within ME. but
what is noblest, that asserts itself IN
the face Of this offensive pride. Do
IlOL uCCuSc ulc VI ChNss ASSh hOhS'
1t Is my manhood that Is wounded.
We need not search far to illustrate
these ideas. Every man Of any &c
quaintance 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
a. % Il n hot
are quoted like values In the stock
market. The esteem In which a man
Is held Is proportionate to the contents
Of his strong box. Here society" Is
made up Of big fortunes, the middle
class Of medium fortunes. Then come
people who have little, then those who
have nothing. All intercourse is regu-
lated by this principle. And the rela
lively rich man who has shown his
disdain for those less opulent Is crush
ed in turn by the contempt Of his su-
periors 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 1t is not wealth,
but the spirit Of the wealthy. that
must be arraigned.
Many rich men are free from this
gross conception-especially Is this
true Of those who from father to son
are accustomed to ease-yet they some
times forget that there is certain del
lcacy in not making contrasts too
marked. Suppose there is no wrong
In enjoying large superfuity, is it
Indispensable to display 1t. to wound
the eyes Of those who lack necessities.
to faunt ones magniflcence at the
doors of poverty? Good taste and a
sort of modesty always hinder a we'll
man from talking Of his fine appetite,
his sound sleep, his exuberance Of spir-
Its, in the presence of one dying Of
consumption. Many Of the rich do not
exercise this tact and so are greatly
wanting in pity and discretion. Are
they not unreasonable to complain of
envy after having done everything to
provoke It?
But the greatest lack Is that want Of
discernment which leads men to ground
their pride in their fortune. To begin
with, 1t Is childish confusion of
thought to consider wealth as person
al quality. 1t would be hard to find
a more ingenious fashion of deceiving
oneself as to the relative value Of the
container and the thing contained. I
have no wish to dwell on this question.
It is too painful. And yet one cannot
esist saying to those concerned: take
care; do not eonfound what you possess
with what you are. Go learn to know
the underside Of worldly splendor,
that you may feel its moral misery and
its puerility." The traps pride sets
for US are too ridiculous. We should
distrust association with a thing that
makes US hateful to our neighbors and
robs US Of clearness Of vision.
He who yields to the pride Of riches
forgets this other point, the most I'M
portant Of all. that possession Is pub
lie trust. Without doubt Individual
wealth Is Us legitimate as individual
existence and liberty. These things
are inseparable, and it Is a dream
pregnant with dangers that offers hat
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 privilege Of which to be
proud than q charge whose gravity
should be felt. AS there Is an appren-
ticeship. often very difficult to serve,
for the exercise Of every social Office, so
this profession we call wealth demands
| OnnpQnfInochln RI 81,
be rich Is an art, and one Of 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 to the
genial and redOubtable comparison Of
Luther, Is like q harp In the hoofs Of
an ass. They have no idea Of the man.
ner Of its use.
So when we encounter q man at once
rich and simple-that Is to say, who
considers bis wealth rs q means Of full.
filling his mission in the wOrld-we
should offer him our homage for he is
surely mark worthy. He has sur
| ~~ooAAsCN VOotuSicOs UOEuc tIlulb duQ III
umphed in temptations, both gross and
subtle. He does not fail to discrimi-
nate between the contents Of his pock-
etbook and the contents Of his head or
heart, and he does not estimate his
fellow men in figures. His exceptional
position, instead Of exalting him.
makes him humble. for he is very SEN
sible Of how far he falls short Of reach
Ing the level Of his duty. He has re-
manned a man. That says it all. He
Is accessible, helpful and far from
making Of his wealth q barrier to 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 dishonored by the
selfish and the proud, such q man as
this always makes his worth felt 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 uues-
ton, What would become Of me in