The Irish standard., 1905-08-12
ard Oil.

OUldlu luc 1dNOIS.
A public Office is, or should be,
solemnly regarded as a public trust,
and assuming that to be conceded,
then how does it appear to have Off,
GERS Cpretended representatives of
the people) engaging in behalf of the
city, and paid by the city, making
and entering into contracts with
themselves, or with private corpora
tions or partnerships in which they
are individually interested? Nay,
more. Drafting and framing ordinan-
ces, granting franchises and binding
the city for series of years, and
then, by their opinions and votes
(still all the while claiming to be the
peoples representatives. voting, Civ,
ing and granting unto themselves
certain specified privileges which they
have no legal or moral right to give
or to grant. The people themselves
are to blame for electing such men
to office. 1t was we'll said many years
ago that a man cannot serve two mas
ters, and the same rule holds as good
now as when that doctrine was first
promulgated. We hear it often said
today, and we read it in the papers
and magazines that Mr.. So and So Is
safe man. What does that mean?
Who is it that says so? What class of
people use that expression? In what
class of journals do we find it? 1t is
not too much to say that whenever
you hear or read of such and such a
man being a safe man, if you investi-
gate the matter you will invariably
find that he is man upon whom the
boodlers and grafters can and may
safely rely
In my early schoolboy days we were
taught to admire the patient and per-
severing fortitude and loyalty of a
Washington, the simplicity and hon
esty of Jefferson, the courage and
patriotism of a Jackson, and later on
h'ti ms llS Cttlly SlAllCo VIC WcIC
pressed with the honesty and integ-
rity of Old Abraham Lincoln, who
loved the common people, and who
said that the Lord must have loved
lue common people because he made
so many of them; but, little by little,
we have drifted away from those safe
moorings and have entered upon the
high seas of commercialisn, so-called
but in truth and in fact it is bood-
ling, it is grating, it is plundering, in
a word, it is stealing. Today the
Mark Hannas, the John D. Rookie
fellers, the Perpont Morgans, and
men of that class are held up to the
gaze of the young American as being
worthy of his emulation long eulo-
gies and laudatory articles appear in
the newspapers and magazines in ref
erence to those great captains of in
dustry, and glowing accounts are writ
ten by hired specialists to tell of their
summer cottages, their winter pal
aces, their yachts and their parks, and
then, to stihe the groans of the poor.
we hear of gifts to churches and col
leges and libraries, and if here and
there an honest man raised his voice in
behalf of Gods patient poor he is
stignmatized as Socialist, an anar-
chist, a Nihilist and disturber of the
peace of the country. Is this not
true? Of course it is. But it has
been well said that truth crushed to
earth will rise again, that the mills
OF the gods grind slowly but they
grind surely, and they grind exceed
ingly fine, and just as sure as God
reigns this regime of commercial
plnndering, this boodling, this graft
ing, this hypocritical cant of Safe
Men," this dishonest and illegal rob-
bing the people of their rights under
the pretended guise of law, of fran
chises, and other illegal methods will
be wiped off the statute books by the
CplllillOll pCOplC. MStllllNol oSS lAC
people awakening already.
The College exercises at the State
University in Madison, Wisconsin, on
June 22nd ultimo, gave very hopeful
signs that a new era is dawning upon
our people.
Only a few years ago the professors
in our colleges and universities dare
not enunciate any doctrine inimical to
the personal interests of the captains
of industry-socalled- fear of
losing their positions. In several no.
table instances eminent professors
were called upon to retract their say
ings and teachings or else resign. That
was during the time of high finance
and financiering tactics; but since the
people have become aroused and re-
formers in the large cities like Saint
Louis, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Mil
waukee and other places are exposing
the grafters and bringing them before
the bar of outraged justice, the COM
mercial plunderers and their nefar.
ious satellites are beginning to trem-
ole on their self-made thrones.
A Hard Problem.
"Is this Nine. Pompon?" breathless.
ly manfred a man who had climbed