Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1905-09-22

Ever since Adam tried to shirk re
sponsibility for an undiscrim1natina
appetite for apples by laying the onus
Of the wrong on Ewes shoulders mar
has been tempting the laughter of the
gods by attempting the impossible In
tho same way. He is always trying tc
saddle blame on "the other fellow" II
is a proclfyity of the whole race tc
save their face by laying the blame
Of their failures on somebody else or
something else. 1t does not much mat.
ter what 1t may be. They will lay 1t
on anything from garden worm up to
the Almighty, and do it with an air OF
insisting that others must believe them
and even that they believe it them
selves. It crops out in all sorts of
places and ways. If you have friend
who Is given to strong drink you can
never persuade him that he is in any
danger, that he cannot quit any time
he wants to-" and especially that 1t is
his own fault when he finds himself
mistaken in the other two particu-
lars. He will glibly lay the blame on
t1lC uAuAA 6Ci1ClY LAlouSh AC hAOWO OG
we'll as he knows anything that there
would not be any dram sellers If there
we've no dram buyers. Or he will sad
die the blame on somebody who tempt
ed him with diabolical knowledge of
the best moment to do SO or ON some
body who angered him-his wife, very
likely. II he be one who comes to grief
in all his business ventures he can al
ways furnish a scapegoat other than
himself More than likely he will lay
blame on some friend who refused to
lend him a few dollars just when good
fortune needed only the bride Of those
dollars to determine her to jump into
his embrace. He will never admit
that the refusal was because the friend
did not have the dollars, still less that
his own deeds had justly convinced
the friend that these dollars If loaned
would follow the others into the limbo
Of ghost dollars. Men in masses are
like individuals. When those intrust.
ed with public affairs botch them hope
lessly or, intrusted with public money,
graft it into their own pleasures OF
gains the voters always insist that all
the blame should be laid on these
weak vessels. They will never admit
that the primary fault was their own
in not knowing or caring enough about
what kind Of men they trusted. From
the dawn of their schoolboy days,
when they were forever trying to get
| some other boy punished for their mis-.
deeds, they display industry and ingen-
uity in laying blame on somebody else
that, If expended in doing what they
| know in their hearts Is duty, would
have brought a fair measure of sue.
cess. When cornered beyond their In.
genufty to escape they may plead
guilty If they think they can thereby
escape the penttentiary or hanging, but
rarely or never otherwise. And yet
every one of us ought to know that ir
the last analysis NO mothers son of US
can really escape the law universal of
cause and effect. In very truth we do
know 1t, as men and women, as bust
ness men, as voters and every other
wise, and yet we are forever wasting
breath I'm trying to wriggle away from
the law. II we could simply translate
that knowledge into habitual action
better conditions would come Of them
selves. AS a whole this may be be-
yond our mortal reach, but precisely in
proportion as we approximate it will
we promote betterment for all.