The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1905-07-03


particularly, but just to do things.
whether good or badl As the late Sena-
tor Hanna is reported to have said of
our greatest dollar-genius, with an income
calculated to be over $1,000 for every hour
he sleeps or wakes,-- 'money-mad. money
mad Sane in every other way, but
money so. with modified empha-
sis one is moved to say that thousands
of American citizens sane in every other
way, are in this year of grace money
mad
Treason to the Nation.
And the frightening fact is, not only
that there are thousands money-mad, but
thousands apparently determined to graf
fly the insatiate hunger of their mad
ness, even through heartless robbery of
their fellow citizens, or despicable trea-
son to the nation itself. One of the COM
monest words in conversation today is
the word graft" 1t is heard on the
street. In the clubs, the drawing rooms,
the offices, the trains-wherever men con-
gregate The newspapers and magazines
are full of the word, itself and revela-
lions of the thing 1t stands for Accord
ing to these magazines and papers,
remarked a young men to me the other
day from his hospital cot, 1T looks as
If pretty nearly everybody had gone to
stealingi" The time is past If it ever
was when charges of financial corruption
in high places could be fairly ignored
with a sneer at yellow journalism Too
many charges have been recently made
and too many made good In Journals
that are not yellow, and too many nave
driven the individuals against whom they
were made across the Canada frontier.
or on longer trips-to say nothing OF
grand Jury indictments and petit jury
convictions. Within the last year several
of our leading multi-millionaires at the
head of the country's most powerful cor
porations. have been repeatedly publish
ed throughout the length and breadth of
the land, by fellow millionaire as thieves
and scoundrels; and they have seen tit to
meet no specific accusation with speeine
proof of its falsity--the easiest of things
TO do, in this case, il falsity there were.
The law of the land, criminal and CIVIL,
has its penalties for the libeler. But the
accused gentlemen have failed to invoke
theslaw, and their failure to do 1t can be
understood only on the ground, that be-
fore the bar of justice they couldn't play
successfully the role of plaintiffs 1t
isn't human nature at this date Tor one
very rich man to endure patehely tne
COURAGEOUS sings and arrows OF an
other very rich man, just to maintain
his dignity of character, knowing as he
does that his decency of character is be-
ing doubted or denied wherever his name
is spoken
Nay, that isn't numih nature dS eohi-
mon sense interprets it
Pulpit SiIenced by Money.
How long ago was it, that bishop OF
this church gave public credence to the
rumor, that the clergy of his diocese were
not free to denounce civic corruption ana
at the same time save their salarlesE
There were so many grafters and hood
lers. direct or indirect, renting pews IN
the Rhode Island misunderstanding pews,
and helping to pay for the beneht OF the
Ten Commandments said in surpnce.
TT is still fresh in the public mind, the
offer of the Merchant Prince of Philadel-
phja of MILLIONS to the city for fran
chise and the refusal of his offer. The
city's guardians and the peoples trus-
tees were unwilling to sell dor the city,
n thing so valuable-and so they gave IL
away-that is. they seemed tol Ihat
transaction had rather prepared us for the
recent announcement that, In the same
city. within the past five years, not less
than fifty millions of dollars have gone
the way of the CRATER; and we are hardly
surprised that so conservative journal
as the New York Churchman should de-
clare editorially In its most recent issue,
that the Pennsylvania legislature Is ZAP
parently nothing but a recording machine
to vote the orders Of the political boss.
lust the other day, as I glanced at the
morning paper, my eye fell upon THESE
words In heavy black headlines on the
first mage: Hears him with blanched
face. Mitchelrs lifelong friend gives
damaging testimony" The Mitchell re-
ferred IN Is the aged senior United States
Senator from the state of Oregon, charged
with a conspiracy to swindle the govern
ment whose commission he holds!
One is tempted to exclaim. sometimes,
that old Diogenes, back with his lantern
bunting for honest men in politics and
81 the head of great business corpora
tions. would be in no danger of crowd
Irqi The cartoonists seemed to think, a
few years ago, that most or the stealing
In this land was south of the Mason and
Dixon line-most often disastrous to wa
ter melon patches and hen roosts; and
nerhaps some of Us agreed with them.
Nothing is more certain now than that all
the stealing In the south on the part or
our ex-slaves, during the past quarter
century is a mere bagatelle compared
with the stealing that has been done IN
all parts of this country, during the past
decade. by some of its leading men In
every sort Of business and by some or
the peoples trusted representatives. from
the street-corner policeman to the uni
ted States senator.
Great in All States.
Is there, / wonder, state in the union
In which the CRATER on big scale mas
not gotten in his deadly work. missouri
Maesac husetts. Rhode Island, new Jersey,
Delaware. New York, pennsylvania,
ohio. have been already stripped to our
qaze branded deep with his brand; ana
rbo among us would be bold to say tnat
the stripping process might not be con-
timed indefinitely to something IKE the
same result? 1t begins TO seem as thousn
our civilization were being attackeo ny
a money-madness. which, unless aiiayeu'
will paralyze all its sanity.
,e ufc
a giant In strength on the neiuS anu
seas Of battle, is confronted touay Wy
eeadlier foes and a graver menace, tnah
fine newborn republic Of July = ITO piu-
ding defiance to the land and naval FORCES
If Great Britain. Then the natioh ioes-
ali save its marked and disnohoreu rem
aa.es-were to be transported from FOR
Ter shores. to fight in the open, with
s,,oa ming bayonets in their hands and red
iacuats on their backs now, Its foes are
80, ~ its own households, its own forts
and ctadeis--leaders In It's nelos OF com,
rrarcia1 enterprise, trusted agents and
ranresentatives to carry out its high pur-
noae--a government deriving its just pow
ers from the consent Of the governed.
and exercising them for the benefit OF
those from whom they are derived. The
soldiers Of King George could only aim
their guns at men loving their countrys
great ideal--lovng 1t better. because they
were called to bare their breasts to shot
and shell In its defense. The nations
enemies. today, are aiming their attacks
al the nations ideal itself. and they can