The news-democrat. (Providence, R.I.) 1906-1909, 1906-12-04

/ sometimes seek 10 associate themselves
| with those working FOR a genuine reform
| I'm governmental and social methods. ana
sometimes masquerade as such reform
! ers. In reality they are the worst enc
mics OF the cause they profess TO adNo.
! cate, just as the purveyors OF sensational
slander In newspaper or magazine are the
worst enemies of all men who are en-
| gagged In an honest effort 10 better what
| is bad In our social and governmental
| conditions.
! TO preach hatred OF the rich man as
| such 20 carry on a campaign OF slandcr
and invective against him, to seek TO mis-
! lead and inhame To madness honest mon
| whose lives are hard and who have not
tho kind OF mental training whieh VIII
! permit them 10 appreciate the danger IN
/ The doctrines preached--all this is 10 COM
/ nit crime against the body polite and
/ to be false To every worthy prinsipis anu
| tradition OF American national ille' MOTT
! over while such preaching and such agl-
! tation may give a livelihood and certain
| notoricty To some OF those VINO taKs
! temporary political success of others
! in the long run every such move,
ment will either fail or else VIII
/ provoke violent reaction, which VIII IT.
self result not merely i'm undoing the
/ mischief wrought by the demagog ana
/ the agitator, but also In undoing the
good that the honest reformer the true
/ upholder OF popular rights, has palnfully
! and laboriously achieved. Corruption Is
never so rife as I'm communities where
I
sway, because in such communities all
moral bands become loosened, and hys-
! terra and sensationalisin replace the spir-
| it OF sound judgment and tair dealing as
| between man and man. In sheer revolt
| against the squalid anarchy thus pro-
! duced men are sure In the end TO turn
toward any leader who can restore or
| der, and then their relief at being free
/ from the intolerable burdens OF class ha-
| tred violence and demagogy is such
| that they can not for some time be
/ aroused to Indignation against misdeeds
| by men of wealth; SO that they permit "a
| new growth of the very abuses which
were in part responsible for the original
/ outbreak.
The one hope for success for our people
| lies In a resolute and fearless, but sane
| and cool-headed. advance along the path
/ marked out last year by this very con-
/ gress There must be a stern refusal 10
be misled into following either that base
! creature who appeals and panders to the
! lowest instincts and passions In order u
| arouse one set OF Americans against their
! fellows, or that other creature, equally
| base but no baser, who in spirit ot
! greed, or to accumulate or add 10 an al
| ready huge fortune, seeks TO exploit his
fellow Americans with callous disregard
! to their welfare OF soul and body. The
man who debauches others in order to
obtain a high office stands on an evil
equality of corruption with the man who
debauches others for financial proiit; and
when hatred is sown the crop which
springs up can only be evil
The plain people who think-the me-
chanics, farmers. merchants, workers
with head or hand the men TO whom
American traditions are dear, who love
their country and try 10 act decently by
their neighbors, owe IL TO themselves TO
remember that the most damaging blow
that On hp piNvpn nnnular government tS
TO elect an unworthy and sinister agita-
to. on a platform OF violence and hypoc-
risy. Whenever such an issue Is raised IN
| this country nothing can be gained by
| flnching from it, for in such case demo-
! cracy is itself on trial. popular self-gov-
, ernment under Republican forms is IT.
self on trial The triumph OF the mob is
just as evil thing as the triumph of the
plutocracy, and to have escaped one dan
ger avails nothing whatever II we sue
cumb to the other. In the end the hon
/ est man. whether rich or poor, who earns
| his own living and tries TO deal justly by
! his fellows, has~as much TO fear from the
! insincere and unworthy demagog prom
/ Using much and performing nothing. or
else performing nothing but evil, who
would set on the mob 10 plumber the
rich, az from the crafty corrupuonist,
! who. for his own ends, would permit the
! common people to be exploited by the
very wealthy IL we ever let this govern
| ment fall into the hands of men of either
/ of these two classes, we shall show our
selves false to Americas past. Moreover,
the demagog and the corruptionist often
work hand In hand. There are at this mo-
ment wealthy reactionaries of such OBJ
tuse morality that they regard the public
servant who prosecutes them when they
/ violate the law, or who seeks to make
them bear their proper share Of the pub
lie burdens. as being even more objec-
! ttlonable than the violent agitator who
! hounds on the mob TO plunder the rich
! There is nothing to choose between such
a reactionary and such an agita-
/ tor; fundamentally they arc alike
/ I'm their selfish disregard of the
/ rights OF others; and il is nat
ural that they should Join In opposition
TO any movement OF which the aim IL
fearlessly to do exact and even justice to
! all
EiRbt-Hour LAW.
! call your attention TO the need of
passing the bill limiting the number OF
hours Of employment OF railroad en-
! ployes. The measure IL very moderate
one and | can conceive OF no serious OBJ
! lection TO IL. Indeed, so far as IL is in
| our power, IL should be our aim steadily
! TO reduce the number of hours OF labor,
with as a goal the general introduction
/ of an eight-hour day. There are indus
/ tries in which IL Is not possible that the
hours of labor should be reduced; just as
there are communities not far enough
] advanced for such movement To he for
4 their good. or. IL In the tropics, so sit
uated that there is no analogy between
/ their needs and ours in this matter.
! on the Isthmus OF Panama, for in
stance, the conditions are in every way
! so different from what they are here that
! an elght-hour day would be absurd; Just
| as IL Is absurd. so far the isthmus Is
concerned, where white labor can not be
! employed, to bother as TO whether the
| necessary work is done by alien black
men or by alien yellow men. But the
wageworkers OF the United states are Of
| so high a grade that alike from the mere
| ly Industrial standpoint and from the
| civic standpoint IL should be our object
! 10 do what we can In the direction OF Sc
! curing the general observance Of an
! eight-hour day Until recently the
! eight-hour law on our Federal statute
| books has been very scantily observed.
/ Now. however largely thru the instru-
mentality OF the bureau OF labor. IL Is be-