The Bon Homme County independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1904-1913, 1906-11-29
By DAVID GRAHAM PHILLIPS


this world every thought and every act u
/ mixture OF the good ana the bad; and
the ono or the other shows the more prom
7 inrntly according TO ones point of view.
/ There probably isn't criminal Ia any
CELL anywhere. TO matter what he may
say IN snlvcling prc;cnsc IN the hopc ~
! lighter sentence. who doesn't NJ The
bottom OF his heart believe his crime or
crimes somehow Justlnahlc-and who
couldn't make out plausible case for
himself
At that time I was stuffed with the
\ arrogance 81 my faucicd mCmho Eshlp On
the caste 81 directing financial gculuscs:
/ I WIS looking at everything from the
viewpoint OF the brotherhood ~ which
I Rocbuck wns the strongest brother. and
OF which I imagined myself u full ard
equal member. I did not. I could not,
bind myself Ia the vivid reminders az his
"reminiscences: but I knew too well how
/ necessary tho iron hand and a.. nNcd
4 purpose are 60 great affairs TO iudr" him
"a infugiated Walters. with III vanity
aavavciy wounded. was judging him ~
~ soon have thought Of describing Gen
| Crcl GRAFT ~ murderer. because he
ordered the battles IN which men were
kiil "a or because he Planned ard led tho
campaigns in which subordinatcs com
mlttcd Tapinc and pillagc and asrisslua-
/ lion. | lid not then see tho radical Jiger-
=
work was az the command O. patriotism
and necessity there was no necessity
whatever FOR Roebuck's getting rich nat
the command 81 his own greedy and cruel
appc,itcs.
Don't misunderstood me. Ny morals arc
| practical. not theoretical. Men must di".
old customs embodied IN law must h'
| broken the vcnai must b. hrlhcl AMI the
weak cowcd and compelled. In order tina;
civilization may advance. You can't cS-
tahlish n railway or a great Industrial
system hy rosc-watcr morality. Bu;
! shall show before I iinish. thar Rnrbgck
and hts gang OF 80 called 'orTan'zers %
industry bear about the samc relation 20
industry that the boil wccNll bears 20 the
cotton crop.
I'll withdraw this. n ono can
show me that. rs the result of
\ the activities az those parasites.
anybody anywhere ~ using ar ~ able TO
use q sinElc pound or hushel OF yard more
/ % any commodity whatsocvc-. I'll WITH
draw II. II l can not show thnt hu; for
thoyc parasites. bearing Precise y the famc
relation 20 our society that thc kings aud
mobiles and priests bore 20 france before
| the revolution, everybody except thcrl
would have moro goods and moro money
than they have under tho system the en-
ahlcs these parasites TO oyCrShadow th"
highways Of commerce with their s.rong-
no9ss ana 10 clog them Win thtlr toll
gates They know little about producing.
about manufacturing. about distributing.
about any process or Industry. Their skill
II In temptation. IN trickcry and In terror.
ON that day. however. I sidcd-hon"Sily.
n ] thought-wIth Roebuck. What saw
ard heard Increased my admiration ~ the
man. my already profound respect for his
master mind. Ard when. just after Wal
;crs went out. he leaned back In his chair
and sat silent with closed eyes and NOV
Ing lips, I-yes. I. Matt Blackjack. Black
Matt" rs they call mo-was awcd In the
presence or this great and gcod man a.
prayer,
How he ari that Cod OF his mus, have
laughed nj me! So infatuated WAS that.
clear as u IL that he'd never have lot me
nc present ut such a scene without n
strong uitcr.or motive. not until he him
SELF long aftcrward made IL impossible for
me TO deceive myself did penetrate TO hts
real purpoSc-that he wished TO MI me
with a prudent dread and fear OF him.
with sense 81 the absolutsncss Of his
power and OF the hopclcssncss 81 trying To
combat IL. But ut the time I thought
imbccilc that my vanity had made meat
the time ! thought ho had let meat
present because he gcuuinc.y liked. adj
mlrcd and trusted me-.
Is II not amazing that ono who could fan
/ Into such colossal plumbers should sur
vivc 10 tell OF them? I would not have
survived had not RoCbuck and hs crowd
been at the Same time making an even
more colossal ulscsilmate OF me than |
was making OF them. My attack was vio-
lent. but temporary: theirs was equally
violent. and chronic and incurabIc 20 boot.