Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1906-08-07
PILGRIMS WERE NOT PERFECT.
Some Spots on the HalOs of New Eng
land Pioneers Are shown Up.

Hon. John d. Long of Massachusetts,
formerly secretary of the navy does not
believe that the members of the famous
Plymouth colony. pioneers of New Eng
land, were a superior class OF people.
Speaking at the celebration OF the 300th
anniversary OF the First church OF Ply
mouth Mass, he said:
Even in this Pilgrim colony the saints
can be counted on the fingers. We are apt
TO think Of 1t as little kingdom Of heaven
on earth. But 1T is amusing to read the
loving and scriptural phraseology under
guise Of which the knife of shrewd dicker
was stuck into each others ribs. Some OF
the very elect intrusted with its affairs
were false to the trust and used their po-
sltions to feather their own nests-much
falser to their trust than any president OF
modern insurance company. The FIRST
minister sent to it in 1924 was a factious
hypocrite who stirred up strife and was
shown to have been a libertne, guilty of
gross immortality. The second was a cross
between a crank and an idiot and was
shipped off in short order. One OF the
original number was hung for wilful MUIR
der. Within the first decade social vices
infested the community, drunkenness,
pickering, Islander, RIGHTEOUSNESS, even
crimes against nature and all this In a
community Of very limited numbers. No
New England village OF today need fear
comparison. But the good prevailed with
them over the evil, as It has prevailed
with us and will hereafter prevail
I believe that all the present eruption
and riot and violence which startle US to-
day are only the boiling OF the cauldron
which, hot and scalding now, is sloughlng
of the scum.
But, on the other hand, do not shut
my eyes to the perils I recognize the dis
content OF the body polite which shakes
the foundations under us like the tremors
Of an earthquake. 1t is a discomfort that
arises not from the fact that the great
body of the people have little, for they
never had so much. II arises from the
fact that the man who has a hundredfold
more than the Pilgrim compares himself
not with the Pilgrim. hut with his neigh
Dor, who has a hundredfold more than
himself. The man who walks hates the
man who drives a horse, but when he has
his horse is unhappy because Of the mar
who spins by him in an automobile, blow.
ing horn and raising a cloud OF dust, and
| whom he hates. The great problem OF our
material age Is not the accumulation, bul
the distribution OF wealth II is the in
| equalities that sting and make testers. Il
takes a little philosophy to accept tn,
| inevitable law OF nature. yet the inequaIi
ties Of fortune, which naturally arise under
condition OF equai rights and privileged
/ for all, are the very stimulus to enterprise
/ to activity.
| II is we'll for US, however, Justly inpa
tient we may he Of the powerful massinEi
OF capital which have set going the grea
Industrial wheels Of production and EN-
| ployment, 10 carefully guard. while prop
erly restricting them. against too violen
an impairment OF enterprise and invest
| ment, which might result I'm disaster no
only 10 financial but Industrial interests
cut on the flow OF wages and support, AM
| kill the goose that lays the golden Ell
on which sll Of us alike are directly or in
| directly feeding
Is II not just here that the church ha
its present great opportunity as a might,
conservative power for wisdom and right
eousness, for peace and content? For con
tent Is happiness. and discomfort is misery
Not the pulpit alone, not the preache
alone, but the church Of the people. tn
| Pilgrim church. the church gathered N
years ago today az scrooby-the churc
of all men and women who believe tina
God reEns. church which with all n
forces united and working together, is
power mighty enough TO meet and so,v
the problems Of our day, however full Q
peril they sssnA-