Danville intelligencer. [volume] (Danville, Pa.) 1859-1907, 1906-09-14
THE MORAL
OF 1T.

OF II.
If the eminent gentlemen compris-
ing the Board of Directors of the
broken Real Estate Trust Company
of Philadelphia, who prior to the pres
ent shocking developments have posed
as models of business integrity and
civic purity, could have forseen the
position which they themselves would
occupy within the short period of
year, it is probable they would have
been somewhat more lenient in the
judgment passed by them upon GER
tain other of their fellow-citizen to
whom they were opposed politically.
The events of the past year in the
city Of Philadelphia are so fresh in
the minds of everybody that it is un-
necessary to recur to them. The men
who were dethroned from their places
of political power were denounced as
thieves and criminals for whom the
doors of the penitentiary yawned, and
the newspapers who were engaged in
exciting the public mind took great
pleasure in printing from day to day
cartoons representing the discredited
and disgraced leaders in the narrow
cell, with ball and chain attachment.
The gentlemen who are now engaged
in explaining why they didn't take
better care of the millions entrusted
to their charge were the leaders in
the great movement for civic purity,
and were loudest in their denuncia-
tions of the men who used their prom
inent political positions to increase
their private fortunes at the expense
of the public. That Philadelphia 5
affairs were in an unsatisfactory shape
and that there was occasion for the
assertion of the majesty of the people
to correct existing evils was unques-
tionably true, and the voters accepted
as leaders the men who most yigor-
ously asserted their own civic virtues
and abilities to redress the public
wrongs. The public was told that the
first duty would be to put into jail
the men who had robbed the city of
millions, and with this assurance the
people overthrow their old leaders and
entrusted affairs into new hands.
Almost year has passed since
Philadelphia's political revolution and
the results promised prior to the cleo
tion have not been realized. The
men who were denounced as thieves
and plunderers have not been sent to
Jail, even suit has not been brought,
and a committee of eminent, unpre-
judiced lawyers, after going over all
the evidence obtainable, has given it
as its opinion that criminal action
could not be sustained. That the ac-
cused were guilty to degree from a
moral standpoint in the management
of the affairs entrusted to them is
probable; that the city was robbed of
millions was charge not susceptible
of proof and altogether improbable.
1t furnished the opportunity, however,
to number of ambitious gentlemen to
pose as the friends of the people and
pillars of integrity and virtue in the
community. The deluded public
brought their savings to the institu-
tion at the head of which their names
appeared as Directors, and it was ac-
cepted as fact that in such hands it
would be carefully safeguarded. I'm
fortunately for poor human nature,
it was again misled, deceived, betray-
ed. The eminent citizens in whom
such great trust was reposed were so
busy calling other people thieves, and
in general looking after their own per-
sonal and political fortunes, that they
had no time to devote to the greater
responsibility resting upon them.
Nipple was one of their kind, man
who never smoked, chewed or drank,
who subscribed literally to church
and reform movements, and there
fore, was competent to run the bank
without any direction on their part.
Like themselves, however, Nipple
was of common clay, fell an easy vic
tim to the wiles of Segal, and when
he could stem the tide no longer took
the suicides route.
The situation of the gentlemen who
were so harsh in their criticisms of
Others, but who failed so lamentably
III the performance of their own duty,
is not one to be envied. 1t may be
that some are nearer the felon's cell
than the men whom they condemned |
with such assumed righteous indigna-
tion and affected virtue few short
months ago. One of the lessons is,
that in this world of change and NOR
tai weaknesses, it may be well not to
be so hasty in our judgments; that