Mexico Missouri message. (Mexico, Audrain County, Mo.) 1899-1918, 1906-08-23

no snperiors and no inferiors. All
were brothers and equal before the
law, whether friends or enemies,
Social injustice and lack OF social
faith he believed to be the cause Of
nearly every crime in the calendar.
One day q cnlprit was brought
before Jones charged with stealing
p loaf of bread from a bakers
wagon.
Wow do you pleadi" asked the
Judge.
Guilty" answered the prison
And why did you steal the
breadi"
Il was hungry and had no mon
ey. The wagon was standing
there, no one was near, and |
could not resist the temptation.
Il accept your plea of guilty,
and fine every man in the court
room ten cents for living in a city
where a man has TO steal in order
to eat" And Jones tossed a dol
lar into a nearby hat and motioned
the deputy to collect the assess
ment on the crowd.
The amount of the collection was
$40.
Here is the money to pay your
fine, said His Honor, and / re-
init the fine. You may go now
and prove me true prophet when
l say you will never do this thing
again. "
His political faith may be sx-
pressed in his own words II am
for a social system that will grant
to every child born on the planet
equal opportunity with every other
child. 4 AIN against a system that
destroys few by making them
Unfortunately rich, while it destroys
the many by making them inordi-
nately poor. am against govern
ment by force anywhere aad for
government by consent every
where"
Summing up what he actually
accomplished:
In his own factory he established
an eight hour instead of a ten hour
day, gave weeks vacation with
regular pay to all his employees,
maintained a course of free lee.
lures and concerts. He inaugu-
rated benefit insurance, equipped
the Golden Rule Band, established
the Golden Rule Dinner which he
came from the Mayors Office each
day to share. and gave the people
the Golden Rule Hall where club
and social meetings were held.
Every Christmas each employee was
given 3 per cent of his yearly earn
ings and finally he opened up the
way for every employe connected
with the factory to become a
stakeholder. Yet he looked on
none of this as charity. He says,
We do not claim to give our
wOrkingmen anything in the way
of charity or presents, what we
have done has been simply an eff.
fort to deal justly.
In his life and example he has
left his city, his state, his nation,
and the whole world a precious
heritage that will bear richer and
yet richer fruits. The letters to
his workingmen contain the es.
sence of his practical political
economy which must figure more
aud more prominently in the So
cial aud political affairs as the ma.
tionS move onward TO an active,
vital realization of the brother
hood of man.
In his work he has given practi
cal demonstrations to a system Of
ethics OF the highest type. HI
took the teachings of Jesus as hi
J took the Declaration of Independ
enee, literally, and lived them boil
so spiritually, SO consistently tina
at first he was a puzzle and late
a revelation to the GOnventiona
and sophisticated.
The reward he received was L
I him the greatest that he could de
sire. He was believed in. III
was loved.
On that last day when only hi
/, example was left to live an,
breathe and thrOb upon the cart
10 such funeral was ever witness
ed. Thousands upon Thousand
I gathered and stood for hours Il
Z the July SUP. Crowds covered I'd
great lawns about his home AM
: spreading to theadjoining grounds
They filled the cross. street an