The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1906-12-08


u. c., is one or Americas foremost
pulpit orators and Shakespearean
scholars, and his views on practical
questions affecting tho progress and
destiny Of human society arc widely
quoted. He was recently interviewed
by a Washington journal on the sub
joct of social unrest as demonstrated
III tile recent elections in this country.
We gubjoin SOME extracts from the
interview. us the matter under discus
sion Is one that must vitality interest
every thoughtful reader.
'As this the beginning Of the twen-
tieth century," said DIR. Stafford, "ro
one can be unaware OF tho fact thai
there Is manifest in tho land a. restless
spirit crying for Il change which may
i'm it's ultimate development be re~
garded as synlptonatic Of q coming
social cataclysn. a great upheaval. n
great readjustlnent and rearange-
ment of social conditions and forces.
This spirit OF unrest Is found in the
literature of the day, In popular maga-
zines, in the daily press, In books that
treat technically Of the subject, and
In novels. IT. has Its orators, its
preache It's pulpits, it's professions,
| it's banners, its books, It's press. 1t
is pre- eminently the thing which dis
tlnguishes, differentiates this age from
all that have gone before. for in this
day 1t seems to he reaching its cu1-
mination.
What is to be the result, the uti-
mate outcome, of this movement OF
unrest; is it to ruin, to disintegrate So
ciety as it now exists? Will it build
up, recreate, improve, or is 1t all i'm
pulse, not easily to be controlled, in
the direction of ruin, blankness and
despair?
"The result depends altogether upon
the trend given by the leaders Of the
world to the forces that have como
into existence; ON the leaders Of
thought of wealth, Of politics, of re-
ligion, Of power. Upon every one who
has the slightest influence rests a trc-
nendous responsibility for the future.
This movement, though it may
possibly seem to be a. movement Of
our times. is by no means new. 1t
began with the dissolution Of the
feudal system; the setting free Of the
individual from the collective mass
and stamping hiln-Man! The move
nlent Increased with the application
Of experimental science to the indus
trial forces OF the world, an applica.-
-tion which may be said to have begun
with the discovery Of America by
Christopher Columbus. Through the
years that followed the settling OF
this continent the movement has in
creased in force and violence, especi-
ally as in the great industrial centers
OF the world there has been a great
increase OF wealth on the part of the
few and the impoverisfning Of great
multitude. These two forces--the
multitude Of the poor on one hand
and the company OF the very rich
on the other-stand face to face to-
day, and are preparing for what seems
to be an inevitable and possibly Il
bitter conflict, which, IL it comes, will
shake the very foundations Of the
world.
"The spirit of unrest inspired by a
realization of the antagonism between
tho forces of wealth and poverty has
brought about the social discomfort
manifest today. This is due to many
causes. but chief among them is the
fact that the vast majority Of man
kind is. in our time, much better off
physically than it ever was in the
past This bctterment OF conditions
has naturally awakened in man as
pirations for even greater progress.
always L1ankind must move toward