The daily morning journal and courier., 1907-09-14
THE POSSESSION OF RICHES.

Jamestown upon the occasion this | week of the celebration of Ohio day Is justified by the calm and reflective | spirit in which he approached the subject of the possession of riches | The country has heard so much about | "the swollen fortune" the changes | have been rung upon it with such des- l perate disrespect for the conventions ] of thoughtful speech that it Is well [ that there are men of eminence left | in the country brave enough to under- take the stemming of the demagogio l current. MT. Harmon, man who has served his country thoughtfully and well, is qualified to be included among the sane students of current affairs who can aid in this important work, None is more important nor more timely.
 In order that his attitude towards the artificial batting of the rich may be understood we make more or less extended quotation from the ad- mirable address referred to as fol- lows: Tt is a matter of no personal interest to me because my aim in life has never been to amass wealth, but I am not taken with the idea of seek ing to limit by law the acquisition of fortunes, The smallest fortune is too great if it be dishonesty or unfairly gained. With laws so framed as not to impose unnecessary charges on the | people which operate to give some ad- vantages over others, and with laws impartially enforced to prevent unfair methods and corrupt practices, no for tunes will be swollen, which implies unnatural and perverted growth Nor with our well-tested systems of inher- itance and restriction of entailments will fortunes long remain in unworthy hands; while fair-gotten wealth has neither temptation nor occasion to seek illicit favors from officials who make and enforce the laws And in our free country every man who thinks happiness lies in wealth has the right to get as rich as he honestly can. All we should demand is that he shall not increase his gains by withholding from the laborer his just reward or adding hardships to his lot, nor by deprlving others of their gains by un- 1 fair competition, And he must bear his due share of tho expenses of the gov ernments which protect him in pursuit and possession. But If for the first time in the history of the race some body Is to draw Q line around thrift and enterprise, I am sure Ohio Will insist on trying the experiment for herself. For all economic measures are necessarily experiments, especial Fly those which deal with new condi- tions. And when the atmosphere is charged with discontent and rrsent- ment, no matter how just, the eye is not always sure nor the hand al.
 ways steady, so that results not in- tended or desired may follow"
 This expression of personal opinion | hn tr-lft, hxt ,o in any way interested in the better ment of his condition. The man of ill- gotten gains will find nothing satisfy ing in it for he receives the cold treat ment he deserves even If by the pro
 cesses of intimation. The man of hon. est,y acquired riches, be they large or small in his sight, will find support
 from an upholder of the constitution anl lover of American traditions. The poor man, whether he measure s
 his let hy a failure to accumulate all
 that Lis ambition dictated or bv the stern fact that he has no more than
 will meet every day requirements, will find new warrant to persist in the l fight for a more attractive condition, In other words MT. Harmon has spoken the words of simple wisdom
 and they are so simple in their un-
 derstanding of the yearnings, the sac-
 rifices and the achievements of human
 beings as to provoke the wondering in- quiry, how could the country have beer
 led into hysterical state of mind as 8 consequence of hurriedly considering
 "the swollen fortune ?" There has never been any misunderstanding ol
 the wickedness of ill-gotten gain:
 among right minded men, who con.
 stitute the majority of the citizens oi the country. Except among the limit. ed few, who accept poverty through
 the inability to work usefully anC Iprofitably, or who like MT. Harmon art
 content with the qualification of tht necessities of a well ordered life, al have been working with varying de grees of success, from first employ
 ment to the last, in order to get nor, and more for their labor. The yer. Instinct of self-preservation combined :, with the common indecision of men a to what constitutes safety agains
 want has and forever will move mel to work with greater order and sys