The wageworker. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1904-????, 1907-09-27

of all kinds and degrees lined up in the front
ranks OF the exploiting class-the class that has
added nothing to the nations happiness OF to
its material welfare, but that has debauched
private and public morals at home and has dis
graced the nation abroad. t.
He the stock -jugglers. the stock-water-
ers, the trust magnates, the tarif-tax benefciar-
les the special privilege recipients, parading
their evidence of unlimited wealth. He sees
them contributing with princely liberality to
churches, to libraries, to coleges--to popularize
and to perpetuate the present system of protec-
tive tariff, trusts. and high finance He sees
them with their villas and their castles at home
and abroad, their public postoffices within their
private grounds their private cars their yachts,
their banks, their railroads, their newspapers
their lobbies i'll and out of the legislatures and
of congress. He them intimate terms
with law makers and federal judges, even hob
nobbing with royalty. He sees all this, and he
feels that he pays large part of the toll very
much against his will.
He is not envous of the so-called plutocrats
because they have lots of money but he is
convinced that lots of their money is other peo-
pies money, for which they gave value and
to which they have moral right.
He has learned that if he steals $50, he
goes to the pententiary; but that the who
steals millions is admitted into high finance
and is heralded foremost American He
has found that il he violates the injunction of
court he goes to jail, and his home is sold
to pay the courts costs; but that when
the corporation magnate violates injunction,
he gives bond and goes free.
He has learned that when corporation is
the complainant, federal judges are not only
prompt to assume jurisdiction, but only too often
they assume also the spirit of the prosecutor.
He sees the leading business of the
country placing pride of pelf above pride of self
He sees them proclaiming and exemplifying the
heresy that the dollar is the standard of sue.
cess, and that this success is the standard of
character of worth.
He hears himself patronizingly asked to ac-
cept full dinner pail in lieu of full share
of civic rights and full opportunities in life
He has discovered that the devotees of
high finance" have two systems of arithmetic.
material. and machinery, by the formula of
and 2 make 4; but when they capitalize to sell
stocks and bonds, it is and make %:
He is told by the railroads that the rails
made and sold by the steel trust at exorbitant,
protective tariff prices-are defective and are
continually breaking thus causing railroad
wrecks, and daily and hourly endangering the
lives of thousands of people; and he is told by
the railroads that the tarf-protected steel trust
monopoly turns out these defective rails as to
save money-the money going to pay dividends
on hundreds of millions of watered stock. But
one in authority has suggested that
the steel trust rail makers are criminally re-
sponsibe.
The government itself tells him the rail-
roads congressman, senators. and men of large
wealth have conspired to defraud the people of
thousands of acres of valuable mining and tim-
Der lands, but he sees one of these very senators
at the head of the prosecution of the mine union
leaders of Colorado.
He sees corporation lawyers appointed to
federal Judgeshlps. He sees corporation law
yers in the federal cabinet He sees cabinet
intimately associated with Wall Street
leaders of high finance"
He has been given ample evidence that
even the United States senate. the highest law
making body of the nation-and the body that
confirms the appointments of all federal judges
is controlled, when necessary, by senator's
elected to represent railroad trusts, tariff -bepe-
ficiaries, and other special privilege recipients
Then. too, he has learned that newspapers
are selling their columns. their editorial
columns, to those who fatten on special privi-
leges, and who rob. and oppress the people
lawfully.
Seeing and knowing these things. he feels
that there is something radically wrong in the
system of economy that brings forth, and in the