The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1907-08-24
CAN THE REPUBLIC ENDURE?

Upton Sinclair, the author of 'The Jungle" is
clever and versatile Socialistic writer, and has
recently concluded constructive study of the in
dustrial and sociastc history of the United States
Thoughtful men and writer's are finding the social
conditions of our country among the most inter
esting and perplexing of any in the whole civilized
world Sociology, which is the science of human
relationships offers fruitful and interesting field
for investigation, especially in our American repub
lie which contains within its territorial limits
variety of climatic conditions, race divergencies
industrial and commercial as well as governmental
and municipal problems, unequaed in the same area
in any other part of Christendom Each school of
sociological and economic thinkers finds it COM
paratively easy to outline the appalling conditions
which prevail and to depict in startling terms the
results which must assuredly accrue in the very
future, but two schools apparently are able
to agree on solution to the questions which are
now so insistent in their urgency for an answer.
The late Mr.. E. D. Forbes, one of the most far
seeing and profound thinkers in the Republican
party predicted few months before his death, the
disruption of the Republicans in twenty years I'M
less things change for the better Strangely enough
the Rt. Rev. DIR. Potter, head of the aristocratic
and wealthy Episcopal diocese of New York, in
cluded popular education, of the three dom
nant evils responsible for the unsettled conditions
of mems minds and the deplorable state of our
country in his address delivered at Chautauqua
two weeks ago. Upton Sinclair's solution of the
industrial problems is merely that already given by
the school of socialists to which he belongs. He
believes that if competition in business be abol-
ished and all public utilities, the means of produc
ton and of distribution of wealth. as well banks,
insurance companies and other financial institu-
tions, the present enigma social economic and po
itical would solve itself Mr.. Sinclair seems to
forget that the possession of such enormous re-
sponslblhty by party government would lnevita- |
bly, result in uncomfortable tyranny or the forma
ton of an opposition by contending elements re-
sulting in rebellion. So long the writer is dag
nosing the diseases of the body polite it is not
difficult to follow him. His surgical probe, how
ever does not go deep enough to touch the seat of
the disease. Each thinking man. who is studying |
the signs of the ominous times is conscious of an
approaching hurricane which will shake the repub-
lie to its very foundations Prudent men in every
state of the union and the deep thinkers of Europe
agree In the necessity of change if the American
republic would escape the fate of Rome.
Waving the Importance of religion and the alb
soute necessity of teaching morality and Chris
tianity in our schools, it may be asked, what are
some of the causes which have produced the pres
ent situation? Probably the most important, be-
cause most fundamental, is the character of our
constitution which will not allow the people re-
sponslble government Coupled with this-except-
ing the supreme court at Westinghouse an elected
dio,or z,rIsa L. I'll II /