The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1907-02-05
The MORAL AWAKENING
BY William Jennings Bryan.


Eleven years ago ToIstoy quoted a
letter that had been written by Dumas
two years earlier, in which the great
Frenchman, with rare prcscience,
said: The spiritual movement one
recognizes on alI sides, and which 80
many naive and ambitions men c%-
peCt 10 be able TO direct viii be absO-
Iutely humanitarian. Mankind, which
does nothing moderately, is about to
be seized with Il fernZy, Il madness, OF
love. This VIII not, Of course, happen
sm JothIy or all at once; ii viii involve
crStandlngS-cVen sanguinary
ones, perchancc-so trained and 50 ac-
cuSlOmcd have we been to hatred, even
by those, sometimes, whose mission it
WIS to teach Us To love one another.
But il is evident that this great law
Of brotherhood must be accomplished
some day, and / am convinced that the
time is commencing when our desire
for it's accomplishment viii become
IIIeeiStibIe.'
Thus it viii be seen that q great
philosopher in Russia and a French
writer of note diSCcrncd more than Il
decade go the signs of Il new era. In
another part of the letter Dumas said:
II know not if it be because | shall
soon leave this earth ana the rays
that are already reaching me from be
low the horizon have disturbed my
sight, but | believe that our world is
about to realize the words, Love one
Auother.'
What these men saw with the eye
of faith is becoming more and more
evident, ana nowhere is this change
more noticeable than in the United
States. That ethical questions are re
CciVing increasing attention is certain.
If the awakening We're confined to this
country We might look for u cause in
local conditions, but these conditions
do not apply to Russia, and Tolstoy
has not been out of his native land
for years. How can we explain his
Endorsement OF Dumas statement?
And what was there in Dumas enVi-
ronment to impress him with the COM
ing of this brighter epoch? 1t must be
more than a national movement.
While the stirring of conscience IS
manifesting itself within the churches
it is outside the scope of this article
to discuss the evidences OF it. The Y.
M. c. A, the Y. w. G. A.. the Christian
EnGcavor SOciet7- the Epworth League
ana the brotherhOods and societies of
the various denominations and
branches of the Christian church-alI
these are at work enlisting the young
men and young women and encourag-
ing the application of ChriSt'S teach
ms to everyday life.
But the movement seems to have Il
broader foundation than any nation
or race. 1t extends around the globe.
it reaches down and takes hold upon
the hcart-the connecting link which
binds every man to every other man.
No movement can be q universal one
unless it appeals to the heart, and
nothing that really appeals to the
heart can be less than universal in its
scope and Influence.
The brotherhood of man is the Slo-
gan of the new movement, and a pow
erful slogan it is.
The first effect of the moral awaken
ing is on the individual himsclf-an
examination of self u scrutiny OF
ideals, an analysis of motives and
ambition. For a generation the Amer
lean people have been money-mad
and life has been measured by accu-
mutations. The poor have initiated
the rich, and the rich have made new
records of extravaganza. Plutocracy in
America. lacking even the insufficient
restraints imposed by pride of pedi-
gree, has run riot, and the excesses of
the purse-prOud, instead of exciting
contempt, have only awakened a spirit
of emulation.
But the crisis is past. From the
press the pulpit, the college, the Chau-
tauqua platform ana the homo, is
coming q healthy protest against the
measuring Of life by Il pecunary
standard. The change in the ideal
means a revolution in the life, Wheth-
er the change takes place in the in
diVidual or in the group. An increas-
ing number Of our people realize that
there Is a higher end in life than the
making of money-that money is only
a means to an end. They also realize
that money, while Il good servant, is a
6,1 6eartleSs master The popularity of
Charles Wagner's book, The Simple
Life is due to the fact that it is a
vigorous Indictment of present condi-
tionS, wherein man has been made
SubscrVient to his material possessions
The authors plea fora reversal OF the
order and for the placing of man
above matter finds u quick response in
q multitude Of hearts. The translation
0f this little volume into many lam
Gu3Gcs shows how widespread is the
Wearlnc5& with materialism and how
eagerly the new thought is grasped.
while the fact that the book sold
best in the United States is evidence
that here the movement is already
strongest. But this new bit of evidence
was not necessary to convince any IN
biased mind that our country leads
the world in disintcrested effort.
The substitution of a new ideal of
ME Tor the Old one is manifestinG IL
sen IN several ways. In the indvi1-
ual, 1t Introduces justice into tile
methods Of accumulation and altruisln
INTO the distribution Of money. and,
OF the two, the first is the more i'm
poftaht. III IS better to gather honest
~ than to distribute generously. some
ulneS dlStrlbutIOnS have silenced ton
$ueS that otherWise would have spo-
Ken out against the methods employed
IN accumulation. Trust magnateS for
instance (Whether they intended to or
noD, have subsidized colleges chari-
ties and even religious societies into q
defense of business methods which
violate all moral zand statute law.
ILnl2ro'ing the Summarizes
Assuming that the means emploved
IN acquiring fortune are legitimate.