Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1908-06-13


again tomorrow aud see what can
do" Then your father said Too bad.
Mary: too bad hate to see you look
so tired But perhaps when we pay OF
the mortgage you will have little
money 10 spend. aud then you eau hire
girl for the kitchen aud for the
securing" DO you not remember such
discussion In the old home? Well.
there are thousands aud tens % thou.
sands OF homes In the city Ike your
fathers home There are plenty of
babies IN those homes aud but little
money TO provide for them Buying
for such families is no joke The ex.
penses must Ice cut down and that IL
one reason the bargain counters have
the struggling multitudes about them.
The Bargain Counter Lesson.
But the bargain counter teaches US
another lesson. Though most people
are having hard time financially.
there are a great number who fatten
themselves upon the misfortunes OF
others These modern vandals or
ghoulS OF the night are not producers
or developers They are human beasts
of prey whose business In life Is ~
find some victims In distress aud then
TO pOunce upon them aud make profit
out OF their misfortunes They are
like the wreckcrs OF old who used TO
patrol the western coast OF England
When II merchant ship was approach
ing the coast they would, with false
lights decoy 1t upon the rocks Then
they would gather up the wreckagc
and take the plumber to their homes
and sell II. SO from time lmmemorlal
men have Increased their own for.
tunes by living upon the wreckages
and the shipwrecks of other lives. The
tragedy Of our last national panic
proves that what say is true.
During the financial strlngency in
October there were certain men In
New York city who had ready money.
Some of these men began to run up
their premiums 20 and 30 and ~ and
even 100 per cent In other words, In
order TO borrow SO from you | would
have TO give $50 In return. Because
these men had cornercd the money
market they attempted 10 take from
their fellow men every dollar they
possessed. These plundercrs were fat
tening their purses upon the misfor-
tunes of their fellow men And had
not the secretary OF the treasury and
men like J. l. Morgan and others Of
that ilk brought millions upon millions
OF dollars into Wall street this coun.
try would have seen the darkest days
in its financial history. Alas. Wall
street is no different from every other
street In every country there are IA
lot Of human vultures Like haunting
specters. they are lowering around
ready To banquet upon the carcasses OF
the financially slain. As soon as any
man gets into trouble they pounce up
on him and rip and tear him TO little
pieces. Like the ghouls OF the night,
they live by desecratlng the grave
yards Like the robbers OF stranded
ships, their incomes are derived from
the wreckagcs OF their fellow men.
DC SdSk " OtHoThs
Now, my brother. II YOU have good
income and are not IN abjcct want be
morally and spiritually honest. As you
expect men to pay you Il just price for
your labor, you should be willing to
pay others Just price for their labor
Because poor seamstress il unfortu-
nate and cannot get work do not give
her - cents a day for her services when
you ought TO pay her $50. you have
an Industrious boy In your employ who
Is doing the work of full grown man.
do not pay him simply the wages OF
boy. Pay him the wages OF man.
Because you have merchant IN a
financial hole" do not squeeze the
life out OF him. BE honest BE fair.
Pay just price for all labor that Is,
pay as you expect others to pay you.
The tragedy OF the bargain counter
teaches us another great lesson. When
an article has TO be sold below cost
the unseen sufferers are those who are
hurt the worst by the financial sacri
fee. The clerk who sells you the goods
ferer Neither Is the man who is ut
the head OF the great dry goods en-
porium the one who ought to he the
most pltied. But the unseen sufferers
are the men and women whose names
you never know and whose faces you
never saw. These are the people who
should be commiserated
A Civil War Tragedy
The tragedy Of the bargain counter
is like the tragedy OF the late civil
war have been over many OF the
great battlefields OF our country Per.
haps you have also been 10 some Of
them. Then. like me, you have stood
before the plain white tombstoncs in
our national cemeteries and said:
Poor fellows Poor fellows Most
OF these martyred soldiers were only
boys Think OF the long marches and
the days of hunger and cold Think
Of those soldiers falling In the awful
charges aud the despair that must have
overwhelmed them when they fell