The ranch. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1902-1914, 1908-10-01

many cases mere death traps that will
sooner or later claim our wives and
children as victimS-all these things
we know And we know, too, that the
brain and Drawn able and thrice will
ing to remedy all these evils stands
all the day in the market place beg
ging for the chance to make of this
old world of ours a garden, park, a
nation of homes, City Beautiful"
gladstone place for every single child
of the race. Why, why then with an
absolutely unlimited demand for the
fruits of labor and strictly limited
supply of men and women to render
the service should any suffer for lack
of opportunity to partake of the primal
curse?
Today there are thousands of strong,
skillful, willing men around Puget
Sound standing all the day idle be-
cause mo man hath hired u.s." Pass
ing the question as to why no man
hires and recognizing the simple fact
that it is a condition and not the
DRY that confronts us" let us see ii
we can find a remedy for the "con-
dition" even though we do not frame
a theory that satisfactorily explains
the cause. The world lives from hand
to mouth Stop absolutely the pro
ductive labor of the world and the race
would perish of starvation in less than
twelve months. Clearly then, in
every period of industrial depression
following a monetary panic some must
die before their time. If the imam
cial stringency" have conscious hui
man cause, then, they are in fact MUIR
derers. The one indispensable condi-
ton to the continued existence of the
race is the chance to labor freely and
to the extent that this is denied to any
adult member of society to that de.
gree he is murdered ignorantly or
otherwise.
There are only two ways by which
a man may toll at the raw materials
of life. He must hire himself or be
hired by somebody. There is no mid
die ground. If he permits himself to
be hired by another, he must pay a
tribute from the fruit of his toll to
that other. If he hires himself, he
may keep the entire product. Circum-
stances may and do determine which
method is most profitable. At present
private employing agencies have and
are failing most completely to employ
those who must have employment or
suffer the inevitable penalty. Whether
they might or might not have pro-
longed the agony by Saving" in the
past has absolutely nothing to do with
the question. Idle or at work, they
must and do consume the fruits OF
labor. The immediate prosperity OF
the community and ultimately the life
of the race depends on the productive
employment of this wasted energy.
Since one source has failed, let us
turn to the only other. There is no
county in our state or nation but has
sufficient unfinished work at hand to
employ usefully and profitably all OF
it's citizens during the term of their
natural lives. Let us consider how to
do it most economically-not cheaply.
The first thing to decide is what to
do. and I submit there is no more I'M
mediate and pressing need than the
clearing of the land and building OF
good roads in western Washington. A
few weeks since in this paper | out
lined a plan whereby this could be
done at minimum OF expense ana
with the following advantages: IL
would not cost the county or any tax
payer one single cent; it would en-
able any farmer to have his land
cleared at merely the labor cost, aided
by the most powerful machinery, and
allow him ten to twenty years in which
to pay for it without interest the
longer period would be more profitable
to the county; it would put in circu-
lation from $50 to $500 or more each
day in each county, and so help bust
ness, trade or commerce as distin-
guished from industry. If every