The morning journal-courier., 1908-02-01

The attacks by these great corpora tions on the administrations actions have been given a wide circulation throughout the country, in the news papers and otherwise, by those writers and speakers who, conscious or uncon- sciously, act as the representatives of predatory wealth--of the wealth accu- mulated on a giant scale by all forms of inquity, ranging from the oppres- sion of wageworkers to unfair and un- wholesome methods of crushing out competition, and to defrauding the public by stock jobbing and the manip- ulation of securities. Certain wealthy men of this stamp, whose conduct should be abhorrent to every man of ordinary decent conscience. and who commit the lideous wrong of teaching our young men that phenomenal busi- ness must ordinarily ba based on dis honesty, have during the last few months made 1t apparent that they have banded together to work for re- action. Their endeavor Is to overthrow and discredit all who honestly admin ister the law. to prevent any additional legislation which would check and re- strain them. and to secure if possible a 1 freedom from all restraint which will permit every interruptions wrongdoer to do what he wishes unchecked pro- vided he has enough money. The only way to counteract the movement in which these men are engaged Is to make clear to the public just what they have done in the past and just what they are seeking to accomplish in the present.
 Under no circumstances would we countenance attacks upon law-abiding property, or do aught but condemn those who hold up right men as being evil men because of their riches. On the contrary, our whole effort Is to in- sist upon conduct, and neither wealth nor property nor any other class dis tinction, as being the proper standard by which to judge the actions of men. For the honest man of great wealth we have hearty regard, just as we have hearty regard for the honest poli- tician and honest newspaper. But part of the movement to uphold honesty must be a movement to frown on dis honesty. We attack only the corrupt men of wealth, who find in the pur- chased politician the most efficient in- strument of corruption and in the pur- chased newspaper the most efficient de- fender of corruption. Our main quar- rel is not with these agents and repre- sentatives of the interests. They de- rive their chief power from the great
 sinister offenders who stand behind them. They are but puppets who move as the strings are pulled. It is not the puppets, but the strong cunning mer and the mighty working for evil behind \ and through the puppets, with whom
 we have to deal We seek to contro
 law-defying wealth: in the first place
 to prevent its doing dire evil to the re-
 public, and in the next place to avoit
 the vindictive and dreadful radicalisu
 which, if left uncontrolled, 1t is certain
 in the end to arouse. Sweeping attacks
 upon all property, upon all men ol
 means, without regard to whether the!
 do we'll or i'll, would sound the death
 knell of the republic; and such attack
 become inevitable if decent citizen:
 permit those rich men whose lives art
 corrupt and evil to domineer in swollei
 pride, unchecked and unhindered, owe
 the destinies of this country. We ac
 in no vindictive spirit, and we are nc ! respecters of persons. If labor unior does wrong, we oppose it as firmly as
 we oppose corporation which doe'
 wrong; and we stand eqally stoutl!
 for the rights of the man of wealth am
 for the rights of the wageworker. VI
 seek to protect the property of ever! man who acts honestly, of every cor poration that represents wealth hon
 estly accumulated and honestly used We seek to stop wrongdoing. and w
 desire to punish the wrongdoers onl, so far as Is necessary to achieve thi
 end.
 There are ample material reward Tor those who serve with fidelity tn mammon of unrighteosness: but the, ? are dearly paid for by the people wh . permit their representatives, whethe } m public life, in the press, or in tn colleges where their yong men ar , taught, to preach and to practice tha : there is one law for the rich and an , other for the poor. The amount c ? money the representatives of certai 7 great moneyed interests are willing spend can be gauged by their recer . publication broadcast throughout tn [ papers of this country. from the Altar , tic to the Pacific. of huge advertise ' ments attacking with envenomed bit terness the administration policy ( l, warning against successful dishonest! - and by their circulation of pamphlet f and books prepared with the same ot 5 Jeet: while they likewise push the cil ? culation of the writings and speeche Of men who, whether because they al . mlsled. or because. seeing the ligh
 they yet are willing to sin against u