The Ogden standard. [volume] (Ogden City, Utah) 1902-1910, 1909-02-01
DOES MIGHT
M A k E
RIGHT
i-t - COQ \ SW o. AVE-
REV. BROWN TALKS PLAINLY TO
CONGREGATION.
Looks Into Origin of Great Fortunes
That Have Been Amassed in Past
Few Years.

Reverend William Thurston Brown,
speaking from the theme, Does Might
Make Right" said in part:
Think what the spiritual significance
of our great commercial and industrial
combinations is. They stand for moth
ing but brute force. They do not ar.
que They strike. They do not rest
their cause on justice, but on might
They are the creations OF human be-
ings, but they are as remorseless as
an earthquake. Through them, one
group of men is saying to the rest;
I'VE don't care whether your cause is
Just or not. That has nothing to do
with the case. You are not dealing
with soul when you deal with us. You
are dealing with the inexorabIe We
are God"
And when those who believe IN
something better, who hold the faith
Of Jesus. the faith Of brotherhood. that
the world is one family and can there
fore have no just law except the law
OF equal opportunity-when these pre-
sumo to question the right of this sys-
tenn and say: This is matter for
all to solve together. These institu-
tions affect us all. They concern the
interests of all. Let us open the books.
Let us know the facts. Let us all see
what these institutions rest on Let
us find out what Is the origin of these
great fortunes. man retired from
the iron business ten years ago and
found himself possessed of a fortune
of S150,000 coo. He receives on that
fortune, invested in the stock of the
new company, an income Of more than
seven millions a year, Twenty thou
sand dollars a dayl This man retires
from all productive industry, quits all
work. and receives for the rest OF his
lifetime $50 times as much as the pres
ident of the United States. That in
come does not fall out of the clouds.
1t has to be produced by human toll.
Thousands OF people have got to pro-
duce that wealth. Now, we want to
know where it comes from. II 1t be-
longs to this man. If he has n clear
right to 1t. IL he Is worth that income
to the people Of this country, no one
Will disturb him in its possession. But
II 1t means robbery. privation, want.
poverty. ignorance, the stunting and
dwarfing of thousands Of other per-
sons, body, mind and soul. we want to
know that and we are going to know
that. and we are going to make it Inn
possible for anybody in this country
not to know exactly what 1t means.
A consideration of the rights and well
fare of all demands that we inyesti-
gate this matter to the bottom"
When we make that proposal, what
answer do we receiver We are told
that 1t is not our business. We are
met by the same old answer of Pi-
late: "Knowest thou not that l have
power to let you live and l have
power TO crush you?" We are told
that there is nothing to discuss. moth
ing to investigate. We are met. In
other words, by the response of blind
stand that our one chance to live on
this earth depends upon our keeping
silent on these questions. The only
thing we are permitted to do is to get
on the right side Of this great CONNER
cial machine, If We can. If we can do
that, we are safe, though the price is
always our manhood. If we can not,
we are crushed.
Says the man who fears to have
men know the methods of acquiring
property: IF you speak Of these
things in the pulpit. you must take
the consequences. will not contrib
ute to the support Of any man who In
sists upon applying the law of brother
hood and throwing the light Of truth
upon all the realms of human life.
will do what In me lies to silence every
such voice. / will pay my money to
the men who keep we'll within the lines
Of safety, who preach the simple, old
fashioned gospel Of salvation from sin.
| will let that man live who keeps his
hands of those things which concern
my wealth. But let the man who in
sists upon telling plainly the truth
as he sees 1t, who has anything to
say that stirs hope in the hearts of
the hopeless or courage In the souls of
the despairing, that man shall starve.
He shall be crushed. There is no
room on this earth for the established
order II such men are permitted to
live"
This is what we are coming to In
this country, and we are coming to
1t fast. 1t is we'll that We should see
1t plainly and decide where We pro-
pose to stand. We are going to stand
with Caesar or with Jesus, But
wherever we may decide to stand in
the moral conflict of our day-incom'
parably a more vital conflict than that
which made the names of Theodore
Parker and William Lloyd Garrison
and Abraham Lincoln immortal-let
us not lose sight of one thing: the
creed of brute force is a lie. There
does not exist on this earth a single
institution which can escape the clos
est scrutiny Of justice. Justice Is
solvent which nothing can resist. 1t
has dissolved empires. and 1t VIII dis
solve every government that is found
ed on force. It has dissolved supersti-
tions and 1t will dissolve others,
whether they be in the realm of re-
ligion or In that of industry or poll
tics. We can not hide ourselves, our
property. our conduct. or our theories
from the light Of truth. We need to
know that truth alone is eternal. we
live In a shadow or dream, lacking
that knowledge. The Caesars are gone
and their empire has melted away. The
tyranny and despotism Oh the Stuarts
and Tudors and Georges have vanished
unwept. unhonored, apd unsung. The
deeds of the nations. today-of Eng
land in South Africa and Egypt and In
dia, of Russia In Finland and In her
own country. OF Leopold OF Belgium In
the Congo. Of the United States in the
Philipplnes-can not be dismissed with
word. AS Kipling said, They shall
iudpe vour Cod and YOU" The ledger