Omaha daily bee., 1909-03-23
PERMANENCE OF faint.
Reflections Pm Nebraska Case of the
p. Carnegie Pension Fund. .

boz ~ Carnegie Pension Fund.
The Independet. New York;.
We are not going to discuss here the
question whether money can be tainted.
Although Vespasian told his son Titus.
" 'pecupia non olet, money does not SMELL"
the contrary has been very positively
asserted. Roger de Coverly says that
money kept three days stinketh." We do
not question that money given for a bad
purpose, as to buy e~cclesias tical office
called simony-or to buy political office
called bribery-or to control the teaching OF
a university for a selfish end. is tainted
money. Equally all money acquired by
theft, fraud or oppression is thereby
tainted and remains tainted 50 long as it
is not restored. The money gained OPP
pressively by Zaccheus was tainted until
he had restored fourfold; that restitution
Cleansed it and him.
We say We are not raising any question
as to whether money can become tainted.
We do not doubt that IT can. and
that It can remain tainted I'M It
is cleansed; and we do not believe that
Vespasian meant to deny this. No more
did st. Augustine mean to deny il when
he said of money: Est ut lux; 81 pura
immundus transact, non inquinatur." 1T
is like light; itself pure, If ii passes
through unclean hands it is not defiled.'
We allow that money obtained and held
fraudulently or given for a fraudulent or
selfish purpose is thereby tainted.
What we ask Is another question, how long
does it remain tainted? For example, is
the money obtained for a college by a lSt-
terry fifty or a hundred years ago still
tainted money?
The question is a practical one in Ne
braska and elsewhcre. The University of
Nebraska might have accepted for its re-
tired professors the advantage OF the Car
negie pension fund, but Mr.. Bryan appeared
before the legislature and protested against
accepting It, on the ground that the
money is tainted. because given originally
by a notable trust baron and multimillion-
aire: and by the narrowest margin of votes
the legislature refused to allow the profess
sors to take advantage Of the fund. Mr..
Bryan is very stern in this matter, much
more so than Governor Johnson OF Mime
sofa; but Governor Johnson is declared not
to be as good a democrat as Mr.. Bryan.
Indeed Mr.. Bryan is the law and norm Of
democracy.
Let us take another case. A man gets
immense wealth by fraudulent control Of
a railroad. He dies and his property IL
divided between his children. A daughter
or a son-is like the good son OF a bad
man described by the Hebrew prophet,
and she, or he, uses the money inherited
in such a way as TO gild with glory the
shaded name. Is the money that she, or
| he. gives so worthily so tainted that il
cannot be received by good people for a
good cause? Certainly not, No one will
believe so. We have settled that by uni
versal applause.
Now let us revert to the Nebraska case
Of the Carnegie pension fund. That money
| belonged to Mr.. Carnegie, was acquired by
him in the line, OF business methods
which Mr.. Bryan believes to be oppressive
| and wrong. But It has passed out Of his
hands Just as much as # he had died.
II was given over to the Carnegie Founda-
ton for the Advancement OF Teaching and
Mr.. Carnegie no longer owns 1t or has any
control of II. The cause is a noble one.
Does the alleged faint stick To the money
stile Certainly no more than in the other
case in which the original acCumulator Of
the wealth has died 81. Augustine's prin-
| ciplc applies. The light Is not defiled; the
money is not tainted; and Mr. Bryan
simply lacks the clearness Of vision TO see
the facts and their application. Let Ne
braska freely allow its aged professors
10 receive their pensions.