Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1909-06-03
HINGLoRloUS PEACE"

lnefe are Hldily lilulcdCloiIS CidC ouI
colleges and universities have become
training camps for coming generations
of Soldiers of the Common Good.
Charles C. Pearce, senior in the
University of Wisconsin, has furnished
recent and notable indication that
this is true.
He won the Northern Oratorical con-
test at Urbana, ILL.,, on May Z, 1909.
This in itself is an achievement. Only
two men before him succeeded in bring
ing this honor to Wisconsin Robert M.
La Toilette in 1879, and Max Loeb in
1905. The Northern Oratorical League
comprises the universities of Wisconsin,
Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Iowa,
Northwestern and Oberlin. The men
who represent these institutions in the
Leagues contests are the cream of
oratorical ability in the Middle West.
But the subject which Pearce chose
for his Grafton is quite as noteworthy as
his victory. He called it '1nglorious
Peace" 1t is an attack on the greedy
individualism that blinds one to the
evils infesting present-day society. 1t
is an appeal for social justice.
Here are few extracts from it: <
eve are just in the throes of tariff
revision. Early in March was intro
duced the Payne Bill containing num-
Der of modified duties. At once high
ly significant struggle began in Wash
ington. The country seems to have
settled upon downward revision of
the tariff, yet each group is jealousy
guarding it's own particular interests.
Steel, for example, rasps: Touch not
our sacred schedules Lumber and
Pulp cry: Cut down your newspapers,
not our profits! Agriculture growls:
Cheap shoes by all means but abate no
jot of the duty on hides! Sugar raises
the slogan in the South: Preference
for home products! In short, tariff re-
duction in theory acceptable to all, is
well-nigh unattainable, simply because
every group insists on retaining all the
privileges it now enjoys.
reform in general has few self-con-
| fessed enemies. But put before us a
practical proposition involving change
in existing conditions which will in any
way interfere with our own interests
and we cry: No! No! Don't disturb
prosperity-peace, let us have peace!
"Child-labor, industrial accidents,
overcrowding, rebating, all methods
which individuals or groups use to en-
list government or the law in their be-
half, must be regarded in the same
light as thievery, kidnapping and homi-
eide. The frock-coated criminal far
from the wrath of the public does in
fnitely more than the Sinking porch
climber.
Gin San Francisco, Prosecutor Heney
easily secured the conviction of petty
grafters. Milwaukee, Philadelphia and
St. Louis hewed to the line in dealing
with boodlers. On all hands loud ap-
plause! Mutual congratulations on the
unsupported wealth of moral force in
the community! But when Heney
asked: Who gave the bride? Who
attempted to secure this franchise?
Then important people said: Stop!
You must not prosecute these men
higher up, it will hurt business! Market
values will fall, prosperity will be
doomed! The conservative element
stopped, hesitated, faced about, and
at last took up the cry-peace, let us
have peace!
eff we allow the wealth to debauch
our public servants then initiative,
referendum and primary-election all
shatter on the rock of Individual greed.
''In fields more distinctly social we
find this same national inconsistency.
Almost too late we are beginning to
call halt upon the shameless waste of
our natural resources. Individuals have
greedily seized valuable lands and
water rights. They have wasted
large percentage of timber. They are
rapidly exhausting our anthracite coal.