Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1910-05-20

49, --N-N~NNS
arches of Europe.
in our own Civil war of the United
States the same thing occurred. peaceful
people as we are. AT that time more than
two generations had passed since the
War of Independence. During the whole
of that period the people had been en-
gagged In no ife-and-death struggles; and
yet, when the Civil war broke out, and
after some costly and bitter lessons at
the beginning, the fighting spirit of the
people was shown to better advantage
than ever before. The war was peculiar
ly q war for a principle, war waged
by each side for an ideal, and while faults
and shortcomings were plentiful among
the combatants. there was comparatively
little sordldness of motive or conduct In
such a giant struggle, where across the
warp of SO many interests is shot the
wool of so many purposes, dark strands
and bright, strands somber and brilliant,
are always intertwined; inevitably there
was corruption here and there In the Civil
war: but all the leaders on both sides.
and the great majority of the enormous
masses OF fighting men. wholly disre-
garded, and were wholly uninfiuenced by,
pecuniary considerations.
Wealth and Politics.
Another striking contrast in the course
of modern civilization as compared with
tho later stages of the Graeco- Roman or
classic civilization is to be found m the
relations of wealth and politics. In clas-
sic times, as the civilization advanced to-
ward it's zenith, politics became recog-
nized means of accommodating great
wealth. Caesar was again and again on
the verge of bankruptcy: he spent an
enormous fortune: and he recouped him
self by the money which he made out OF
his political-military career Augustus es-
toh Gh INN fOtlnd3-
tons by the use he made of the huge
fortune he had acquired by plumber. What
a contrast Is offered by the careers or
Washington and Lincoln! There were
few exceptions In ancient days; but the
immense majority of the Greeks and the
Romans, as their civilizations eliminated,
accepted money making on large scale
as one of the incidents of a successful
public career. Now all of this is in sharp
contrast to what has happened within
the last two or three centuries, During
this time there has been steady growth
away from the theory that money-making
is permissible in an honorable public ca
reer.
In this respect the standard has been
constantly elevated, and things which
statesmen had no hesitation in doing
three centuries or two centuries ago. and
which did not seriously hurt public ca
reer even q century ago, are now utterly
impossible Wealthy men still exercise a
large. and sometimes an improper. infiu-
ence in politics, but II is apt to be an in
direct influence; and in the advanced
states the mere suspicion that the wealth
of public men Is obtained or added to as
an incident of their public careers will
bar them from public life. Speaking
generally, wealth may very greatly infiu-
ence modern political life. but 1t is not &C
quired in political life.
Optimistic for the Future.
Mr.. Roosevelt called attention to
the fact that hitherto every civiliza-
tion that has arisen has been able to
develop only few activities, its field
of endeavor being limited in kind as
well as In locality, and each Of these
civilizations has fallen. What is the
lesson to us of today? he asked. Will
the crash come, and be all the more
terrible because of the immense IN
crease in activities and area? To this
he replied:
Personally, I do not believe that oul
civilization will fall. think that on the
whole we have grown better and not
worse. I think that on the whole the fu-
ture holds more for us than even the
great past has held. But, assuredly, the
dreams of golden glory in the future will
| not come true unless, high Of heart an6
| strong of hand, by our own mighty deeds
we make them come true. We cannot af.
| ford to develop any one set of qualities
| any one set Of activities. at the cost OF
seeing others. equally necessary. afro
| phled. Neither the military efficiency OF
| the Mongol the extraordinary business
| ability of the Phoenician, nor the subtle
| and polished intellect OF the Greek awaited
| to avert destruction.
we, the men of today and of the fu.
ture, need many qualities If we are to dc
our work well. We need, first of all ant
most important of all, the qualities which
| stand at the base Of individual. of family
| life, the fundamental and essential quail
ties-the homely. everyday, all-importan
virtues. II the average man will mo-
| work. IL he has not in him the will and
| the power to be good husband and ia
Their; II the average woman is not goot
| housewife. a good mother of many
/ healthy children. then the state will top
\ pie, will go down. no matter what may
| be It's brilliance of artistic development
or material achievement. But these home
| ly qualities are not enough. There must
in addition, be that power of organization
that power of working in common for &
common end. which the German people
| have shown in such signal fashion during
1 the last half-century. Moreover, thu
things of the spirit are even more impor
tant than the things of the body. We car
| well do without the hard intolerance anc
| arid intellectual barrenness OF what wa.
worst in the theological systems of thu
past, but there has never been a create
| need Of a high and fine religious spiri
| than at the present time. So, while W.
can laugh good-humoredly at some o
| the pretensions of modern philosophy II
its various branches, II would be wors'
than folly on our part to ignore our meet
of intellectual leadership.
Must Steer Middle Course.
Never has philanthropy, humanitarian
ism, seen such development as now; ant
though we must all beware of the foil.
| and the viciousness no worse than folly
| which marks the believer in the perfec
tibility of man when his heart runs ava.
| with his head, or when vanity usurps tn
| place OF conscience. yet we must remem
Der also that 1t is only by working alonI
the lines laid down by the philanthropists
| by the lovers of mankind, that we cal
| be sure OF lifting our civilization to
higher and more permanent plane Of well
being than was ever attained by any pre-
ceding civilization. Unjust war IL to b
| abhorred; but woe to the nation that doe
| not make ready TO hold its own in tim
| of need against all who would harm It
and woe thrice over to the nation II
which the average man loses the fghtinl
edge, loses the power to serve as a sol
| der IL the day of need should arise
II is no impossible dream to build UP I
civilization in which morality. ethical de
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