Bryan daily eagle and pilot. [volume] (Bryan, Tex.) 1909-1918, 1910-09-08

down and ruined by the strong. you
may he tempted to say that the world
is growing worse and worse.
When you get in that frame OF mind
read history and lose yor pessimism.
Far as the world is from the ideal con
dition when every man, woman and
child that is born into 1t will be given
fair deal, real right to the life,.
liberty and pursuit of happiness that
the Declaration of Independence says
lis his inalienable heritage, you must
acknowledge that conditions are bet
ter for the poor than they have ever
been before. There Is more OF gen.
eral and effective charity than there
ever was before in all the worlds his
tory. Poor there are still in great
abundance Millions are still COM
PEELED to live in novels amid unsani-
tary surroundings and with INSULT
cient food and clothing, but the con-
ditions of the poor In no city in the
United States at least, are as deplor-
able as they were generation ago.
They are better fed, better clothed
and better housed than they were
then. Free Fairgrounds supported
either by private or public contribu.
ton have become common in most of
the great cities so that the children
even of the poorest of the poor can
at least have the privilege OF breath
ing the pure air sometimes and play
ing as every child born into the world
ought to be allowed to play. Free hos
pitfalls have been multiplied where the
most poverty stricken and unfortunate
can have clean beds and the care of
skilled attendants. ] am not defend
! ing or apologizing for the selfishness
and in my opinion, short-sighted pol.
icy that still permits the crowded ten.
ement house. the sordid misery that
still marks the abode of abject pow
erty. The time Is coming when not
only common humanity. but correct
/ political economy will result in the
adjustment Of poverty as we now I'M
derstand ii and know It; when there
will be no more filthy. unsanitary
novels. no more starving and ragged
children, no more women bearing the
burden of hopeless, grinding toll
am simply saying that as read his
I tory | am convinced that the poor
are not so poor as they were 800
years ago, or 100 years ago or even
80 years ago.
A few hundred years ago even in
merry England" the farmer and the
common laborer were regarded by the
ruling classes as no better than so
many slaves. The vassal without out
ward objection, permitted his lord and
master to fasten chain about his
neck and lead him beside his horse
The poor man in those days must have
had terror of the law, for there was
hardly anything he could do that was
not an infringement to be punished by
the most frightful penalties. For the
theft of sixpence he was subject to
be tried and hanged If he so much
as shot a hare on the game preserves
of his overload his life was the for
( felt. There were something over a
hundred different kinds of offenses
( believe for which he might be ex.
ecuted. Arrested and charged with an
offense, he was forced to furnish the
proof of his own guilt and under the
persuasive influence of the thumb
screw and the rack the poor wretch
confessed to crimes he had never
committed in order to escape the hor
rible torture If under the stress Of
living in unspeakable poverty and the
dread of committing some offense that
would cause his execution he lost his
reason, he was supposed to be pos
sessed of evil spirits and chained like
wild beast until death mercifully put
him out of his misery.
( Even so late as 30 years ago the
richest man had fewer comforts and
{ conveniences than the ordinary labor
ing man enjoys today So when you
come to think this all over you have
reason to look on this year 1910 with
considerable satisfaction and hope for
the future
/ Education is certainly becoming
more universal and people are learn
ing more about what their rights are
and how they can OBTAIN them. We
are at the beginning of most mar
Vicious period of development. Five
Years ago the man who predicted
that we would soon be flying through
the air on machines furnishing their
own power and able to go in any di.
rection as easily as bird, was looked
upon as a fit companion for the per.
petual motion crank. And yet even
now flying machines have become SO