Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1910-08-13
ARE MEN SINuNNS?


only the other evening one Of our
street orators harangued a considerable
audience on the question Of capital and
labor. and he put it somewhat this
way;
Picture in your minds eye a beau
tiful grove. the habitation OF some OF
our simian ancestors Picture 10 your
selves that they are cavortings from
branch 10 branch. from tree to tree.
and having good time Then picture
In your minds eye that n big fat mon-
key calls all the rest Of the monkeys
together and says to them: There are
many good cocoanuts growing here.
which must be picked Now n you
fellows will pick the nuts and bring
them 10 me, ! viii give you one nut
for each ten. So they went away and
picked the nuts and gave them to the
big, fat monkey, and he gave them ore
out Of each ten, Of the nuts that he
longed 10 them. They ate their nuts
and soon they We're consumed, but the
big. fat monkey still had an abundance
And yet they did not have manhood
enough 10 go and take from that mon
key what was theirs"
II is quite possible that the speaker
did not intend this as an appeal to his
hearers to Join the ranks Of violent
anarchists; it Is possible that none Of
his audience felt greatly impressed with
his illustration; the American working
| man t. rather conservative, as q rule;
| but such doctrine Is, nevertheless. dan
gerous II may reach the ears Of some
| fanatic who is unable 10 reason and to
| analyze an argument. and who may
| conclude ha no manhood he
monkeys did not have. TO take prop
erty and even life II is conceivable
that some degenerate may be infamed
| by just such harangues TO murder In
| all probability the miserable wretch
who attempted the life Of Mayor Gay
| nor is a firm believer in the doctrine
! OF the monkeys and the cocoanuts.
The Deseret News is no defender Of
trusts. monopolies. or special privileges
| Of any kind We believe there are
many things in the present economic
conditions OF mankind that calls for
reform. and we even believe that So
cialism has some truth Of which the
world ought TO take cognizance. in its
own interest But we also know that
| the progress OF truth necessarily is
slow Mankind must be educated to
grasp it, And education is a slow
process. Even II Socialism were en-
tirely true. its sudden introduction
without the necessary preliminary pro-
cess Of education would result In moth
ing but disaster and chaos Hatred OF
existing conditions, which have a deep
root in the history Of the race. cannot
bring good results. At best II can
only plunge mankind back into the
abyss from which II has slowly risen
a condition ascribed by Hobbies as fol-
lows:
Under such conditions there is no
| place for industry because the fruit
| thereof Is uncertain, and consequently
| no culture OF the earth. no navigation,
| no use OF the commodities that may be
| imported by sea, no commodious build
| ing, no instruments OF moving and re-
! moving such things as require much
| force, no knowledge Of the face OF the
! earth, no account Of time. no arts, no
! letters. no society; and. which Is worst
/ OF all. continued fear Of danger OF vio-
| lent death. and the life OF man soli-
tary, poor, nasty, british, and short"
That condition can be attained by
| violence, II the rung Of the ladder upon
| which society now stands is cut from
| under Il before 1t has reached higher.
! We see the evidences Of this In the acts
/ of violence that are almost inexplicable
| In a country with free institutions
! But coming back TO the illustration OF
/ our street orator there is one point on
which. as John stuart Mil remarks.
| Socialists. and others. have entertained
n great deal Of Misrepresentation. and
that II as to the proportion in which
| the produce OF labor Is really shared
by the producers, and the amount di-
verted 10 enrich other persons. Wealth
| Is by no means the product Of the labor
engaged at any given moment In an
enterprise, but Of that labor and the
products OF labor already stored Up.