The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1911-03-17

SllC, ana can only snow IL by my ap-
probation and by endeavoring to live
those present were heads of big cor
porations, there was present the head
Of the largest corporation Of all, the
| mayor of the city, and introduced
| Mayor E. T. Buckingham, who was
| given a hearty greeting.
Mayor Buckingham spoke briefly.
saying it was a pleasure for MIN to be
present and meet so many of the rep
resentative citizens Of the city, and
! glad that Mr.. Enos of the board OF
/ trade was recognized and gets his
bouquet while still alive, as 50 many
| have to wait until after death before
their merits are recognized. Contin.
uing he said Tat Bridgeport owec
much to it's manufacturers and the
city appreciated then, as without
their Industry and energy the city
would be very small. All were work
ing to send the Made in Bridgeport
articles to all the world.
But the manufacturers also owe
something to the city. he said, and he
asked for their cooperation for the
city's welfare, for their appearance at
| hearings upon matters of public in
terest, the expression of their opinions,
their criticism of policy. and remedy
| where what they criticised did not
meet with their views. "Come out in
] the open,' he said, land say what you
! think
Busy Man Successful.
He asked them when selected for
service upon the boards of the city not
] to plead business, but to give of their
wisdom for the benefit of the public
| welfare. The busy man is the sue
cessful man, he continued. and the
man who is not busy is not likely to
| be successful.
If all work together and cooperate
fessional men with the people Bridge
port will be the pride of New England
and the city we love the most.
| POSTMASTER Hobbs then introduced
Henry Clews of New York, who spoke
| at some length of the relations with
corporate wealth. ME-. Hobbs in his
/ introduction, said that this country
| has periods of depression which some
| times the manufacturers are inclined
| to blame upon the politicians, the po-
lticians upon the manufacturers, and
| others upon the interests which are
active in Wall street. Mr.. Clews, he
said, has been connected with the
banking business for more than so
years, and will have something to say
upon these questions.
Mr. CIews spoke as follows:
"I esteem it a great privilege to
address you on the subject of individ-
ual and corporate wealth, and thank
you for the honor.
Il will begin by saying of our rapid
ly progressive nation, that 1t is graft
fying to observe that the people have
always taken time to give careful con-
sideration to the important economic
questions before them, questions
which have necessarily grown out OF
the new conditions of our national life.
1T is also a source of satisfaction
to note that in every emergency, their
represen tatives in congress and in the
state legislatures have been equal to
the task of solving the problems OF
the time and making ample provision
for their needs, in laws and remedies
looking to their welfare.
This augurs we'll for the future of
our institutions, the life and success
of which depend on care and watch
fitness, and the preservation of that
liberty of which we are told eternal
Vigilance is the price.
IAN interesting and important ques-
ton, that commands the attention of
| the American people to-day, is whether
great individual and corporate wealth
| is inimical and hostile to their well
| This question is the more interesting
because it is now the leading theme
Of argument and agitation by the So
Cialists, and has been made the sub
! ject of much discussion by the press
and prominent men, not only in the
| y,
| public interest in it has been aroused
and public opinion ELECTED more than
ever before. The question is import
ant, for, although it may appear to
many to be more sentimental than
economic, it has grown to such pro-
portions as to receive the serious con-
sheraton of legislators and govern
nlent authorities.
What Is Wealth.
Among economists, there has al
| ways been some disagreement in the
definition of wealth. We have Adam
Smiths maxim that economy is
wealth, John Stuart Mill tells us that
OF useful articles, or the means OF
purchasing them. Then we have the
| comprehensive, but vague, statement
OF Lauderdale and of Jevons, who
agree that wealth consists Of all that
man desires as useful or delightful to
| him. 1t would answer no purpose
| however, to spend time over these
nice distinctions, it being sufficient to
Coosider wealth to be our worldly pos
sessions-whether they consist OF
land, buildings, chattels, crops, cattle
! factories, merchandise, stocks, bonds
or money. But primarily and practi-
lcally all wealth comes from mother
earth and money represents all wealth
/ 1t is our common measure of value
aiId the medium of exchange all over
1 Lie 'WOIlQ
From the dawn of civilization i:
| has been the paramount disposition Of
man to add to his possessions and to
| aspire to higher and better condi-
tions. In this, ne is distinguished
from the lower orders of animal life
Man being endowed with a mind, il
! is through the exercise of our mental
| faculties that We are made restless
under unsatisfactory conditions and
| fired with a desire for Improvement
and particularly to improve our own
| fortunes by increasing our possessions
It is this unrest and aspiration that
/ constitute the handspring to human
progress, that have given us our Gull
tivated fields and teeming harvests
endowed and consecrated our noble
edifices of learning and religion, built
our beautiful factories and other busy
hives of industry.
From age to age, throughout the
progressive economical, movement OF
civilized nations, we can trace the
gradual growth of mans power and
y ealth, until now these have reached
such proportions as to be far beyond
! the sanguine prophecies or expecta-
tons of bygone generations. Thus, at
! the present time of prosperity, HUI
ran genius, energy and productive.
ness were never before so skillfuIly
and SO strenuously employed, and
never before have they yielded SO
abundant a harvest.
I'm our own country, especially.
where individual opportunities are
practically limitless, and where
thought and effort are exerted to the
utmost straining point, most fruitful
| indeed, has been the result We have
seen that the making of largo fortunes