River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1911-08-24
Money
By DR.. Frank Crane

men with our right nSt-anQ extend
Ing to them our left palm. 1t Is hard
ly to be wondered at that we find diff
f1culty in being taken seriously.
And our advice has been so confus
ing that we have not had much effect
For now we exhort the youth to all
the virtues, giving as an inducement
the assurance that thus they will be
enabled to get on; and now again we
turn to those that have gotten on and
warn them of the danger of riches. 1t
might as well be asked, II riches be
dangerous, why acquire them; and If
worth cultivating?
1t may be well, therefore, to set
down few common sense facts In re
riches and the relation of the same to
the moral values.
In the first place, money is simply
the token or sign of our common hum
an wants. 1t means power, power
over others, power to make our per-
sonality felt. No wonder we want it.
Again it means liberty. Poverty is
a curse. 1t ties the hands. 1t binds
the mind 1t narrows the soul. One
who has to sweat ten hours day for
bread has no time nor strength left
to develop the higher part Of himself.
Money means also full life. We
can crafty our cravings, whether they
be for beer or art, for Paris gowns or
Wagner music With money we have
a chance to grow; without it we are
stunted.
Money, therefore, is simply concen.
trated-we might say canned-human
value.
1t naturally follows that it is good
or bad, never of itself, but only as Civ
ing opportunity to it's possessor. Here,
then, we have the moral gist of the
whole matter: money is simply-op-
portunity.
1t unlocks the door and bids the
cramped and chatting passion go and
do It's will. 1t liberates desire. Hence
1t simply emphasizes man. If he is
good he can now be better, having
more scope; if bad he can, and prob
ably will, be worse If idle and use
less, he becomes a living fountain of
idleness and uselessness, poisoning
others.
So, money is like any other gift; as
beauty, which adds power to the per-
son; or genius, which multiplies the
efficiency of the mind and hand; or
position, for kinship magnifies a com.
mon man to heroic proportions, in his
influence on other men.
Now, the sole relation Of morals to
moral sense adds to power-responst
bility.
The root Of any genuine moral feel
ing is a1truism Given any desire, II
becomes moral as it takes direction
toward the welfare of other people;
1t is immoral exactly in proportion az
1t disregards others and looks only to
self.
Wicked people, therefore, are those
who live, think, and do for self alone;
and that whether poor or rich. Who
ever says, Il would like to be rich
for I could do so much good with my
money" should examine himself and
little he has. It's all a matter of re-
lation. If one is not helpful and lib
eral on $40 a month. he would not be
so on $4,000 month.
In the ultimate realm of morals
there are no commandments; there is
only one test-do live for myself or
for others; am I altruistic or egocen.
trio.
The dawdling smart set, fitting
from bridge to matinee, from theater
to bedizened restaurant, from the club
to the horse race, are wicked; but no
wickeder than the better poor who
want to lead such a life, and who
curse their lot because their selfish
ness is bound and chained.
To the real man, therefore, riches
means nothing at all, as to his char
acter; it simply means an opening to
give vent to his character. And q
clear-eyed soul, that sees and realizes
what responsibility means, is never
eager for power and opportunity. 1t is
easier to be good in moderate means
than in riches for the principal reason
that it is easier to bear small than
a great load of responsibility. 1T is
hard for rich man to enter the king
dom of heaven" just because rich
man to be moral must be great. And,
unfortunately, great souls are scarce
among great fortunes.
The greatness of Jesus was not IN
his wisdom, magnetism, nor ethical
perception, but in the fact that he waR
utterly altruistic; that is, he used all
his powers not to advance himself bit
to help others. His tormentors un-
willingly told the truth, and stated up-
knowingly his very secret, when, as hs
hung on the cross, they wagged their
heads at him and cried:
HE saved others; himself he carr
not save!"