Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1912-09-26
REIGN IN MAMMOM IS
OUR GREATEST DANGER
Through a Vast Empire United
States Is Being Impoverished
By Foolish Generosity.
BY the Rev. Charles Sickle.

BY the Rev. Charles Sickle.
The United States has today AN area
nearly -four and Il half times as great
as ii was in 1888. In 1903. with the
Louisiana purchase. the territory nf
this country was more than doubled.
Steadily we have grown until i'm 1904
the Panama canal zone of 44S square
miles Was acquired. This latest ac-
QUESTION will mean more To the Uni
ted States han the mere saving Of
time in transporting freight. 1t will
some day figure significantly in conn
manding the Pacific ocean. the future
battle-ground of the world. for i'm this
arena Russia, Japan. China and the
United States will determine whether
the world is to be dominated by the
Anglo race or by il nation which
is foreign to most of the ideals which
have made America great and power
full.
Says Ward Platt in "rhe Frontier:
World navigation and world history
may be divided into three stages; the
Mediterranean. which stands for past
history. the Atlantic. which means the
present and the Pacific. which holds the
future. History was shifted from Tho
Mediterranean to the Atlantic i'm am at
tempt to and AN ocean route To- the
orient : In the light "f modern
history we are able to appreciate the
immense Importance of our every ac-
cession of territory bordering on the
Pacific. Hawaii in it's location is
providential. Dur trade with the orient
teadily increases. We are sure to
dominate the Pacific and to exert ovei.
the orient a c~orrespondingly great in
f1uence. The Importance OF the de-
v%elopment OF the west as "A basis Of
this new world influence is apparent"
Inc orient may not bes quite so sure
about it's future disposition. 1t may
protest against being dominated by the
United States even tie the extent of be-
ing influenced" by 1t. When giant
China awakes-watch out. And the
Japanese are still to be reckoned with.
Therefore, let us not be o~ver-confident.
IT is exceedingly important that we
first of all build up our own western
frontier In point of manhood and NOR
ais. AS Ward Platt suggests. before we
calmly. talk about dominating great and
powerful countries. We might better
learn now to possess our own land.
Rapid has been the growth Of our
country, and many have been the
frontier. lines which We have cross
ed. Just now we are thinking and
talking much of the new south and
the new west.' with their ire
meIdous significant developments. The
next decade will witness marked AID
vance in the growth OF cities and the
modern eldorados. Great wealth will
pc accumulated and many powerful in
situations established. Shall these be
dominated by the spirit OF righteous
ness. or shall mammon reign supreme?
PRIMARILY. 1T is for The men and the
women who shall occupy these territor-
les to say. but 1t is incumbent upon the
entlre country to see To ii that such
development shall he upon II thorough
~ sound basis. For Americas future
development must not be entrusted to
those who may be Influenced merely
DN those th1n0S WIirh cl,nl .,l,,,..o
their own interests.
ThOmaS Carlyle once said, "Ye NAV
boast a. we're democracy or any ither
'cracy or any kind o. poleetical roobish.
but the reason why yer laboring folk
are SO happy is that yc have a vost
deal o. land for Il vera few people"
but the day has gone by when the poor
man can secure free land. We have
reached the limit in this respect. We
are facing a situation similar to that
IN many foreign lands. We have be-
come land impoverished through our
iooiish generosity in giving railroads,
spectators, and land grabbers the
choicest sections OF our national do
main. Today. by he mere fact of his
ARRIVAL, every immigrant increases the
Vaiue Of the land in the United States
ny 1000. Every newborn babe has the
same effect upon land values. Rents
Tor the w~orkfngman in our big cities |
nave become exorbitant. The percent
age of the renting farmers is increas- |
ing. In spite of our remarkable growth
IN Iaid area there is a famine OF land |
Tor the poor, and the poor-the people |
on the Notwithstanding the status |
and the standards for the whole people |
with regard To national prosperity and
happiness.
But IL we have failed in the fair
and equitable distribution OF our vast
public domain, let us beware OF sacri-
ficinK u cities am our industries and
our homes to the INSCRIPTIONS and the |
self-seekinR to whom the future Of
America means simply personal power
ana sel1-aggrandizement. The reign Of
malnlnOn is Americans greatest peril.
On tho New Road.