The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1912-05-14
A CLERICAL THEORIST.

The animosity Of the Rev. George Chal-
mers Richmond. rector of st. John q
Episcopal church, New York, pursues
Col. Astor beyond the CARVE. So far as
we have observed, his is tho only voice
raised in later condemnation. The manly
part played by Astor in common with
the other manly men of the Titanic dis.
aster has hushcd the voice of calumny,
and until this outgiving of the Rev.
George Chalmers Richmond, even the
voice of criticism.
It appears that the rector took the
occasion of Astor's death and the pub
| LEGATION Of the terms of Astor s will TO
voice some extreme radical sentiments.
| He drew contrast between the will
Of DR.. Francis Bacon, the great sur
gcon OF Yale university. who worked
himself up from the status of poor
| hoy TO q man Of great skill and ser
| vice TO humanity, and who left An es
J tate of 100000, onc.fourth of which
ho devoted to the establishment of a
] tuberculosis institution. IT was GER
tsinly commendable. generous thing
| in Dr. Bacon TO do At the same time,
every man must be the Judge of what
he will do with his property when he
gives or wills it away. II is impossible
| to concede that some other persons
must have the liberty to step in and
say what rich man shall DO with his
money. That would open the door wide
for all sorts Of intrusions and for the
pillaging of estates. It has never been
the way of the Astor family to dissi-
pate their holdings, nor to indulge in
spectacular benefsctions. One may
think they should do a great deal in
that direction, since they have so much
money, but, after all, it is their money,
and it is their night under the laws TO
do with it as they please so long as
they do not violate the law. 1t is
not possible under our form Of govern
mept TO take private property for
the public or other use without just
compensation. 1t is not possible to en-
ter upon an era of confiscatiou and
the robbing of estates, either for the
benefit Of the public or for charity.
Rector Richmond states that no man
ought to be able to leave more than
S2,000,000 at most, and If he has an
excess over this he should give largely
to religion, education, and charity. Some
other gentleman, equally disinterested
with the rector, might say that rich
men should give literally in other di-
rections, as to art, architecture, and
above all, to public works; to the hand
ling Of the water of our streams, to ir,
rigation, good roads, and to other pub.
lie utilities But it is utterly imprac-
icable to say that You are going to com
pei people to DO these things, and if
there is to be an end of men control
ling the money that they make. why
should they enter upon the vast enter
prises for industrial development, or
our transportation facilities and thus
pile up big fortunesY If one is to get
nothing out Of his enterprise. why
should he trouble himself7 1t is com
monplace to say that under a system
of equal benefits to the community, and
the holding down of personal advantage
from individual effort. no substantial
progress has ever been made in the
history of humanity. 1t is only when
men are left free to make the most of
their talents, their opportunities, and
their utilizing of the available resources
that any great progress is ever made.
And if, as Rector Richmond SAYS, ''We
are Nation set in the universe for the
building up of God S kingdom of love
and righteousness, then We. as such
Nation, must allow our citizenship its
untrammelled freedom in developing the
possibilities of tho Nation. To put
clamps upon enterprise and warn all
concerned that what they make will
be taken away from them, is certainly
not A good way 10 advance National
progress. Under such system. there
would be no incentive TO extra endeav-
or and all would fall TO level OF dull
mediocrity.
Rector Richmond saws that il i .
disgrace 10 leave a fortune OF $50 900.
600 in these days That. however, l.
lust as one may look upon it, One
that Col. Astor lid not die death
of disgrace He died the death Of man
Of fortitnde. Of courageous altruism
that is glorious TO reflect upon, and that
will be a splendor OF humanity for all
the ages TO come, this applying. OF
course, to all of those men who died
the heroic death that thew did. along
with Astor. He has his share in that.
and no more, but that share ought TO
be sufficient 10 prevent any one talk
ing about death OF disgrace in con.
neetiou with him.
Rector Richmond specifies a number
OF things that he would have done right
away Among these is the prevention
OF the accumulation OF great fortunes:
the confiseation Of such fortunes at tho
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