St. Johns review. (Saint Johns, Or.) 1904-current, 1912-04-12

HG INJURY W OlS vi uo 10 thS
concern of all of us.
In quoting this I do not mean to
say that it ought to be the concern
of all of us, nor that we socialists
are going to make it the concern of
all of us, but that it is now and al
ways has been the concern of all
of us.
Man does not live to himself
alone. Even before his birth he is
influenced by the conditions STIR
rounding him and is what he is be.
cause of those surroundings. No
man alone can rise out of the CON
ditions of the aye IN which he lives.
All must rise together. This is an
iucontrovertible fact
As far as conditions are compet-
tive one rises only as some one else
relatively falls. A savage may
overpower his enemies, but the in.
jury to them only binds the chain
of savagery about himself. Today
a man may gain industrial control
over the lives of others, and gather
riches by the exploitation of their
labor, but the resultant misery, ig.
norance and degradation of the nu-
merous exploited classes establishes
conditions which reflect upon him.
self and out of which no amount
of money can entirely lift him.
The ancient castle with its moat
and defenses and its defenders in
armor provided only a very limited
and uncertain security to the old
feudal baron. How much better to
have abolished the necessity for
such defenses. Who would not
rather be a common citizen of to-
day having a mutual interest, with
millions OF Others in the co-opera-
tive public defeuces of great ma.
ton than to be- the most successful
fcudal baron that ever lived
And who would not rather be a
common citizen in an industrial
democracy, having common i'm
terest in great industrial plants, sure
public dclenscs against hunger
cold aud disease, and sure guaran-
tee OF the opportunity to develop a
higher, broader life, than to be the
proudest industrial baron IN this age
OF financial ieudalism!
Baron dcicnscs have crumblcd,
kings have lost their heads, aud at
best their heads uneasy lie. D." So
too financial dcfenses have been
broken down, fortunes have van
ishcd in the fierce financial warfare.
There is no security,and the groans,
curses and threats OF the defeated,
the sickening degradation known to
exist almost next door" fostering
vices worse than were ever known
10 savagcry, constitute a social con
dilion from the polluling influence
OF which even the millionaire aud
his family cannot escape.
Not the least OF It's effects is that
deadening of the scnsibilities con.
cerning those conditions around rs.
We take them as a matter OF course.
These things have always existed
and we assume must always exist,
just as the scrls OF ieudlllsm took
their conditions as matter OF
course, The majority OF rs seem
unable to grasp the idea that social
evolution is bringing about, all the
time from age to age is bringing
about a complete change IN social
conditions.
You say ooh this is no, such a
bad world (whcn you get used TO
il aud we are all used TO it, You
don like the street orators lang
uage when he insists that by this
competitive system some are rob
bing the others. You are like the
fox in the fable who said Don't
say stole, cat, II is not nice, Say,
obtained by superior ability Aud
SO il is Some obtain hy much SUI
perior ability, while those OF in
ferior ability may starye, And II
is not the ability to produce but the
ability to GET that counts,
You say that in this great and
glorious country there is the same
opportunity Tor all, aud It fellow
fails it is his own fault Well, l
guess that is true ina sense, in the
same sense that an would have the
same chance IN Tree or-all-6ght
II a fellow gets his eyes hlaCked and
otherwise dishgured Il is his own
fault. II is because OF his inferior
ability But why should we have
a free-ior-all-dght1 Aud what bet
ter reason can be named for a free
for-all-scramble for riches? ?
We have a government organi1a-
ton to stop the one, why not to
stop the other,