The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1913-08-31

know a thing you cannot tell it. and If
you do not believe it and feel 1t in
your heart YOU cannot make anybody
else feel or believe il. You must state
things clearly in order to have men
understand you. and next to clearness
of statements YOU need conciseness OF
statements, that is, of saying much
in a few words
l here asked whether originality was
not prime essential in speaking say
Ing that man must have new ideas in
order to impress the public.
well. as to that" replied Mr.
Bryan. there are not many ideas that
we OF the present time can claim as
absolutely our own. Mankind has done
lot 4 thinking since the creation.
and il you Will trace your concepts
back to the beginning YOU will ind
the Serms OF the most OF them some
where or other. The number OF really
new ideas is not large. although the
number OF applications of an idea Is
Infinite. y large part of the oratory
OF the present is the application OF
the wisdom OF the past to the condi-
lions of the present.
AS we talked about oratory l re-
ferred u the many speeches Mr.. Bryan
had made. showing him n statement
that he had made coo speeches in
1896, had addressed 100000 people in
1897 and had altogether spoken to
more than 100000 face to face. within
the past sixteen years. AS he looked
ut the paper l said: Il suppose you
have addressed moro PEOPLE than any
man who has ever lived?"
Yes, 1 think that is likely true
was the reply 1T is certain that II
l have spoken to more persons than
any man now living have spoken
to more than any man dead. because
the further back you go the fewer :he
crowds and the more difficult the
travel In no previous time could a
man have travelled so much as have"
II have been told that you have
made $4,000 a year by your lectures?''
That is not true. l have received
a great deal but not so much as that.
would say. however. that have
made more speeches for nothing than
] have for pay. l do not receive pay
for political speeches. and my sunday
free. I do not think that money max
ing is the chief end of man"
Tut. Mr.. Bryan. do you think ono
man can earn $500 year,"
Yes. And In this l am not speaking
of myself, but do think that we have
many mcn who have earned more than
$4,000 during every year OF their
working lives. A man can honestly
earn what his services are worth to
society. although in many cases he
does not collect it. Take Thomas JEFF
ferson. The service he rendered the
world was worth more than ten mil
lion dollars year. although during
his last days he was so poor he had to
sell his library TO Congress. and his
friends got up a lottery to aid him
in paving his debts. Abraham Lincoln
earned more than ten millions year.
and so did George Washington and
many others. In my lecture entitled
The Price OF n Soul, have discussed
that subject. think the standpoint
OF earning is of service rendered. and
l believe that the average man gives Il
fair service to society for all he gets.
CT coarse, there are many exceptions
and we have some who thrive OF the
earnings of others, giving nothing in
return. 1t Is from some OF those tina (
| hope we shall have u partial equali-
cation through the new income tax
But. Mr.. Bryan. should not that tax
include all incomcs-thc small as well
as the largc?"
Il do not think SO. and that for two
reasons. In the first place the tax
upon the small incomes would not be
worth the collecting, because the ma
chinery for collecting 1t would be too
great. In the second place the poor
man Is taxed upon nearly everything
he consumes. and In this respect he
pays proportionately far more than
the rich. We have men in the United
States who are worth tens OF millions
and who spend nevertheless only n few
thousand dollars year The eXemp-
ton OF the small income is entirely
sound.
There Is no country in the world
which levics taxes upon incomes, as
far as J know. which has not such eX-
cmptions. When | was in Congress lin
1886 took part In drafting the in
come portion or the Wilson tax DILL
ami at that time l investigated tho
subject. I found that England eX
cmpted all incomes under $3.50, that
Prussia exempted everything under
$2e5, and that Austria had exemptions
of all incomes OF $l13 and under
Many OF the European countries have
been collecting such taxes for gem