Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-08-24

out to build an American home it ought
to be the fittest earthly type of heaven.
In business it is necessary to have an
ideal 1t Is as impossible to build
business without an ideal as it is to build
a house without a plan. Some think
that competition Is SO sharp now that
1t is impossible to be strictly honest In
business; some think that II Is necessary
to recommend a thing, not as 1t Is. but
as the customer wants II to be. There
never was time when II was more
necessary than it is today that business
should be built upon a foundation of abb
solute integrity.
In the professions, also. an ideal is
necessary. Take the medical profession
for Illustration. 1t is proper that the
musician should collect money from his
patients, for he must live while he helps
others to live. but the physicians who
have written their names high upon the
scroll Of fame have had higher ideal
than the making of money. They have
had q passion for the study of their pro-
fession; they have searched diligently for
the hidden causes of disease and the
remedies therefor and they have found
more delight in giving to the world some
discovery of benefit to the race than they
have found in all of the money that they
have collected from their patients.
And the lawyer; has he ideals? Yes
And suppose the ideals of lawyers vary
as much as the ideals in any other pro-
fession. The lawyers ideals have an IN
fluence upon his character. He can not
persistently defeat justice, or even Ignore
IT without a conscious lowering OF ms
manhood while conscientious search Tor
Justice increases his power of discern
ment and adds to his moral strength.
Then, too, a lawyers influence with
the judge depends largely upon his repu-
tation for honesty. OF course, lawyer
can fool judge a few times and lead
him into a hole, but after awhile the
judge learns to know the lawyer. and
then he cannot follow the lawyers ar
guments because he is looking for the
hole all the time, which he knows Is
somewhere and which he is trying TO
avoid. l need not remind you that moth
ing is SO valuable to jury lawyer as
reputation that Will make the jurors be-
lieve that he will not under any cir
cumstances m;sstate a proposition of law
or of evidence. And SO / might take up
each occupation. calling and profession,
and show that the ideal controls the life,
determines the character and establishes
a mans place among his fellows.
But let me speak of the ideals of a
larger group What of our political
ideals? The party as well as the indi-
vidual must have its ideals. and We are
far enough from the election to admit
that there is room in all the parties Tor
the raising of the party ideal How can
a person most aid his party? Let US
suppose that one is passionately devoted
to his party and anxious to render II
the maximum of service; how can he
render this service? BY raising the ideal
of his party. If young man asks me
how he can make fortune in day, l
cannot tell him. If he asks how he can
become rich in a year. l know not what
to answer him, but l can tell him that
If he will locate in any community and
for twenty-five years live an honest life.
an Industrious life, a useful life he Will
make friends and fasten them to him
with hooks of steel: he will make his
impress upon the community and the
chances are many to one that before a
quarter of a century has elapsed his
fellows will call upon him to act for
them and to represent them in important
matters.
The country is suffering today from a
Decentralization of its ideals. Instead OF
measuring people by the manhood or
womanhood they manifest, we are too
prone to measure them by the amount
of money they possess, and this demon
alization has naturally and necessarily
extended to politics. Instead of asking
rs is right?" we are tempted to ask
"Will it pay?" and VIII 1t win?" As a
result the public conscience IS becoming
scared and the public service debauched.
We find corruption in elections and cor
ruption in Office. Men sell their votes.
councilmen sell their influence, while
state legislators and federal representa-
tives turn the government from its legit-
innate channels and make it a private
asset in business.
How are we to stop this corruption
Not by going into the market and bid
ding against our opponents, but by plac-
ing against money something stronger
than money. And what is stronger than
money? A conscience Is stronger than
money. A conscience that will enable a
man to stand by a stake and smile
while the flames consume him Is strong
er than money, and we must appeal to
the conscience-not to a democratic con-
science or to a republican conscience.
but to an American conscience and to
Christian conscience, and place this
awakened conscience against the onf1ow
ing tide of corruption in the United
States.
We must have parties in this country.
Jefferson said that there were naturally
two ma rites in ayerv canntrv-o 1n,,c