The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1914-10-08
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
BY PROCESS OF WAR
Civilization is Built Upon
Others Possessions
Showing That There are Various Phases
Of Aggrandizement; Some on a
Large Scale and Great Part
on a Small Scale.
By Buck

By Back
What is the primal object of this
war in Europe? Territorial ag-
grandizement. or grabbing a chunk
of somebody else's property through
main force.
Alexander the Great, Julius Caes-
ar, Frederick the Great, Catherine
II. and Napoleon-heroes whom we
worship more or less were all moth
ing but highwaymen of a higher
order.
Alexander the Great made war on
the Persian empire and Egy 2t for
the purpose of grabbing their
domains and adding them to his own.
Julius Caesar, through the supe-
riority of his generalsnip and army
brought the Gauls, Franks and
Britlans to their knees and placed
their countries under the dominion
of the so-called Roman republic.
Frederick the Great, of Prussia,
declared war on Austria in order to
grab Silesia. and after accomplish
ing that he connived with Catherine
H., of Russia, and the empire of
Austria for the slIcing up of the
Kingdom of Poland. and thereby
receiving a good big piece for him.
self.
Catherine II. (the Great also re-
ceived slice of Poland, and she
also grabbed all the little independ-
ent kingdoms and principalities she
could lay her hands on to the south
east of Russia, bordering on the
Caspian sea.
And Napoleon-ah! Napoleon!-
that greatest of all warriors and
highwaymen-he grabbed every
thing-or tried to grab everything
in sight. But like our ordinary
bandit of today, he didn't know
when to quit; and so he finally land
ed in durance vile.
1t all goes to show that the great
primal object of all wars with a
few exceptions) was for the aggran-
dizement of some individual. indi-
viduals. or nation, and always at the
expense of somebody else.
Civilization itself is built upon
aggrandizement. Always the weak
er had to give up their possessions
to the stronger; as witness the over
throw of the red man in America
and the taking of all his land and
hunting grounds away from him;
and the gradual crushing down of
the black man in Africa. and steal
ing or taking his native country
from his possession; also. witness
what the Japs have done to the Ko-
reans in Asia.
These are only few Of the things
that have been done for the sake of
aggrandizement, and the list might
go on without end. piling up thou
sands of offenses that have been COM
mitted for gain at all times and in
CVCIy Ill GnC WO11Os
So it can readily he seen that one
of the main parts of mans nature
is to covet, and if possible get pos
session, of -other peoples property;
and those of you vino are on the
outside of prison, don't be too ready
to condemn a man for doing on
small scale what some of the nations
of Europe are trying to do on larg-
er scale today: for he is only exer-
cising that trait in his nature
that has descended through past
ages on down to him, to acquire by
forceful aggrandizement that which
some other fellowman possesses.
And if whole nations will fly at each
others throats for square mile of
territory and cause hundreds of
thousands of men to lose their lives
and the destruction of whole cities,
is it any wonder. then. that single
individual should generate the same
idea and hold up other individuals
aud relieve them of their chattels?
The wonder is that there isn't
more of it done than what there is;
for nearly every man or woman in
this world possesses more or less
covetousness in their nature, and it
is only that sense of righteousness
land perhaps the fear of conse-
quences) that keeps the people from
exercising their sense of aggrandixe-
ment.
s.No man or woman of thA hmm.