The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1915-09-17
Emerson Branch. r. d. MASTERTON. Nor.
Ion , until the present time.

ION until the present time
s5sasa n IL suGh discussions though not oftea
Ssuhiects 81 newspaper talk arc nsvershe.
/, less very general among people. and d
therefore . topic Of interest Is most. +
The disagreeing views referred ta
simply prove:that ''prospefity" Is vary
iodefnits term and its definition depends
n,ustiy on the point Of view. Further,
i also dep@nds very largely on tho inca.
sure used 70 Determine loss OF gain
Speaking of the latter, prosperity ie
usually, though often erronsously, meas.
nred by the dollar. The dollar il the
best ana most universal measure that
we have, but in many cases it 10 not ap.
pllcable. No one attempts TO measure
molasses by the yard or alday's work
by pounds. There are many phases OF
real prosperity that cannot be expregsed
IN dollars and cents The progress oi
civilization from century to century,
which is but another expression Of pros.
penty is:only partially shown by Stats.
tics. Civilization, education. religion,
refinement! have prospered greatly in
the last thousand years, but finance
alone while an important part, is after
al but small part in that progress.
But in judging Of prosperity IN general
the greatest factor is the point OF view,
usually colored very largely by the per.
sonal characteristics Of the judge.
From the more dollar point of view,
Mr. Rockefeller is undoubtedly the most
prosperous man Of this generation. From
another point Of view. Mr.. Rockefeller
is perhaps the most unsuccessful man in
this generation, because his money has
not brought him what he wants most,
thsregsso and respect of the people, hut
rather the opposits.
What is prosperity" Prosperity ls
aswe saide,, . very indefinit term, and it
would be we'll before entering on an ex.
tended discussion to define what is
meant BY prosperity
Even from strictly financial point Of
view prosperity is still rather indefinite
term. Shall We take the individual or
the classS Ii might be easy to prove
that . whole class is undoubtedly pros
porous when measured by the dollar
mark. For instance we have read that
this year North Dakota will raise
something over three hundred bushels
Of wheat per capita. That il evidently
prosperity as state. But the average
farmer is so constituted that he will be
10th to acknowledge that individually he
has his full share of that prosperity.
He may admit that he has had q fine
crop but that when the bills are paid
that he has not much il anything left.
His theory is that while he does the
work, that others get the proceeds and
the prosperity. The trouble with his
reasoning is that he is only partially
right. No man deliberately starts
wrong. He starts right and then goes
wrong afterward-and then wonders
why. To start with truth, is not suffi.
cient. s a
Prosperity is comparative. Compsr
alive between individuals Of the same
class and comparative between classes.
The old Irish lady, really meant just
this when she Thanked God that her
neighbors were just as bad Of % she
was" Whether We are prosperous or
not also depends largely on what ne
want. or perhaps when We think We want.
There is . paragraph goicg about the
press at this time saying that an Indian
at Devils Lake has shipped acar Of
wheat Of his own raising and the item is
,pnt down - : mark Of prosperity for the
Indian. Fifty years ago thas Same In.
dian II old enough, might have 1slt Just
as prosperous whom he brought homo the
carcase Of . deer.
Tho word 'oontentment' has : lot TO
do with tho definition Of the word .spros.
|peritY". The contented man u always
prosperous. but tho prosperous msn ID
not always contented. There are aoms
people who are never quite happy iuthis
world unless they are miserable. .-Snd
such can always and the mlsery. fz.s
The new settler on the western
prairies who starts q most do without
capital and runs in debt lpr horses 'Snd
!. machinery, and has ono O. two hed esopil
] It the beginning, has hard tinae - 9as.