The Irish standard., 1917-09-29

of this country. Seishness is most in evidence
in the top strata of society. The acquisition of
wealth-either honestly dishonesty-has been
the ladder by which many people have assembled to
social heights. When man has acquired fortune
he is supposed to be big, but if while accommodating
his millions he developed selfish, avaricious spirit
he is very small. Nothing dwarfs character as
giving all thought to the making and saving
of money when the aim is merely to satisfy
miser's craving to possess excess amount of the
coin of the realm.
The rich man could derive much pleasure from
helping the needy but the traits developed hoard
ing wealth are not conducive to development of in
terest in the most deserving poor. The virtue of
charity has never been nurtured in his bosom and
the possession of untold wealth cannot put it there
The difficulty of securing money from the average
rich man to for the needy is great that the
band-wagon appeal (the campaign system) has to
be resorted to- so that adequate funds be obtained
to support the most deserving charities In some
instances the sound of tmbres, the jollying of
the Campaign" manager and the power of the press
are ineffective to get the coin from the holders of
the biggest money bags, the tax levy must be
resorted to as the final resort in the extracting
process.
In times of peace the selfish rich have no love
for the tax collector. Now war. And with
arises the need of vast sums of money. Taxes
are raised Uncle Sam tells his bad rich nephews
what they must do. The gradated income tax
mobilizes much money needed to successfully pros
ecute the titanic struggle, and the avaricous are
compelled to let go of that to which they have been
too much attached. The operation is very painful
to many but will tend to restore them to a much
healthier moral condition and will correct false
lions about what the individual is free to have and
to hold
The selfish rich woman is mser in some ways
spendthrift in others. She withholds where 9th
ers needs and comforts concerned; she is prod
igal when pandering to selfish tastes and seeking
to advance selfish interests Through the possess
sion and misuse of wealth many American women
have become chronic pleasure hunters and unexem
plary globetrotters. Submarine warfare has done
many of those good by compelling them to remainaat
home Many specific instances might be cited to
show that many lack the greatest of all virtues
charity-because of their ability to roam added to
lack of interest in home and home surroundings.
One wealthy woman, childess wife, on being ap-
pealed to for sweet charities sake, replied she
couldn't help she. was travelling of the time
Another rich babyless wife requested to feed
some starving children. A month afterward she
started "year and half trip abroad" without
spending fifty cents that family, though she had
visited them twice. There many SUCH
Yes though the hostile submarines are doing
much harm they also doing good that is not
appreciated. They have reduced American travel
to Europe.
Though high taxes unpopular they are work
ing for the moral betterment of those who have
made money their God The further the federal
government goes in conscripting wealth the
better will be the chance of Successful mems go
ing to heaven.
The present is hitting selfshness hard and
if it continues two years more the blows received
by self interest avarice and greed will put them to
sleep for while and give the honest toiler bet
ter chance to feed and educate his children
go X