The Fargo forum and daily republican., 1918-12-27
The Editors Mail Bag

To the Editor of The Forum:
Christian principle has more use for Cap
italism than it has for Bolshevism AS ideas ex-
pressing different views OF social and economic
progress there is probably good and bad in both;
but in practice they develop all sorts OF indus
trial inequalities, mental biases and moral per-
versities, which In the end override all res
traints and eventually result in revolutions and
all manner OF strife. They become the vehicles
of selfish ambitions, the fruitful cause of class
distinctions and hatreds: they embezzle the
justice stalks between the two as the evil genius
of both: the eyes of each watch the other greed
lily, calcllatngly, and II one the other for the
moment is weakened off his guard the other
pounces on him to have his hearts blood. Bour-
geoisie, proletarian what they? One is
tempted to say: two bands of pirates bent on
mutual destruction and bringing untold misery to
the great mass OF people and interests who are
decent and want to live decently only as mat
ter OF fact there are many men classed with the
one or the other who are earnestly seeking to
equalize the differences between the two. At any
rate, the actuating motive in both is too often
personal class selfishness Germany attain
ed the "eviI erninence" of becoming the high
priest Of the sort Of exploitation which has been
characteristic OF Capitalism and Bolshevikism.
BY means OF her "kultur," her industrial eff
cheney and her military power she aimed to PEN
citrate and despoil the moral economic and po-
litical empires of the world. He aim has been
frustrated, and the war is now assuming diff
ferent form. Call in Bourgeois or Proletariat,
capitalism laborism, whatever tag suits best
modified in some European instances by national
ambitions-what Is 1t that right thinking people
object to in them? What is the element in all
of them tEat causes trouble and friction, hatred
and intolerance? Is it not the devil Of selfish
and injustice? His teeth have been drawn,
as far Germany is concerned but no is now
cropping out in a dozen new places and under
new disguises. We hear now, that the war is
over. that secret treaties were effected between
different members Of the Allied nations during
the war, looking toward exploitation of con-
quered territory their part. We are told
further that Allied expeditions placed at
strateg3cal points in these territories for the
sake of safeguarding such exploitation 1t is
we'll to point out that all such reports should
not be given too much Importance, as no final
adjustment has yet been made, and until the
peace conference does adjust them criticism may
best be dispensed with. The object in referring
to these stories here is simply to emphasize the
fact Of the prevalence of the devil of business
SefiShneSs everywhere
Being human, we naturally fight this enemy
with human weapons; the sword, treaties, laws,
leagues and what not And this particular devil
laughs at them all. Apparently he can neither
islation treaties. There is reason for that.
His empire is the SOUL and no human device can
coerce the soul. When Christ cast out the dem
ons from the man of Gadara, he used no exter-
nal power. no physical weapon. His spiritual
supremacy imposed it's expulsive decree, and the
cured. After reflection what his
tory teaches, on what experience Gnd observa-
tion teaches of the subject in these days, and
after allowing for the merit of all the agencies
society employs to keep the waywardl heart
of man in bounds; arrives at the conviction
that the ideal of brotherhood requires a wider
and thorough application in the field Of
business and politics, fields from which we have
hitherto excluded the principles of religion. One
farther one looks ahead. Political adjustments,
legal expedients changes from one party TO an
other, from one economic doctrine to, another do
not seem to do the business Under the, OLD
regime in North Dakota, doubtless the scales
OF justice were more or less un6alancetS the
farmers rights were disregarded. The NonParu-
league came along as protest and al pan
acea for this evil; and now the balance Is ap-
parently somewhat the other way, justice is
not done under the new order any more than
it was under the old. When the old crowd was
in it was too greedy, the new crowd comes
al fha M m
trouble is with peoples intentions; sincerelty
may be conceded. But the trouble is with the in
finitely deceitful heart in all, that camouflages
itself in thousand disguises and yet remains
the same selfish thing under them ALL When
this devil of selfishness was cast out or Kussian
autocracy it Immediately entered into Russian
Bolshevikism. And yet each fortified itself in
very sweet sounding doctrines.
It is not so much in changing one party or
government for another that real progress in
righteousness is made, as 1t is in kicking the
devil of selfshness out of all parties and getting
down to the religious basis Of conducting bust
ness and politics. Farmers, traders, laporers'
capitalists let each do business with an eye to
the others advantage equality with his own, and
it wouldn't matter what party each belonged to-
And seeing that the world is in for a general
overhauling at this particular time, 1T would
seem proper to introduce the Golden Rule at this
point 1t sounds pretty stiff as WORKING RUE
in practical affairs. 'Whosoever shall smite thee
on the right cheek, turn the other to him also.
IResist not evil And if any man will sue thee
at the law and take thy coat, let him have thy
cloak also And whosoever shall compel thee to
90 mile go with him twain. Give to him that
asketh thee and from him that would borrow
of thee turn thou not away" Love your en-
emies." 1t has been said often enough that you
cannot apply that rule to business" Very true
II is an impossible rule, unless a man Is con-
yinced that it can be applied. That is the point
about this divine mandate, unless one is prepared
to go the whole way he will not go at ALL neither
half way quarter, nor wherever justice de-
1nands that he should go. He has got to have
the disposition to go all the way, and only COO
Almighty can give him that disposition
According to this rule there can be and should
he no distinctions in the distribution of the re-
wards and blessings of life. But the minute
desire is fixed on the reward we are liable to
forget the law Hence the need for creating in
us the mind and spirit Of Christ, whose philo-
sophy OF life was expressed in the saying: The
Son of Man came not to be ministered unto. but
to minister" 1t would mean a tremendous,
seemingly impossible undertaking to apply the
Golden Rule to business, in the way Christ would
And yet the conviction is growing in many
minds that we must approximate it in some de-
gree if the safety OF the world is to be assured,
and wars prevented. Only a work of Gods grace
can change the minds of men so they viii be
willing to use it, and only universal abortion
will demonstrate its worth and efficiency 1t IS
what every Thoughtful man should work for at
any rate. we have, in fact already gone a long
way along that road; sufficiently far, at least
to be encouraged to perSeVere..