The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1919-03-16
The Lesson of the War
Vice President Thomas r. Marshall, IL
Leslies

Vice President Thomas r. Marshall, In
Leslie's.
| The reign of terror in Russia is as bad
as despotism, and if continued may be-
come worse than despotism. Thoughtful
| people are beginning to understand that
| liberty without the safeguards of law
and order is only license and that democ-
racy without organized self-control is
only demagogy2
| These are not hours for wild and I'M
restrained conduct upon the part of any
| American citizen The lesson of the war
should be the elimination of classes. If
the oppression by the lords and gentry
of the bourgeois is to be followed by
| oppression at the hands of the prole-
tariat-that is only change; 1t Is not
| progress
From this tinV forward in the Ameri-
can republic, if we are to have pros
perity we must have no classes. The
| measure of the man must be not what
! he does; rather must it be the spirit IN
J which he does his life work.
| There never was so fine an outlook Tor
| the prosperity of people as that winch
corfronts the republic today if IT shall
only receive the thoughtful considera-
ton of American citizens. and shall not
be spoiled by the blind prejudice of class
antag onism and class distinction.
| The whole republic ought to flourish.
cot only with prosperity, but also with
added grandeur, and men ought, each
and all. to have the largest opportunity
ever afforded for individual success, hon
estly and honorably attained.
But the wiping out of preferred sense
and of classes in the American republic
| ought to add something to the effort
| of the individual beyond mere personal
preferment. 1t ought to add the spirit
OF service, of comradeship and of good
will 1t ought to disclose that peace,
| friendship and good will with a thousand
| a wear are far more valuable to any
| man than enmity. hatred and turmoil
with even a hundred thousand year.
| The welding of the people into homo
geneous whole must result in many haV-
| ing more and many having less than
they had in the old days. So, whatever
anyone may think about it from the legal
| or ethical standpoint, from the stand
| point of wisdom, the brotherhood we
preach and the democracy which we laud
command us not to hire our brother man
as though he were beast of burden
| or mere machine, but to hire him as
son of the self-same God, who is en-
| titled for honest work, to honest pay,
! a good, clean livelihood and many lux
uries.
| Prices are not coming down in America.
| The manufacturer who is hating upon
| the theory that the bottom is going to
drop out of raw material will find the bot
tom out of his business before it is out
of raw material. The retail merchant
who is waiting until he can purchase
cheaper goods will have his store closed
by the sheriff and no way to get the
cheaper goods upon his shelves. The
man who has denied himself and stinted
himself during the period of war and Is
now outstanding his resources upon the
theory that pieces are going to take
tumble may succeed in washing his shirt
into shreds before he can buy a much
cheaper one.
We were an intensely loyal and patriot
ic people during the war. Let us go ahead
on the present basis-the manufacturer
continuing to manufacture, the retailer
continuing to buy, the citizen continuing
to use. Let labor have it's fair and hon
es reward And if in brotherhood such
as we describe, there shall be few tur-
bulent souls who want to strike down law
and order, then let this brotherhood ar
rest try and execute any who may muir
der under the false theory that he is
helping the onward progress OF man
kind.
No people ever faced stricken world
with such great opportunities for indi-
viduaI and general prosperity as do the
American people. Are we about to fritter
our opportunities away in contest over
an additional one per cent return upon
capital or an additional % cents day to
Ia Dor?