Cayton's weekly. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1916-1921, 1919-12-20

WOflu war; Ine1l, 700, the possibility OF ac-
quiring large fortunes caused men to make
god of money and to see in their fellow
man a thing to be used and not human
being to be developed and uplifted. That
was the trouble with the Coal Barons and
that is why the government ordered them
to give the miners IA per cent increase in
wages and not to raise the price of coal
Before the income tax the papers say that
the Coal Barons reaped enormous porfits-
1000 per cent on the capital invested. And
we have been informed that although two
Western packers employed thousands the
total amount of profits distributed among
the stockholders greatly exceeded the total
wages paid. And working men all over the
country feel that they whose Drawn and
muscle sustained the business ought to re.
celve bigger percentage of the profits. This
is back of all the strikes
But the conditions are not essentially
different today from those of six years
ago, so why this sudden worldwide protest
and dissatisfaction? In the first place, the
war put strain on the nerves and made
men more irritable In the second place,
the taxes and high cost of living put
strain on the pocketbOoks of the common
people. In the third place, the workers be-
gan to feel that the manufacturers of war
supplies reaped huge profits during the
war. In the fourth place, President Will.
son s talk about humanity, about making
the world safe for democracy, about the
self-determination of small nations and
about melting out justice to oppressed
classes excited false hopes in the masses
all over the world. They believed that
Woodrow Wilson was a Messiah who was
going to usher in the milemum as the re-
suit Of the war.
President Wilson builded wiser than he
knew. Unconsciously he was weapon Of
destiny, an instrument in the hands of Di-
vine Providence. 1t is undoubtedly true
that there s a divinity that shapes our end,
rough hew them as we may.' President
Wilson's league of nations-called the
league of nOtions-was a utopian dream,
the same as Ponce de Icons attempt to dis
cover the fountain of eternal youth. The
world was not ready for President Will
sons league of nations. President Will
son who like Christopher Columbus. The
latter started out to discover new sea
route to India instead he discovered new
continent. Americas President attempted
to found a league Of nations which would
make world peace a reality; instead he set
the oppressed nations and races and class
es-black, brown, yellow and white-to
thinking.
That is why we call him weapon of
destiny and an instrument in the hands Of
Divine Providence. Although he could not
translate his dreams into reality md al
though he might not have realized the full
import and meaning of his words, he be-
came the articulate expression of the con-
science of mankind the voice of oppressed
races, nations and classes. He gave utter
ance to what the under dogs in the world
felt The humanity justice, liberty and
freedom that he so eoquently and persua-
sively wrote and talked about was the lib
erty and freedom that other men wanted to
enjoy and the humanity and justice that
they wanted meted out to them. is it any
wonder, then, that he gave the world NOR
al thrill, that his words found responsive
echo even in the heart s of the African and