The Greeneville daily sun. (Greeneville, Tenn.) 1918-1920, 1919-10-10
sEEKERs AFTER JUSTICE.

The addresses of Secretaries Wilson and Lane have
well outlined the ideal Of the industrial peace conference
The IDEAL in one word justice To secure to each man
what he deserves necessarily requires that man shall
have what he does not deserve The attempt to apply
the universal rule of justice to every man in the vast
complexty Of American industry is splendidly auda-
cious effort, worthy Of the genius of America
But why not? Is not America founded upon the rock
of equality? not the foundation absolutely sound and
unshakable against any storms that bow AS Secretary
Lane so aptly said, there be revolution in land
where men are already equal in liberty. If Americans
were not equals they would begin revolution very
quickly and it would be handsome affair Or if they
were not free they would try get free without delay
But as they equal and free and not threatened
with disposseson of these blessings they devote their
minds and muscles the building of advanced civil
zation which should secure to every American COM
petence an education and leisure in which to pursue
happiness The recourSes of the nation are sufhcent
to yield these advantages the wit of the people is equal
to the task of utilizing and equally distributing natures
bounty.
The ascertainment of rule that will secure justice
throughout industry is task of such lntrcacy ana
magnitude that it cannot be performed by lew men
in few days No one should expect more from the
present conference than step two toward the goal
If that can be accomplished the conference Will nave
been wonderfully successful If the meetings end with
out any definite progress ALL there would be ground
for encouragement for the conference has been hastily
called under evident handicaps and is not thoroughly
representative The aim great and the obstacles
are SO many that reasoning will not feel anything
worse than temporary disappointment if the conference
should adjourn without having found the road to universal
peace and justice in industry.
One of the benefits that will be derived from the con-
ference is the exposure of many industrial and economic
faacies The war has shaken many brains into an &C
yity that is mistaken for intellectually when 1T is only
; connection Some brains are merely muddled and agl-
taed more than usual and it would be bad mistake
to confuse their outgivings original depoch-makng
discoveries in economic law, The worst blunder when
too many osciating ineects have hailed as master
discovery the proposition that American industry an
autocracy; that while America is free politically, 1T is
shackled ndustrialy; and that until there is revolu
ton" which will bring Industrial democracy the millions
in America will be bound hand and foot to capitalism
industrial democracy" is fine phrase, exactly quail
flied to deude brains that honest but not too well
nourished with truth and education. But these brains
should ask themselves "Why stop with industrial democ-
racy? Why not have financial democracy and social de-
mocracy as we?" Their own answer to their own ques-
zion may help them nightly There is much virtue in
"why?" Any American entitled to ask the questions
ANY poor boy in America ask, "What is there in
aw or the social order that prevents from becoming
President or millionaire, anything else desire to
become?" If he finds discriminatory law, auto
he has right to complain, But he will not find any
discrimination He will find that he the possessor Of
exactly the same rights possessed by any other
American. Those rights were secured for him by the
blood and sacrifice of those who built free republic based
upon truth and justice.
In the interplay of energies in this free country prac
tees creep in which work injustice Selfshness drives
hard bargains Greed robs ignorance and craft sells its
services to greed The very freedom of Americans opens
way for cunning to overreach simplicity Various expe
dent are invented to destroy equality All of these evils
are departures from the rule that underies America
They be swept aside by Americans whenever they
wish to enforce equality and justice But they must
exercise Americana intelligence not the alien counterfeit
and they must join hands in their work, and not be sep
arated by accepting foreign frauds substitutes FOR
American liberty and equality Washington PdsSs
When rich man is not quite rich enough to afford
butler he can have his way of the time