The Wheeling intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1903-1961, 1919-07-02


The time was last Week. IN" S''"'
oil town Of West Virginia. An ON -.
nor, and his assistant were Seatcu NY,
tho stems of the little hotrl. sh"N"h CIV"
I,.cussinc the state OF thr c"u"N'!'
was son apparent that IN" asH'S'a''' nv
hccn in France and had only r''""l''
turned. He seemed quite reaa! I" ~"
swer tho many questions an"ut h'S
ncrience at tho front. but ne loon ~ W
',,c nr tho first lull in the conversation
GOV, s,pnifirantly. Never again
r,r mo. Thu next tim" III" plutocrh's
,.,n null ,hcir own chcstnuts out OF inc
eirc,. Further questioning derciop'
,ho fac, that tho head man was radl"aI
sn,lialist. and soapbox orator. and only
accidentally An oil expert. the older
man had spent his evenings Tor Inr"e
months fillnG IN" mind NJ tho YOUNG
soldier with his pct theories Slowly ne
had killed patriotism IN that BOY soul
ono Of tho lattcrS friends sald mat
since his return from France. ana n"-
coming an assist ant 10 tho w"lI-dlgs"r'
he had become n changed man. WASH.
Ingtun Thought that tn" whit" Flower "'
notrIotism was the sweetest blossom IN
ihc garden Of tho soul. hut some inilu-
cnro Ind descended like black frost up
on this flower. and slain it f"rcyer
Whom asked why nc would never fight
n second tmc for tho country the young
soldier made in substance this answer
The plutoCrats own this c"untrE-'"Ny
should defend them" Take my ~orK~
my boss. the head man. directs tho drill
he receives n dollar and hair an hour'
or twelve dollars a day. | am an expert
mschinist. and my task ,s to temper and
"a "A -
dulIed nv boring IN the rock. I receive
one dollar an hour. or eight dollars
dav. After while We will strik" oil.
BUT who will own that oil Tho capital
,s, Who bought this land will have one
,hird 81 tho wealth. and another pluto
IRA, who bought this wcll-borinS outflt
Will have another third Of tho wealth
MY boss and myself do not even receive
tho remaining third. Why should tho
stock iohbcr have nn"-third Of tho wealth
produced by labor. and the gcoiogIst an
other third" Tho next war VIII be
against the plutocrats. Then | Will have
not onC-thIrd. bat all The wealth | ina.
No moro fighting IN France for me-
Now plainly that older man committed
a crime upon that youth. when h" de-
siroyed his natriol,Sm by appealing to
his greed and his selfIsSn"ss. Tho older
man deceived that soldier boy. The &C.
nlogist who. after years know where 10
bore was not orerpaid: for twenty years
NJ had studied rock. strata, coal d"pos-
it's and oil fields. and il that young SOL
der had earned eight dollars n day. after
only three months experience experience
tho gcologst and his friends. with years
IF work behind them. should have had a
hundred dollars a day: while the capital
ist who bought tho engine. steel drills
and machinery. was n man who had made
and lost s"vCral fortunes before he learn
al how Tho ono man who was bcinE
"yt7paid was this young soldier. who
WINS not IIcdufinG anything like what nc
was receiving Other men had lahored
h" entered into the fruits Of their labors
His ignorance made the soldier good soil
for socialistic propaganda. After three
months hir mind was like an empty bot
tie. holding a stopper named Ignorance
and the ocean itself cannot fill an air
tight bottle. This older man grievously
wronged this young soldier. One OF the
important problems Of our day. there
fore. Is this-givcn a republic that has
schools, churches and hmcs that in the