Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1919-08-29

only railroads but legislatures, FOL
the Fruit Exchange is in comfort
able possession OF the situation anC
in position to obtain substantially
any concession the farmers may die
tate Evidently if they undertake
it, the farmers can do anything that
anybody else can do and by the same
methods.
Here is too dangerous a power to
rest in the hands of any one class on
interest. Lincoln said that no man
is good enough to govern another
without that others consent, and we
may say that no class, even the farm
er. is good enough or broadminded
enough or intelligent enough to be
trusted VITA absolute poweT--cer-
tainly not in a democracy. The pow
er to hold up the public is used to
obtain self-defined rights, even ad-
yantages, quite regardless of natural
obligations or even of duties. We
have fought the most awful and the
most expensive war in history to de-
! stroy autocratic power over man
kind and that kind of power must
not be invoked in the name of agri-
! culture even to obtain the most OBJ
vious rights. There must be and
there is a better way.
1t makes very little difference
where that autocratic power resides,
whether in kingly lines or in the
| mob; it is equally odious and equal
ly dangerous to further civilization.
Il makes very little difference wheth-
err we are to war against autocritic,
irresponsible, and selfish power be-
tween different nations or between
different interests within a nation.
President Wilson has said that we 60
TO war to make the world safe for
democracy. Everybody says st viii
be a different world after the war.
Some say it will be working man
world | say it must be everybody's
world or our troubles have but we'll
begun and if we are to eliminate
civil war and substitute conference
instead of balance of power, so we
must also eliminate civil war and
substitute conference between inter
ests, We must not only make the
world safe for democracy, but we
must, in the words of thoughtful
English writer, make democracy
safe for the world. ="
The test of progress must be not
what is possible but what is right and
generally profitable. Labor, for ex-
ample, forged a weapon whereby it
liberated itself from slavery in the
old days when might was right.
Every right-thinking man is glad the
thing was done, whatever the
method. But if now, having realized
| the power of the class and the DO
tcncy Of its weapon, labor puts poi
son ON its dart, it will wreck the
world and in doing so defeat its own
purpose. Specifically, if the object
OF organized labor is row to be, not
! service, but more money and less
work, then is civilization on the de-
cline, and further progress. impos-
sible. There is little here for agri-
culture to initiate; much for it to
| abhor
The only thing on earth that Gre
| ates value is labor, and however
much money we get an hour or a
year the progress of civilization is
measured by the creative energy ac-
tually expended. not by the income
eXtorted. To be cruelty concrete
| about the matter: If the carpenter
| fails to render the best service Of
| which he is capable, both quantita-
lively and qualitatiyely, his chances
o himself living in good house are
| by that much reduced. If the plumb
er loafs on the job, he can not him
self have a bathroom whatever his
wage, for it is not money nut labor
that builds houses and installs bath
rooms. The same principle holds for
farming. Weapons of violence and
destruction and irresponsible force
must go with the Hun or the condi-
tons within the nation will become
as bad as those were between ma
tions and the fruits of victory will
turn to ashes within our grasp.
Across the water is a body of men
bent upon setting the world in order,
not by violence, not by balance OF
power, not by debating terms of adj
vantage, but by sober considerations
ard impartial Weighing of the rights
and the natural obligations of diff.
!