Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1920-12-22
(By A Cornleld Philosopher)

. u0u u0 OV0ILuIucu Vic CdOACo |
IF the ''money-changers in the |
Temple and called them a eden
Of thieves" money chang
ers" are about the same now
as they were then with some
slight variation in methods but
most of them manage to get
their names on the Church
rolls. don't want to make this
statement too sweeping. I will
admit there are many honor
able exceptions-men who
temper their business with both |
justice and mercy-but this
class is in a hopeless minority.
Cupidity has been at the bot
tom of all or nearly all of the
sorrow, sin and suffering of
the world in one form or an
other. How many of the great
wars that have convulsed the
world originated from any 9TH
er source? England's desire
to tax America started our Re-
volutionary War. The fear
that they might lose their pro-
perty invested in slaves was
the prime cause of the Slave
holders Rebellion in 1861. The
idea was held out to the mer-
chant princes of Germany by
the Kaiser and the War Lords
that the war would end in
greatly advancing German
world trade and consequently
increasing their riches.
Spectators in every coun-
try are glad to see different
nations go at each others
threats, and encourage war in
order that they may reap gol-
den harvests. Just think of
the seventeen thousand new
millionaires created in Ameri-
ca by our participation in the
recent war against Germany !!
And it appears that all of them
are going to escape punish
ment for their protiteering.
The Infamous liquor traffic
which next to war has caused
the greatest amount of sorrow
and stuff ering in the world, was
bolstered up and sustained by
just one thing and that is the
big profits in the business. No.
body ever sold whisky because
he had a desire to ruin his fell
bowman, he merely had an eye
to the fact that there was easy
money in the trade. Happily
for this nation this great curse
is fast being removed and if
the incoming administration
| does it's full duty, the whisky
traffic is doomed to extinction.
| And for which we should all
be profoundly thankful.
Human greed has brot about
a condition in this country that
ought to alarm every lover of
his race. A small fraction of
the people, less than 2 per cent,
mainly by methods squarely
condemned by the Bible, have
absorbed two-thirds of the
wealth of the country.
Some of this work has been
done in violation of the laws
Of the land and much of it by
the aid of the law that faithless
or corrupted legislators enact
ed. For instance, the Cumm-
ins-Esch railroad bill by increa-
sing freight rates took from
the hard earned income of the
farmers of Minnesota about 80
cents on every bushel of wheat
or corn they produced and
transferred this money to the
already overlooking cofferes
of the millionaire railway mag
mates.
And when one grand noble
minister of the Gospel, Rev. O,
J. Kvale of Benson protested a.
gainst this monstrous injustice
to the great sorrow and as
tonishment of the common
church laity, nearly all of his
brother preachers joined for.
ces with the enemy who liter
ally robbed both the widows
and the orphans along with the
rest of us. When the blind lead
the blind they fall into the dit.
CHI together. When the blind
attempt to lead in church work
Satan may we'll stand on an ad
joining hill top and laugh al
their puny and misdirected eff
forts to thwart his designs anc
purposes.
The failure of the Inter
Church World Movement is a
striking proof Of the utter de.
pravity of those dominated by
merciless greed. Big business
men nearly all church mem.
bers had agreed to finance the
undertaking to the extent Of
hundreds of millions of dollars
It was intended to make a sur
vey Of the living conditions Of
:! working people in all parts 0!
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49,. "a - ..-1