The Washington times., 1921-01-04
Today
Coal Oil Johnny
And John D. r.
Two Kinds Of Rich
Men; Understand Them!
ARTHUR BRISB.
Copyright. lszi)

Today Coal OIL Johnny 10 oeaa'
His life teaches the foolishness OF
disliking or antagonizing wealth
for its own sake. Coal Oil Johnny
(real name John W. Steele) was
intended for q hard working, use
ful farmer.
Providence located him on a
small farm. just where he De
longed." but they struck oil on the
farm where he lived with his
mother. She put the money away
carefully until one day, when the
fire was low, she threw a little oil
on II. That ended her, and Johnny
got the fortune.
He had five hundred thousand
dollars in gold and greenbacks
with a thousand dollars a day com
ing in. So he did many things, He
took q bath in champagne, hired
a big hotel, invited everybody to
Join in free, ran his own minstrel
show without charging admission,
bought another hotel because he
wanted the satisfaction Of dis
charging a clerk that had failed
to appreciate his importance.
He has Just died in poverty,
working for a railroad and living
with his wife in one end of little
railroad station in Nebraska. A
thousand dollars day, and Coal
Oil Johnny spent it all wastefully.
That Is really dangerous" wealth;
it ruins the owner and ruins
others.
The other kind of oil man, John
D. Rockefeller, has 100000 day,
and a great deal more. The money
is not wasted, not spent in osten-
tation. Hundreds of millions OF
it have gone to education and
philanthropy, scientific investiga-
ton that benefits every human
being on earth.
1t would be better, of course, if
the people could own, develop, and
use wisely the nations natural
wealth. But do not overlook the
difference between oil wealth as
represented by Coal Oil johnny
a farce. a calamity, and a waste
and oil wealth as represented
by John D. Rockefeller, who en-
ployed the ablest engineers to
produce his wealth, and then en-
ployed the ablest scientists and
educators to help him spend it.
It isn't what a man has, it is
what he does with what he has,
what he wastes. his corrupting in
fluence on legislation, the discon-
tent he creates in others by osten-
tation, his encouragement Of vice
and dishonesty, via the race tracks
and other things,~t pat sometimes
make excessive wealth criminally
harmful.
George p. HampSor, managing
director of the Farmers National
Council, gives you figures about
wealth that are supposed to make
you shiver. He says: "The thirty
three richest Americans in 1918
owned nearly five thousand million
dollars" He is mistaken. The
thirty-three richest Americans
owned a great deal more than that,
Dut they do not say much about
it.
Two per cent Of the entire ma
llonal wealth, says Mr.. Hampton,
is owned by thirty-three richest
Americans. That also is inaccu-
rate, for ninety-nine per cent OF
the national wealth is human labor,
and intelligence is owned by in
dividuals, at least technically, all
Tree.
The thing to worry about is not
the amount that any individual
Owns, but how he got it and what
lie does with it. Leaving out
Gamblers, profiteers, and other
thieves, great fortunes are usually
built up by hard effort, self-control,
efficiency, and especially by i'm
proved methods Of organization
and industrial production.
Improved industry. greater pro-
duction, better organization are OF
the utmost Importance and greatest
value to this nation. The number
of millions that an individual may
acquire by real work in the course
of his organizing and producing is
Of little Importance, provided the
money be not used i'll.
Coal Oil Johnny, taking his bath
in champagne bubbles, and John
d. Rockefeller, slipping his milk
and seltzer, and driving his little
white ball along the golf course,
present two extremes Of wealth.
Coal Oil Johnny proves natures
wisdom, her marvellous ability for
eliminating the unfit.
John ID. Rockefeller also illus
trates natures wisdom in utilizing
the extraordinary ability of in
dividuals to benefit the human
race.
Caesar thought he was conquer
ing for himself; he was really
carrying civilization into Gaul.
Christopher Columbus was try
ing to benefit himself by finding
short cut to India when he found
a new world for all Of us.
Louis XIV, poor fool with curly
wig and red heels, called himself
the Sun King and imagined that
he was building magnificent pal