Evening star., 1923-10-28
Conflicts of Peace Are Cited
As Worse Than Those of War

other fellow, and led to the careful
concealment of each players hand.
I may be using very imperfect IL
lustration to express what I have in
mind. because my knowledge Of poker
Is limited. but 1 am told the biggest
buffer is the best player. At any
rate. the game>has this to recommend
1.-THE players who are bluffed out
OF their money take their losses like
sportsmen and cherish no enmity nor
Ill will toward the one who out
bluffed them. Unfortunately. how
ever, the worlds affairs cannot be
conducted by poker rules. In order
to lose money at poker man must
game of life a man may lose not only
the money he has but the money he
must earn in the future: loser mort
cages his property ana his services
for the days to come.
Too many contracts of the world
are being made and too much of its
work Is being done upon a. bluff.
Calmly and deliberately men look
over the cards they have in their
hands in the hope that they can reach
the conclusion that they can make
the other fellow throw up his hand
and permit them to rake in the profits.
They conceal from the other fellow
all they know. They are true dis
ciples of Talleyrand. They believe
that language was invented for the
would resent even the suggestion that
they had no right to conceal facts.
They contend that business is war.
In which all things are lawful. They
may not lie: mayhap they tell the
us,h IN nos soeS tene the whOis
truth. In all other relations except
the particular one in which they are
playing the game they would tell the
truth. the whole truth and nothing
on their honor and posses keen ideas
Of justice.
Where have we gotten this idea
that business is a game and not
hatred, malice, Ill vAll. In all the
relations of life a state OF society
which Is far worse than that of the
master and servant is developing.
Much as that old relationship of
master and servant was to be deplor-
ed, there were some good things about
1t, such as friendship and good will
and mutual helpfuiness: yet II was
not, of course. what 1t ought to have
been. When God made the kingdom
He created a democracy, albeit one
man had to rule for the good OF So
ciety and another had to serve. Not
withstanding our boasted democracy.
our civilization is far from perfect.
Strife Is observable everywhere. Busi-
ness seems to be one form of intel
lectual warfare in which hundreds
and thousands are being manned in
body or mind. Bitterness and prejudice
and hatred are growing, / sometimes
fear, rather than diminishing.
Personally. / trace this never-end-
ing warfare to the tendency to con-
slider business a game. / do not
wonder, in the light of the past. that
men are unwilling to submit their
differences to presumably disfnter
ested judges. but 1 feel there are yet
enough honest men who would hon.
estly say, in view Of all the facts,
what ought to be done-men who do
not sit in any Of the games. / am
still hopeful that they will bring
about an armistice. If not a treaty Of
peace. l repeat that business men are
not dishonest They are merely
obsessed with the idea that business
is game in which the ethics of
gambling. rather than the moral code.
are to be employed. Advisory arbi-
tration will some day terminate this
present warfare, which Is condemning
many persons to lifelong suffering.
Copyright, 1928, by Twenty-fr Century
Press.)