Toledo union journal. [volume] (Toledo, Ohio) 1942-current, 1947-02-28
Whats

By
EdUdrd Duck

in the window of a sidewalk
beanery in Manhattan, New
York City's business district.
The site is appropriately
chosen. A stones throw from
the place lies an acre Of land,
now worth more than five
million dollars, and its owners
did not come into possession
of this land through either
wisdom or honesty. Not any
more than have a lot of others
we know today. Respectable
people, that is.
Which brings to mind the
statement Of our former IN
dustrial ethics professor at
DeSales College a few years
ago. We quote:
IF 959o of the richest peo-
pie in America were to enjoy
their Just reward at this very
moment, they would be either
in hell or in the penitentiary."
Amen. However, this cute
Joke on a shingle implies that
people are wealthy because
they are wise, and suggests
that wealth is everyone's su-
preme objective.
A screwball hermit recently
cashed in his chips and left
his fortune of twenty thou
sand bucks to another cher
nit" by the name of Garbo,
who didn't want his love and
doesn't need his money. He
was rich. And smart" "
Mozart wrote musical mas
terpieces which will delight
many generations yet to come,
but he died penniless and was
buried in potters' field with
his fellow buns. Obviously a
chump.
WHICH ONE?
Now we ask you, who is
richer, the man who raises a
family and lives happily
though not in splendor, or the
much-married eccentric. heir
to an asbestos fortune who
squanders millions he didn't
earn, trying to have a wonder
full time while his glands
played games with his brain?
But for the grace OF God 1t
might have been George
Schwartz's great-great-grand-
fathers uncle, and not Corne-
Illus Vanderbilt's or John
Jacob Astors, who scurried
down the Mayflower's gang
plank back in the golden days
of 1924. II was first come,
first served, and the blue
bloods knew what they were
doing when they secured a
priority in passage to the land
of milk and honey. (The guy
who loaded up the Iriquois
on whoopee juice before in
dulging In a bit of collective
bargaining british style) had
the natural and legal right to
reap the benefits of same. The
fruits OF negotiations were
plentiful, and Manhattan was
purchased for a comical
tWenty-four simoleons.
Those commonly referred to
as our "forefathers," although
they are hardly related to any
OF us, went on from Manhat-
tan and famed out like the
Marines in an island invasion.
They and their offspring ex-
ercised the might of their for
tunes to rule the lives of
everyone encompassed by
their huge financial empire,
Now they want to reduce us
to the same bargaining status
the Indian negotiating COM
mittee held. What's more,
two thirds of the people in
Washington are willing TO do
their bidding.
WHO WORKS?
IF we're so damned smart,
why aren't we rich?' II we
were all rich like they are,
we, too, would have four
automobiles and five wives.
But who would we get to
make the automobiles and
wait on our wives in the
beauty parlors? And where
would we find the doctors to
perform the operations so
many of the respectable folks
advertise as appendicitis"
cases.
No, wisdom does not neces-
Sarily bring about riches. II
didn't take wisdom to pass the
new unemployment compen-
sation laws requiring you to
wait seven weeks for your
first check, but such a regu-
lation will make some people
richer, including possibly a
few of those responsible for
its passage.
II your ancestors had got
ten here the fustest," or If
either you or they had figured
out way to use somebody or
ch eat the m sufficiently,
chances are you'd be rich
too.