Governmental robberv has reduced itself to
a science when it compels the borrowing class
to furnish to the lending class the funds which
the lender puts out at usury.
In clerical circles there has been an un
earthly silence concerning that catastrophe in
Switzerland where a church fell in on the wor
shippers and killed or wounded the whole con
gregation.
Had Monte Carlo collapsed and slaughtered
the gamblers; had some great drinking estab
lishment, or some lurid section of the Tender
loin, been earthquaked; or had some poor mad
man been struck dead while blaspheming, and
shaking his fist at the heavens—oh what a
downpour of puipit eloquence we would have
had from clericals of a certain cheap sort!
Christ himself rebuked clericals of this kind
when he referred to those upon/whom the
tower of Siloam fell.
Hereafter, when a shallow clergyman tries to
see “the hand of Providence” in some natural
event or everyday accident, we trust that he
will be restored to sanity and charity by re
calling the Switzerland church which col
lapsed while divine service was in progress.
The Steel Trust cleared $26,000,000 during
the last three months of 1908.
They are growling because it wasn’t more.
How many merchants made any profits last
year? How many farmers? How many pub
lishers ?
Not many. Those who cleared money on
last year’s business were, as a rule, those who
enjoyed Special Privileges. The Trust raked
in profits,—others did not.
Less than a thousand men now own three
fourths of the entire wealth of the Union. No
wonder that millions of our people are perish
ing in hopeless poverty. The big fish are
clearing the pond of the little ones.
