Evening Republican, Volume 15, Number 214, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 11 September 1911 — Money [ARTICLE]

Money

By Dr. Frank Grane

Siaaathe dawn of preaching we preachers have been threatening rich men with our right fist—and extending to than our left palm. It la hardly to he wondered at that we find difficulty in being taken seriously. And our advice has been so confusing that we have not had much effect. For now we exhort the youth to all the virtues, giving as an inducement the assurance that thus they will be enabled to get on; and now again we turn to those that have gotten on and warn them of the danger of riches. It might as well be asked, if riches be dangerous, why acquire them; and if virtues lead to riches, are they really worth cultivating? It may be well, therefore, to set down a few common sense facts In re riches and the relation of the same to the moral values. In the first place, money Is simply the token or sign of our common human wants. It means power,, power ofer others, power to make our personality felt. No wonder we want It* Again it means liberty. Poverty fas a curse- It ties the hands. It bind* the'mind. It narrows the soul. One who has to sweat ten hours a day for bread has no time nor strength left to develop the higher part of himself. Money means also a full life. We can gratify our -cravings, whether they be for beer or art, for Paris gowns or Wagner music. With money we have a chance to grow; without it we are stunted.. Money, therefore, is simply concentrated—we might say canned —human value. It naturally follows that It is good) or bad, never of itself, but only as giving opportunity to its possessor. Here, then, we have the moral gist of the whole matter: money Is simply—opportunity. It unlocks the door and bids the cramped and chafing passion go and' do Its will. It liberates desire. Hence It simply emphasises a man. If be is gbod he can now be better, having more scope; if bad he can, and probably will, be worse. If Idle and useless, he becomes a living fountain of Idleness and uselessness, poisoning others. So, money is like any other gift; a* beauty, which adds power to the person; or genius, which multiplies the efficiency of the mind and hand; or position, for kinship magnifies a common man to heroic proportions, In his Influence on other men. Now, the sole relation of morals to power of any kind is this: that ths moral sense adds to power—responsibility. The root of any genuine moral feeling is altruism. Given any desire, it becomes moral as it takes a direction toward the welfare of other people; It Is Immoral exactly in proportion aa It disregards others and looks only to self. Wicked people, therefore, are those who Mye, think, and do for self alone; and that whether poor or rich. Whoever says, “I would like to be rich, for I could do so much good wjth my money,” should examine himself ask what good he Is doing with the little he has. It's all a matter of relation. If one Is not helpful and liberal on S4O a month, he would not be so on $4,000 s month. In tike ultimate realm of morals there are no commandments; there la only one test —do I live for myself or for others; am I altruistic or egocentric. The, dawdling smart set, flitting; from bridge to matinee, from theater to bedizened restaurant, from the clnb to the horse race, are wicked; but no wickeder than the better poor whp want to lead such a life, and who curse their lot because their selfishness is bound and chained. To the real man, therefore, riches means nothing at All, as to his character; It simply means ah opening to give vent to his character. And a cleareyed soul, that sees and realizes what responsibility means," is never eager for power and opportunity, It is easier to be good in moderate means than In riches for the principal reason that It Is easier to bear a small than, a great load of responsibility. "It la hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven,” Jest because a rich man to be moral most be great And. unfortunately, great souls are scarce among great fortunes. The greatness of Jesus was not in his wisdom, magnetism, nor perception, but In the fact tbat*he was. utterly altruistic; that Is, hs used all his powers not to advance himself but to hrip others. His tormentors, unwittingly told the troth, and stated unknowingly his very secret, when, as he hung on the cross, they wagged their; heads at him and cried: “He saved others; himself hs cannot save!” ;j X • ,es - 'ii ■— ■■■ "■■■ ' ‘ 'V. I£. . f Working for Eternity. Never Blind where your work Is. Never mind whether ft be visible or not Never mind whether your name Is associated with it. You may never see the issues of your tolls. You are working tor eternity. If you cannot see reams hers hi the hot working day, the cool evening hours are drawing near, when you may rest from your labors, and then they mmy follow you. 8o do your duty, and trust God to gtva the seed yon sow, **« body as it hath pleased h!m.”-ftr.. Ale*, slider Msdaren