stacle is often taken for the cause. Monopolies,
trusts, and other forms of concentrated wealth are regarded by some as
the blessings of a prosperous nation. But examined in the light of
history we find that concentrated wealth has always been a means of
obstructing if not of destroying a nation. Our nation is not an
exception. We cannot say that the destructive power of concentrated
wealth is not now felt. All that is necessary is to observe the
conditions about us. Whenever the people of a nation become subservient
and dependent, and are oppressed and abused because they are so,
whenever there is little general prosperity but a great deal of
prosperity for a few, we naturally come to the conclusion that the cause
of the misery and lack of general prosperity is the great concentration
of wealth in the hands of the few. It is this conclusion, arrived at by
what are termed the masses, that has caused the many conflicts of recent
years between labor and capital. And such conflicts are natural. Man
always revolts when he suspects his misery is the consequence of a
social order capable of reformation. Force, of late years, has often
been called upon to subdue the spirit of resentment which agitates the
breasts of the poorer classes. The militia of the various States and
even government troops have been called upon in order to preserve
property and also maintain the supremacy of concentrated wealth.

How long this can go on before a change comes we do not know. It cannot
be maintained long. Unless some law is enacted that will stop the
encroaching power of wealth, things will go on until the inequality
becomes so glaring, so oppressive, that the pent-up social waters,
gathering force, will break through the wall of concentrated wealth and
allow society once more to regain its natural level. Every statesman,
every thinker, should know that we cannot expect a healthy growth with
class arrayed against class. Every strike, every riot, is a
retrogressive step in our nation's history. If our American civilization
is to endure and progress we must bring about a change in the
distribution of wealth. If conditions are such as to be beneficial to a
small number and injurious to society in general, those conditions
should be changed. Unless limited, the alarming development and
aggressiveness of great capitalists and powerful corporations will
eventually lead to the absolute degradation of the toiling masses.
Unless checked, it will co