OCR Text |
Show A PESSIMIST. In his address to his graduating class thla year, Professor Schuman of Cornell University, included these words: You will go out from these halls at a time of profound unrest unrest political, social, and religious. re-ligious. It is a question whether the ancient landmarks land-marks will not be removed and the ancient moorings moor-ings loosened. Is society a community, a brotherhood, brother-hood, or merely a herd of animals struggling for life and supremacy? Is the Republic to remain a democratic organization under which men with equal rights govern themselves, or is it to become a tyrannical organization under which special in terests like capital, labor, or the military spirit are to control the destinies 'of men, "the heirs of all the ages, foremost in the files of time"? Is the religious conception of the world tenable in this emancipated twentieth century? These are vast and fundamental questions. I attempt no answer to them. Cornell is, we believe, in Ithaca, N. Y. Ithaca in Greece was If we remember correctly, tho home of the first famous Ulyswfa. On this return I from the Trojan war he found things in a very a much disturbed condition at home. The suitors I were annoying his wife until she was well-nigh daft alid gating up his substance; the servants were nearly all 'unfaithful; his estate was run down; his good name 'vas "being traduced; he found troubles enough to have discouraged almost any one, but he made no such addresl"a the above by Professor Schuman. He began by 'netting 'nett-ing an importunate beggar, then he locked the doors and killed the last one of the suitors, while his son caused the unfaithful servants to be hanged: "Their heads above suspended in a row, with quivering feet they beat the air below." Then the palace was cdlaned up, order was established and peace settled like a dove over he island. It would be good for Professor Schu-mart Schu-mart to re-read that legend of the first Ithaca and from it take on a little hope. The Professor is doing pretty well. He has a comfortable salary, no suitors are worrying his Penelope and eating eat-ing up his substance; he has never had to start out without education or money to try to make a living for his family; why should he load himself him-self up with borrowed troubles and then groan under the burden? Now, Professor Schuman is a profound scholar, but in the above he gives away the fact that if a man possesses some not very praiseworthy praise-worthy traits the finest kind of an education can not change them. We suspect that down deep the learned Professor possesses a boundless egotism and an all-absorbing vanity. The administration did not accept his proposed policy for the Philippines. It could not, because while conceived in benevolence, its acceptance would have worked inhuman cruelties. But he ignores all the facts and sits down in despair over the prospect of the dominance of a military spirit. Again he simulates sorrow over the exactions exac-tions of capital, forgetting that it was one of those money-gatherers who founded the Institu- tlon which supplies him an honored place and a handsome income. Of course there is plenty of unrest in the country. Where 80,000,000 of sharp men and women are struggling for preferment, there must be unrest, but how do things average up compared with the showing of fifty or one hundred years ago? Is not Cornell a better school than any of the old days? Are not the poor men and women around Ithica more comfortable than they were in the old days? Is there anything to prevent any man from doing any legitimate thing? Professor Schuman thinks the world Is treading tread-ing on his toes. Is it not possible that it is only gout from high-living that he feels? No wonder he does not attempt to shed and comfort over his own forebodings. He cannot. Governor Flower, after giving Tom Ochiltree a big dinner, accompanied accom-panied him to the head of the stairs and said: "Tom, it is just twelve steps to the curb. You will see itwo carriages there; take the first one; the other one is not there." it is a pat illustration illustra-tion which Professor Schuman should reflect over. He sees this mighty country sweeping on with a progress never before witnessed in this old world, and his dream that he would be singled out from all the millions for special distinction dis-tinction is passing away, hence he sees a world of troubles that never existed. |