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Show '' PEOPLE'S FORUM 'f : Prosperity, or adversity ? Which are we now having as a nation? We are being told by many public men that we are now very prosperous. prosper-ous. Is it true, or false? To enjoy prosperity means to advance, or gain, in anything good or desirable. Are we advancing or gaining when our national debt is $180 per capita, besides be-sides state, city, county and private debts ? Are we prosperous when we are told that four million men are out of employment in the U. S., with the possibility of six million women and children to care for? If we are so prosperous, why are 250 cities raising through community Chests something like $8,000,000 with which to help the poor? To our way of thinking, real prosperity pros-perity means to be clear of debts. (Unless by being in debt, that for which we are in debt is increasing in value.) It means steady employment employ-ment at good wages, which is adding, to our increase. Real prosperity means contentment to the individual. A contented man is, generally speak ing, a safe man, but it is the man who is not satisfied with his condition condi-tion who may become an unsafe man as a citizen. William Gladstone, the great En-glish En-glish statesman said, "It is the duty of the government to make it easy for every man to do right and hard to do wrong." And in order to do this, every ablebodied man must be employed, and our government should see that every man is employed not at starvation wages, but at wages which will enable him to .live decently decent-ly and to care for his family. Then we may say we are prosperous as a j nation. Z. Y. K. |