There may be others who have a clearer perception than mine, and
who may be convinced that this way or that way lies regeneration. I do
not wish to discourage them; I wish them God-speed, but I cannot help
them nor become their disciple. Possibly I am doing nothing better than
devising excuses for lotus-eating, but here they are.
To take up something merely because I am idle is useless. The message
must come to me, and with such urgency that I cannot help delivering it.
Nor is it of any use to attempt to give my natural thoughts a force
which is not inherent in them.
The disease is often obvious, but the remedies are doubtful. The
accumulation of wealth in a few hands, generally by swindling, is
shocking, but if it were distributed to-morrow we should gain nothing.
The working man objects to the millionaire, but would gladly become a
millionaire himself, even if his million could be piled up in no other
way than by sweating thousands of his fellows. The usurpation of
government by the ignorant will bring disaster, but how in these days
could a wise man reign any longer than ignorance permitted him? The
everlasting veerings of the majority, without any reason meanwhile for
the change, show that, except on rare occasions of excitement, the
opinion of the voters is of no significance.
Pages:
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78