Truth MONUMENTS OF MAMMON.

NZ Truth, Issue 253, 30 April 1910, Page 4

Truth

MONUMENTS OF MAMMON.

Published EvEEfy Satuihdat MobnrKia A* Lukb's Lane (off Mannkbs•STßEßT), WEIjIiIHQTON, N.Z.

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SATURDAY, APRIL 30, 1910.

The Curse of Carnegie's Coin.

In such a country as New Zealand professes to be, and has the reputation of being, viz., a country populated by levelheaded and independent men and women, it does seem strange that there should foe such a spirit of crawl and cringe td AndreW Carnegie, a Scot by birth and an American by naturalisation, for money with which to build and adorn so-called Carnegie Institutes. "Truth" had been lulled into the belief tha* New Zealanders had awakened to the fact that it had overdone the crawl and cringe act, and had - determined to build and adorn its own municipal libraries without the sweat-stained dollars of a cruel, cold, and callous Caledonian, whose . remorse m his old age is the more accentuated by tone fact that his daughter, his own flesh and blood, is an incurable invalid. Australia, to that country's credit, has ceased its Carnegie whine, due principally to the fact that the radical press has enlightened the public on the methods by which, m by-gone days, Andrew Carnegie amassed his fortune. That fortune, m his semi-senile days, he is endeavoring to dissipate, or, as it has been well and J blasphemously asserted, he is "trying to 'square God." He is dealing, out his stacked-up millions by . doling it out m small praccls to auy local body m the English-speaking world which can sufficiently abase itself m the dust and call the Pittsburg blood-sucker "good Mr Carnegie." New Zealand, however, with all , its fine susceptibilities, is thicker-skinned. It doesn't mind grovelling before Moloch. It continues to grovel, and the latest local body that proposes to doff its cap and go down oh its belly is at Apiti. The cadge for cash has gone. It is on its way to Skibo Castle, some ancestral h,hall m Scotland, bought by Carnegie j^ss^M'£crican dollars that are bright i ' v^n blood. No doubt the Apiti A be successful. It is bound to if the abasement is complete. -:■:. » • • ;'*V*(/\Ci. is dotted all over with ■ 1T ■.^..^i-^^es— libraries built with ' '\ iron-founders and miners (1 _ r »"' Perm., made for Andrew •■,£. . --/Tins is the same Andrew Car.^fi^jie^rtft), m the early stage of Ameri- • can trades' unionism, dealt a deliberate blow at the industrial rights of American workmen, by prevailing on the authorities to call out its hireling soldiers to shoot like dogs human beings who were guilty of striking, and demanding less hours of toil, more of God's pure atmosphere, and a more equitable share of the enormous profits

accruing to Carnegie from his mines and steel works. Carnegie did more than prevail upon the Pennyslvania Governor to let loose the, hired assassins of the Government of, the U.S.A. At his own expense, Carnegie engaged the infamous Phikerton gang of private thugs to finish what U.S.A. troops failed to complete. The troops and the Pinlccrton gang mowed the workers down like skittles. Homes were rendered desolate and -wives and orphans were robbed of their breadwinners. It was a splenaid victory for Capitalism. That splendid victory which was attained by the sacrifice .of much human life attd ihfe Spilling of human blood, has almost been forgotten, but m many minds the black history of Pittsburg is revived when the news is given publicity that some country council proposes to bend on its knees and ask the moral murderer of industrial slaves to grant them so many thousand pounds to build a library which will>perpetuate the name of one of these inhuman industrial tyrants. • All over New Zealand these Carnegie institutes are m existence, each forming a standing and . disgraceful monurcent of New Zealand's crawling and cadging propensities. . These cadges .cancot be justified ; nor has any attempt been made to justify them. Even a pusillanimous daily press recently arose m its wrath to denounce the proposed beneficent acts of blood-sucking millionaires of the John D. Rockefeller type. It' is rather late m the day for newspapers, which by their silence m the past have countenanced these crawls ' to Oat..negie, to come out with fierce denunciations of millionaires, whose lives were spent m. crushing the worker and accumulating fortunes, and who, m the evenings of their lives, wishing to make their peace with the Almighty, endeavor io appease His coming wratti with liberal distribution of their ill-gained "wealth. •■• • - Carnegie, with all - his wealth, is an unhappy man. He has not been blessed with a* son to whom to bequeath his name aud his fortune. He has been giv- A en a daughter, an incurable cripple. Shemust continually remind her fatter of, his halycon days, when he ' was instrumental m having his employes shot because they dared to assert their rights as freemen. Money cannot* cure bis daughter nor can his liberal donations to charity and his library munificence. Let us read this rich old man's opinion of- the poor worker :— The people are getting tired of existing conditions, and they want a change. I don't blame them. They are gewng tired of the rich — and i don't wonder. I am a rich man myself, but I would gladly welcome a workable scheme by which there would Ire more even distribution of wealth. I admit that when I Was m business I was as keen after the dollars as any man alive, but 1 have given up the acquisition of wealth now, and all I desire is to spend what 1 have as wisely as I can for the benefit of my fellow. men. To die rich is a disgrace if a man does not ' while he lives try to spend his riches for the • good of his fellows. I have made a lot of money, and now 1 am spending it. It was a pleasure to make it. and it is a pleasure to spend it' 1 and leave the World perhaps a little better than 1 found it. What the next world holds for me I know not. I was not consulted about coming into this world, and 1 will not be consulted about going out of it ; but 1 am ready to do niy best m the next, world if called upon, as I have endeavored to do • my best here. While we arc here let's do what we can to better: things. I am trying to do my share— l have always done my best according to what . gifts I had, and 1 am not afraid of any punishment m the next world. We arc marching on— progress is the .watchword — and nobody can deny that the world ' is getting better. These sentiments sound noble coming from such a wealthy man as Carnegie, who proposes to return his money to the people m the shape of libraries and other grants. -But can the power of gold obliterate the stains of blood?. 'Can goM return the dead; to life? Can l/s gold kill the bitter memory that exists m the minds of many a young American work-' er of to-day whose, father was shot by Carnegie's hired assassins. Money cannot, and will not, blot out the fact that m the cemeteries of Pittsburg y a few years back were graves of young men. JNo one was old m Pittsburg 20 or 30 years ago, the rules of Carnegie's steel works prevented it. "Truth" knows that this is an old, worn story, but it also knowls that Carnegie is endeavoring to make his pea"cc with God. He is trying to bribe <rod, and if there is justice m the next World, may Carnegie receive that mercy which he never knew. «. • :■ '