238 Our Poorer Brother 



ways be so bettered. I would no more make a fetich 

 of unrestricted individualism than I would admit 

 the power of the State off-hand and radically to re- 

 construct society. It may become necessary to inter- 

 fere even more than we have done with the right of 

 private contract, and to shackle cunning as we have 

 shackled force. All I insist upon is that we must 

 be sure of our ground before trying to get any legis- 

 lation at all, and that we must not expect too much 

 from this legislation, nor refuse to better ourselves 

 a little because we can not accomplish everything 

 at a jump. Above all, it is criminal to excite anger 

 and discontent without proposing a remedy, or only 

 proposing a false remedy. The worst foe of the 

 poor man is the labor leader, whether philanthropist 

 or politician, who tries to teach him that he is a vic- 

 tim of conspiracy and injustice, when in reality he is 

 merely working out his fate with blood and sweat 

 as the immense majority of men who are worthy 

 of the name always have done and always will have 

 to do. 



The difference between what can and what can 

 not be done by law is well exemplified by our expe- 

 rience with the negro problem, an experience of 

 which Mr. Watson must have ample practical knowl- 

 edge. The negroes were formerly held in slavery. 

 This was a wrong which legislation could remedy, 

 and which could not be remedied except by legisla- 

 tion. Accordingly they were set free by law. This 

 having been done, many of their friends believed 

 that in some way, by additional legislation, we could 



