C. E. DUTTON" — ECONOMICS OE CONCENTRATED CAPITAL. 
17 
been many financial transactions which have shocked the moral sense of 
the community, not only by their intrinsic character, but by their 
magnitude and far-reaching consequences. These transactions differ 
indeed in their degrees of immorality. Some few have all the turpitude 
and ruthlessness of downright robbery. A greater proportion of them are 
a series of actions which, taken in other relations, might escape censure, 
but which, in their actual relations, are tantamount to breach of trust. 
Their object and real result has been the acquirement of large amounts 
of illicit gain, for which no equivalent has been given, and this result has 
too often been accomplished with impunity. 
And now look at the social and economic consequences. The success 
of these transactions has stimulated to the uttermost men of easy con- 
sciences and lax principles to follow the examples thus set. This, indeed, 
is nothing new in land, for successful iniquity unchecked and unpun- 
ished has always found a crowd of imitators. But in modern instances 
the vastness of the prizes or booty which have been won has greatly in- 
creased the inducements. It has familiarized wrong to such a degree 
that thousands are ready first to endure and then to embrace it. It has 
fostered the idea that great fortunes are to be won by a few bold strokes 
and that giving a full equivalent for them is in no wise an essential part 
of the process. It has led to the promotion of great capitalized undertak- 
ings under color of vast benefits to the community and corresponding 
profits to investors, but really for the purpose of securing large and im- 
mediate but illegitimate profits to the promoters themselves. It has sunk 
large amounts of the capital of the country in unproductive enterprises 
or those which were insufficiently productive to justify their undertak- 
ing. And in general its effects have been demoralizing and wasteful. 
MORALS HAVE IMPROVED. 
But though the economist is grave and anxious over these matters, is 
there any reason why he should be despondent and pessimistic over them? 
Hone whatever. He has delved much in the history of human manners 
and customs, into industrial and commercial history and into their econ- 
omic and social development throughout the ages, and he finds in these 
things nothing that is new so far as their essential nature is concerned. 
Human society has always abounded in men of low morals in every walk 
of life. Such men are quick to devise new tricks for acquiring illicit 
gain. Relatively to the times and opportunities, fraud, injustice, over- 
reaching, malversation, breach of trust were much more common in the 
past than now. This may not seem so to those who have not fully inves- 
tigated, but its truth is beyond all question. Business morals have al- 
ready improved and in the lapse of generations have made considerable 
