" 6 'Cbe Conservative *
ours matured , at last , and they were
perfect , popping open , like little sacks
of pure white flour , when roasted , and
very delicious and satisfying to the
palate.
Thus potato culture became a special
ty , or fad , as they say now , at Arbor
Lodge. Consequently
A Fad.
quently , in 1862 ,
passing along a street in Chicago
when I espied two barrels of very hand
some tubers , I purchased them and sent
them homo for planting. Thfy grew
apace ; the yield was tremendous. They
were of a toothsome quality. They
kept well. Their fame , with my name
appended ( they were called the Morton )
reached even to Beatrice , and my phil
osophic friend , J. B. Weston , drove
down and purchased a load from me for
seed. Thus this root crop became a
staple product at Arbor Lodge , and
finally during the spring of. 18G6 , when
I had in store a large quantity and heard
that potatoes were Belling in Denver at
from 20 to 80 cents a pound , I was
tempted by the sordid love of gain to
ship two wagon loads to that far-away
market.
Even at that primitive period you
may thus see that susceptibility to the
money power had
The Money Devil.
alrpady infected
me with its insidious and deadly venom.
Wo had not then the benefit of admoni
tory teaching from experienced gentlemen
telling us of the dreadful penalties which
await people who are so premeditately
wicked as to try to acquire for old ago
a competence. Consequently , I made ,
a potato effort for wealth. But it did
not prove potential in results. And the
following is a precisely correct state
ment of the venture and its profits :
TRANSPORTATION RATES.
Account sales two loads of potatoes per J. H.
Tomlin and E. J. Senseny , J. Sterling Morton ,
by Grill & Brinkcr.
2,822 Ibs. potatoes at 20 cts $404.40
800 " " 51.00
6,208 " " 840.20
1.641 _ ! ' " 231.14
$1,080.74
CHARGES.
Cash paid E. J. Senseny , freight 8,402
Ibs , at 15 ctH $510.80
Cash paid J. H. Tomlin , freight 3,208
Ibs. at 15 cts 404.70
Commission on sale at 2J < C9o 27.17
Cash paid you by E. J. Sensony net
proceeds 54.57
Total $1,080.74
( signed ) GRIM , & BIUNKEH ,
Denver , June 21,1800.
But those were the good old times.
Corporate cormorants , plutocrats and
the diabolism of
Ante-Crime of'
the gold standard
money power had not then invaded and
laid waste these beautiful and produc
tive prairies. My cherished potatoes
sold in Denver for 20 cents a pound.
They brought the snug sum of $1 , 086.74.
The cost of transportation at 15 cents a
pound amounted to only $1,005 , and
after paying commission for soiling
jhem , the producer had $54.57 , out of
which he had to pay for the bags in
which they were sacked. Those wore
strenuously stimulating times for agri-
ciilture. The crime of 1878 had not
then been perpetrated ; in fact , no cele
brated atrocity of any kind had stricken
down "the money of the constitution"
or withered and blighted currency for
"the poor man. "
Contrast those inconsequential charges
for transportation with those of extor
tion which the railroads demand today 1
Contrast also the time taken then , with
the stately ox motor , or the frisky mule
machinery , two to three weeks from
the river to Denver , with the hurry ,
scurry and indecent haste of the steam
engine and its rumbling , roaring follow
ing of cars. The time now is 36 to
48 hours ; the rates are , from Nebraska
City to Denver as follows :
Cattle and hogs average about 105.00 per car.
When shall the octopus be exterminat
ed ? When shall the good old times
come back to us once again ? Shall the
agriculture , manufacture and commerce
of this great republic ever be restored to
that flush prosperity which animated
and invigorated it prior to the "crime of
1878 ? " 0 ,
* Read before the Historical Society at
Lincoln , January 9 , 1900 , by J. Sterling
Morton.
THE INDIVIDUAL AND THE COM
MUNITY.
There is no question of more import
ance than a clear and cold-blooded
comprehension of the reciprocal relations
of the individual and the community.
It is often assumed that they are equal.
This is by no means the case. Utili
tarianism prevails here as elsewhere.
Utilitarianism is not "a system of
philosophy" though there is a system of
philosophy to which that name has been
given. Utilitarianism is but another
name for the fit in the survival of the
struggling for existence. That which
conduces to the maintenance of indi
viduality is utilitarian , that which does
not is not. As previously noted the
general assumption is that the interests
of the individual and community are
identical. That is only true when they
are reciprocally utilitarian. It is very
often the case that they are antagonistic.
Most of our altruistic endeavors while ,
in some senses , of benefit to the individ
ual are even more antagonistic to the
welfare of the race. We have made
A Fetish of Life.
Or , as a modern writer expresses it ,
"we have founded a new religion whoso
god is humanity , " which Montesquieu
long , long ago expressed as "love your
country , not on personal account , but
out of regard to the community. " In
point of fact , while such emotional in
sanity prevails to a largo and injurious
extent , there is not a word of truth in
it and no sane man believes in , or trios
; o live up to any such drivel. He who
ives wisely and well for himself is the
wisest and best citizen. He who loves
others better than himself , or lives for
others at actual cost to self is simply
insane. Superstitions fear , often com
bined with an egotistic or cowardly
vanity , is the one all-prevailing cause of
most of the much-praised public bene
ficence.
A Striking Example.
Two men recently died of which
fact a leading paper says :
"John I. Blair , who died in New Jer
sey the .other day , left a great many
times more millions than the late Daniel
S. Ford. In fact , Mr. Blair was one of
the wealthiest men in the country when
he died. His will , which has just been
filed for probate , leaves everything to
his family , and not a cent to education ,
religion or charity. The document is
chiefly interesting by contrast. "
Naturally the public blesses the openhanded -
handed , the benefactor. So does the
pauper until his back is turned.
To die rich and not remember the dear
public is fast getting to be a greater
crime than to be a murderer or a forger.
The man who" has the ability to and
makes money is looked upon as a public
enemy unless he gives it all to the pub
lic. Family obligations are fast becom
ing decidedly old modish. In the first
place , does the millionaire become such
by the public serving him , or by his
being shrewd enough to make himself
of service to the public ? Taking it by
and long even the man who makes
millions generally gives the public a
vast deal of free service for which he
gets no remuneration. One thing is
sure , and every man of a clear brain
and practical experience knows it to be
such , that is that he who makes his
millions does so in spite of the public ,
and not with its aid , so far as intelligent
or willing cooperation goes. In all
species of life the severities of the strug
gle for existence are the most exacting
between individuals of the same or
allied species. Man is no exception.
The greatest enemy of man is man.
The greatest enemy to ability is the
obstrnctiveness of lesser and of accumu
lated inability. Could inability be
rooted out the struggle and asperities
of ability would drop to a minimum.
Real ability long since recognized that
it does not pay to be too aggressively
antagonistic and that in union is strength
and individual safety. But to this
equality of ability mutual utility is an
absolute necessity. The only ones
really injured by the trust or combina-
