DEMAGOGUES AND RADICALISM

Mr. William Allen White delivered the fifth of a series of lectures on the Progressive Movement yesterday evening, taking as his topic "Concerning Certain Demagogues."

Mr. White said that it is the fate of every man to be a demagogue at one time or another in his life. We are now in a new era, an era of economic and political changes, an era of radicalism. But what is it that makes this era, that that keeps it alive? It is the demagogues, the men who are crafty, frequently selfish and regardless of public opinion, but always alive,--very much alive. The are the ones who are looking upwards and ahead. It is the tide of progress that has brought the Radical to the fore. There has been a wave of Materialism; there has been a wave of Populism; but each of these waves has helped and not retarded the great wave of Radicalism.

Agitation is said to be a sign of great growth; and it was aptly put by one of our great leaders, that "agitation is the safeguard of democracy." A great material nation is what we want. We do not want the Puritan ahead of the Yankee, or vice-versa; what we do want is the Puritan and the Yankee on equal terms. It is the imperfect political organization of a country that holds men down to hard work with meagre pay. The more that men realize this and help to improve it, the better the conditions of the various countries will be. Let justice come first and prosperity must follow. The big stake now for the player is humanity. Inch by inch he is gaining ground, and clowly but surely he is approaching his goal. The fight is not a new one but one that has been going on for ages,--since the time of Christ. It is a fight that every one can fight so let every one do his best.