umanity, than another, that feature is political partyism made
blind by prejudice. Prejudice blinds the eye to light and benumbs the
mind until reason is shut out. The Bible says, "And if the blind lead
the blind, both shall fall into the ditch."

In examining any proposition we should not proceed to change reasons
and facts to suit our thoughts, but rather remove all prejudice from
our mind and then change our thoughts to agree with the facts. For my
part I would that all voters and their wives and children would form
themselves into a party of political truthseekers. When that is done
humanity, justice and a pure government of all the people, by all the
people and for all the people, will form the armor of our civilization.

But as long as blind partyism prevails men will get into heated
political discussions that only widen the gulf of misunderstanding.
Misleading newspaper articles will make the gulf deeper, and the
cunning hand of plutocracy and coercion will widen the waters of the
gulf into a vast restless ocean, without even the signs of a rainbow to
tell them that the great storm of poverty and human slavery to the
money power, that knows no love, no mercy, no justice or Christianity,
shall not continue forever and anon.

As we stand on a mountain crest and cast our eyes over the wide extent
of country, it is the more prominent features that impress themselves
on our vision. The lesser details, the waving field, the blooming bush,
the evergreen moss, the singing bird and fragrant rose, which attract
the attention and admiration of the immediate bystander, are lost to
our view by the distance. But the range of forest-clad hills, the
winding river, the crystal lake, the wide expanse of fertile plains and
snow-capped mountain peaks, determine the landscape and claim our
attention.

We of the United States are today surrounded by the Anglo-American
civilization of the closing days of the 19th century. Let us from this
height glance along the road of our nation's journey hither. We can at
best only hope to notice the more prominent lines of advance. To
carefully trace the growth of all the departments would not only
greatly exceed the limited time at our command this evening, but would
also confuse us by the multiplicity of subjects demanding our
attention.

When God created man in his own image and placed him on earth, He gave
man dominion over the earth and all the fullness thereof. There is an
old maxim whi