“Woe to you who
are rich,” said Christ with no reservations or explanations. He did not say
this so that others might multiply in his name reservations and explanations
until we are given to understand that he meant the opposite.
There exist among us, as you know, castes
of thieves, the Grounds. “Castes” is not the right word, for they are only
tribes of poor pariahs. However, they look upon robbery as their function in
society and even have their own code of honor and sacred books! Foreigners who
make a study of the peoples of India are astonished at so monstrous a custom.
They are right, but let them also look at home and the world over. They will
see that there is a caste of thieves everywhere and, horror of horrors, it is
even the first and the most honored. It is the caste of the rich and mighty.
The rich man will never set his hand to
the plough. Not that he is afraid of hard work (he will work willingly enough
at hunting and on the golf course), but because the code of honor of his caste forbids
it.
What is the function of the rich man in
society? To interfere with those who go to work, wait for them at the turn of
the road and hold them up for ransom.
With the loot they amass they can give
themselves up to play, or else to business and intrigue, or win fame, or wallow
in debauchery, according to their tastes and opportunities.
As for the worker, he works both for
himself and for those who do nothing, and the less these do the more important
they take themselves to be and the greater their weight.
