Dr. French, the Herr Director and I had a long discussion about my conception of the two natures contending within the city. The Herr Director argued that the merchant spirit, so prevalent here, when uncontrolled and uncurbed, is more dangerous to civilization and to our democracy than the military spirit of Germany, and that it needs to be overcome by a force greater and stronger than itself. The corrupting element he said has always been this same merchant spirit, and where ancient civilizations decayed, it was due to the fact that it debased kings and enslaved them by luxuries.
“Business should not control, but be controlled, because business is based entirely upon selfishness.” When the Herr Director stopped for breath, Dr. French, who was an ardent Christian and knew his Bible, took from his pocket a New Testament, and pointed out a remarkable chapter in the Book of Revelation (a chapter I was compelled to confess I had not read) that bore out the Herr Director’s statement.
“The kings of the earth committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth waxed rich by the power of her wantonness.... And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn over her, for no man buyeth their merchandise any more; merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and pearls, and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet; and all thyine wood, and every vessel of ivory, and every vessel made of most precious wood, and of brass, and iron, and marble; and cinnamon, and spice, and incense, and ointment, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and cattle, and sheep; and merchandise of horses and chariots and slaves; and souls of men.”
We urged Dr. French to read the rest of the chapter, which he did.
“And they cast dust upon their heads, and cried, weeping and mourning, saying: Woe, woe, the great city, wherein were made rich all that had their ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate,” and then the voice of the angel crying into the thick of their lament, “Rejoice over her, thou Heaven and ye saints, and ye apostles, and ye prophets; for God hath judged your judgment on her.” It seemed as though the prophet had written the epitaph of all cities in which the merchant was master and not servant.
When he had finished I knew the inscription for my sculptured group: the twentieth verse of the eighteenth chapter of Revelation.
Altogether it was a remarkable day to be experienced only in America, perhaps only in Chicago. To shop in the largest store in the world, visit a picture gallery well worth while, and see art students at work; hear classical music played by a children’s orchestra, and watch the same children enjoying the party which followed; to meet one of the leading sculptors of America who shared with us his plans and hopes, and to have as our guide the Director of the Art Institute, was a colossal experience worthy of the city in which it happened.
The next day was given to the Juvenile Court, Public Play Grounds, the University, and, finally, Hull House. The one great disappointment of the Chicago visit for me and my guests was Miss Jane Addams’ absence in Europe. But the House was there—big, neighborly, homelike, hospitable—and the residents were there, those who do the neighboring, the healing and the helping, who are friends of the friendless, and know no creed or race—except humanity.
My faith in Chicago springs largely from my contact with Hull House, The Commons and like places with their defiant spirit towards evil, their broad-mindedness and their brave attempt at remedying the wrongs of our commercialized civilization.
After dinner I “toted” my guests all over the House, from the reading-room on the first floor to the Boys’ Club on the third, and back again. I have done it frequently, and always with zest and pride, in spite of the fact that I have had no active share in the work.