In short, the day is not far distant when the men upon whom devolves the responsibility of examining into, and reporting upon, the claims of those who profess to have made important industrial improvements will be looked upon as exercising judicial functions of the very highest type. When the important reforms arising from this recognition have been introduced, the forces of collectivism will cease to range themselves on the side of stolid conservatism in industry, as they undoubtedly have done in the nineteenth century even while they inconsistently professed to advance the cause of progress politically.
The inventor, who in the early part of the nineteenth century was generally denounced as a public enemy, will, in the latter part of the twentieth century, be hailed as a benefactor to the community, because he will be judged by the ultimate, rather than by the immediate, effects of his work, and because it will be the duty of the public authorities to see to it that the dislocation of one industry incidental the promotion of another by any invention does not, on the whole, operate to throw people out of employment, but, on the contrary, gives more constant work and better wages to all. But the slow progress of the fundamental traits of human nature will retard the attainment of this goal. The world has a long distance to travel in the uphill road of industrial and social improvement before it can succeed in obtaining a really true view of the part fulfilled by inventive genius in contributing to human happiness.