The Adventures of Jonathan Gullible - Bastiat Institute

Chapter 12
Opportunity Lost
he is the most effective rabble rouser ever elected.”
“S Jonathan spun around to see a middle-aged man sprawled
over a doorstep, braced on one elbow. His short-brimmed hat was
tipped back and his dark three-piece suit looked fi lthy and smelled
worse. Patches on the knees of his pants were starting to fray. A
salty grey stubble grew on his face, indicating that he hadn’t shaved
in a couple of days. One hand still clung to a bottle that was dry as a
bone and now served mostly to keep him propped against the wall.
“Tweed’s the best I’ve ever seen,” he continued drowsily, “She
can really stir up a crowd.”
Jonathan moved closer to listen, but wasn’t sure he wanted to
encourage this hobo. True enough, this gentleman hobo didn’t need
encouragement to repeat a story he had probably told a dozen times
to himself. “After her rip-roaring speech, the crowd was mighty
angry.” He said, shaking his head. “Then a kid, little Ricco, hurled
a stone at a window over there. When the glass shattered, the mob
dropped silent. Yes, not a peep at fi rst. They knew it was wrong to
destroy things, but they were excited.”
The hobo sensed that this young man was actually listening. He
hiccuped and continued. “Then Tweed, she was right in the middle
of them, said that Ricco had done the community a great service.
Said they all owed the boy a debt of gratitude. She said it was alright,
because anyone who owned so many windows was selfi sh anyway.
Then she added that the factory owner would now have to buy new
windows from the glass maker. Everyone in the crowd was really
attentive – just itching for an excuse to throw more stones. Tweed
told them ‘Sure, go ahead! With each ... (hic) ... stone and broken
glass, the glass maker will have a new order for a window, a new
job for a worker, and a new demand for tools. Then each worker
will have more kayns to spend on shoes for his children. So more
jobs for shoemakers and the shoemakers will have more to spend on
leather and stitching’ and so on and on.”