Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1879-04-19

his privilege, or, as he looked on it,
his duty to rule. Nor was he much
to blame, for this thing of national /
administration responsible to Parli-
ament was new thing in those
days; personal government on the |
part of the Sovereign had been so
far the only conceivable idea. So
he cherished his lifelong purposes 1
in European politics (Which it re-
quired large armies to carry OUT,
and his Parliament would furnish
him neither men nor money for
that purpose. He selected his Cab
met from those who favored such
purposes, and whatever they pro-
posed the Parliament opposed. In
short, his reign was signalized by
what in this country would be called
a series of dead-locks.
Only two alternatives could give
the solution to such a problem:
Either a Cabinet must be response
BILE to Parliament, or a despotism
must be after all adopted such as
the Stuarts had attempted to set up.
The former was adopted and went
into force Immediately after Viii
liams death. Since his day no Cab
met has made a persistent attempt
to carry on the Government against
a majority i'm the House of Com
mons. And since the adoption Of
that principle it has not been found
necessary for the British House of
Commons to assert its controlling
power over the army and other de-
partments of Government by refus-
ing appropriations. 1t still retains
the power of doing so, but no Sow
ereign and no House of Peers has
ventured to resist the will of the
Commons long enough to call forth
its exercise. And in this country
we firmly believe that the same
solution will ultimately be adopted.
The pressure of the money power is
admitted on all hands to be danger
Gus and mischievous when used to
enforce legislation, but all parties
resort to it when the occasions arise,
and will resort to it, the occasions
being the predominance of a differ
ent party in the executive depart
: ment or the Senate from that which
bears sway in the House of Repre-
sentatives. This has been the case
: more frequently since the war than
; ever before. 1t caused deadlock,
as we call it, when, in Andrew
Johnson's day, both Houses of Con
gress were opposed to the Executive
: again, last summer, when House
/ and Senate were at variance with
one another, and now when both
, Houses are preparing for possible
collision with the Executive. That
, these collisions are both mischievOu:
: and dangerous we have already
2 said, but the power which has beer
] confided to the House expressly tC
control the aggressions of the Exec
utive can never be surrendered OF
: even disused until either thOsG
aggressions cease or it is superseded
i by a more potent agency, the
I responsibility of Cabinets to the
D Representatives of the people.
In the days of William the alter
e native was between this and the
: restoration Of the Stuarts and thu
s despotism which they for so many
# years strove to fasten on the Eng
4 lish people. In our days we believ'
e it to be between this and military
: rule and the man on horseback
One or the other of these alterna
l. tives must shortly set aside the con
e stantly recurring collisions inevi
n table under the present system. TIL
n people must take their choice.