The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1881-12-17
TOO MANY LAWS.

ence to which we have made in another
column, very forcibly calls up some reieG-
tons, often, it is true, limited at editorially
by us, relative to the true nature of govern
ment and the real objects of legislation. No
Congress of men can sit uninterruptedly
from years end to years end, and yet 1t
looks as if those chosen by the people as
their representatives to guard their inter
csts and make laws for the Nation or
the State, and who are popularity sup
poseu to be intelligent men, act as if
they and Congress had life time in which
to consider and perfect measures. The re
suit is that the curse OF every succeeding
Congress and State Legislature in every
State is the multiplicity of bills that is
showered upon the clerks desks as thick
as leaves in Vallambrosa," proposing to
reach every conceivable object, obstructing
legislation first and most greatly needed
and if fortunate enough to become laws,
encumbering the statute books and render
ing still more uncertain in these days
of prolific book making, the oft re-
peatcd inquiry, "What is the law"
Every new, and too frequently, old mem
Der feels the necessity resting upon him to
correct some fancied evil or inaugurate
what ho supposes would be a tremendous
reform, and revolutionizc public affairs,
and thereupon withdraws to his lodgings
and consumes the time for which lie is
IL nufiu lie gnla IN, of
general or real Importance, and nine times
out of ten contradictory in spirit to the
true significance of the Constitution and
opposed to nyenlightened policy or theory
of government. Any sane man ought to
know, just here, that it is far more produc
tive of intellectual growth and better calcu
lated to make of the representative referred
to man of national views, man
the country at large, to mingle promiscu-
ously and extensively with his fellows and
discover collectively what seemed to be the
demands of the hour. In the Congress of
the United States as We understand its
functions and purposes, Il member is one OF
the representatives Of the whole country
and there to enact only such measures as
the country at large may demand without
reference to the petty preiudiccs and
whims and desires of any one
locality, with this reservation that he
is to oppose of course legislation dis
astrous to his own people or sec
., 10 hn e II,
general Government in behalf of his imme-
date constituents whenan ovcrmasering
necessity in justice to them and their in
| terests as citizens calls for such inter
ference. The same rule can be brought
down very easily and applied to the State
| If a national legislator, the nation first,
and if State legislator, the State first. The
rule practically has been reversed and State
and nationally great interests and momen-
tous issues have been pushed to the rear
until the glowing and fresh member
has finished maturing and intro
ducing bills for the relief or improve
ment of himself or his friends or his civil
district or something else, about which
he is the only man in the body who has any
information, and with which, in justice to
the masses at large the House should not
be troubled for five minutes. The source
OF this evil is primarily party, securing the
election of men by reason of past partisan
services rather than from considerations of
their broad practical craftsmanship and
| int,
and personal merit. The halls OF lcgis-
lation, as rule, are not filed with patriots
and statesmen, but politicians, and the
people and the country suffer thercirom.
But the great and really correct objection
| TO this extensive and constantly increasing
disposition to regulate everything from the
growth of corn.Stalk to mans private
opinions by statute, is the fact that such
course is contrary both to the more adj
vanced ideas of the province of government
and nature itself. If we know anything
well, after the intellectual crises through
which modern thought has passed
in the last half century, we know
that law, unvarying and immutable,
rcigns in every department of nature
and society, independent of mans crea-
ton, and superior to his statutes and
any interference with the same only pro-
duCcs disarrangement and confusion. 4
wiser law than Senates can frame controls
! trade and finances and morals, and fsome
of our would.be Statesmen of the last de-
cade had allowed these natural laws TO
have full play, the country would be bet
ter of to-day. Who does not know that
supply and demand regulate the price and
activity in the interchange Of commodities
and that money is but the representative
of other values and fluctuates with them
But ifeither be hampercd or cramped by
mems devices and the attempt be made
to divert them into other channels than
those they would naturally seek, the same
disastrous consequences will ensue that
follow any violation of physical law. OF
course the society of the time and govern
ment policy under the old order of things
are so thoroughly enurcd to this unwise
management Of affairs, that perfect or
even extended reform in this particular
could not be carried out in any one Con-
gress or Legislature or even many of them
but the movement can be begun. We are
too much governed, We have too many