Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1883-11-15

Letter from GoodIapd.
1--WE drink to the Graces, Law, Physic, Divinity
-yive La Compaignee!'

ali 1AiiiSS 70 dlouS toSetucI duo al
Missosri at least, have reached a gen.
eral average. Theology adjusts all dis
crepancies between this world and the
next-and proposes tn fill the bloody
chasm with money. Our laws and
their administration leave us no reme-
dy for any great, public or private
wrong but in assassination. And now
come the medicine men enraged that
any man should dare to be sick and die
without their aid, and by an act of the
Missouri Legislature approved March
3Ist, 1858, have enacted that all citizens
of Missouri must be sick and die ac-
cording to the statute in such cases
made and provided. AS this is the
last turn of the thumbscrew SO far and
hints.a good deal, it may be well to
look at it. 1t has cope up gradually:
In 1874 law was passed regulating
medical practitioners, limiting them to
those having diplomas from medical
colleges or who regis tered according to
the law. This was tinkered somewhat
in order to tighten it. Then came a
law distinguishing between druggists
and physicians and discriminating
against the former.
But the last is the worst. The prac-
tice of medicine in Missouri must be
awfully down at the heel to require
such legislation. The bill empowers
the Governor to appoint Board OF
Health for the State consisting of sew
EN- members, five Of whom must be
PHYSICIANS. The Board shall have
general supervision over the health
and the sanitary interests of the people
of the State and has power to establish
quarantine and if necessary, to call out
the militia. 1t has a revisory power
over all medical colleges and diplomas
and can authorize men to practice
without diplomas. And then, as if the
charge of nearly two millions of people
was not sufficient to engage their at
tention, every horse, mule, OK, ass,
goat, pig and chicken in the State is
put in their charge. And the Board is
responsible to no one. The Secretary
is the only officer in the Board that is
paid, except their travelling expenses.
The whole expense of the Board to
the State is limited to six thousand
dollars. 1t would be easy to roast the
law at the fire of ridicule. But there
are several great wrongs involved,
which require serious consideration.
Inthe first place, the law is based
on usurpatiOn.
In political economy it is we'll set
tied fact that Legislature whether
State or National cannot control any
right that has not been surrendered
to it. For example, the Federal Gov
ernment controls only five great class
es of powers surrendered to it by the
States. The States, as the agents of
the General Government control twen-
ty one great classes of powers, surren-
dered to them, as their agents, by the
people. All powers not surrendered by
the States to the Government, or by
thepeople to the States, are reserved
to the people. And for the State to
touch a. right not surrendered by the
people is usurpation.
The Constitution of Missouri is all
that could be desired on this subject.
Section 80 of the Bill of Rights, says:
"The enumeration in this Constitution
of certain rights shall not be construed
to deny, impair or disparage others re-
tanned by the people,"
Now let lawyers watch. The right
to employ whom We please to work
for us in any branch of business, and
to be ourselves the judges of his fitness
for the work, has never been surrender
ed by the people to the State; and for
the Legislature to deny, impair or lis
parage that right is usurpation. The
law in question squarely denies that
right entirely. This usurpation is Mt
the bidding of a. Tkade Union. The
most astute advocate of the law may
be defied to show what right twenty
thousand doctors have to band togeth-
oT aIlQ GSh 1OI b law any one
practice medicine or surgery who is
not member of their guild, any more
than twenty thousand blacksmiths, or
or stonemasons, or brick
layers, or any other tradesm en-, have a
right to band together and ask law
the employment ofany man
who is not q member of their Union
But it is said that any man can prac-
tice medicine, surgery, or obstetrics, in
a case of emergency; but he must do
so gratuitously, or be prosecuted. That
is worse still for it is square denial of
a right expressly reserved to the peo-
pie in Section of the Bill of Rights,
which says that all people have natu-
raj right to the enjoyment of the gains
of their own industry. Let US look at
this matter. A person is taken sick.
There is no one near who has has a IL