Morning journal and courier., 1883-09-07
THE ASSERTTON OE RIGHTS.


 try he was asked what he thought of it, and his reply was very frank Among other things he said that the American has not a sufficiently quick sense of his own claims and at the same time, as necessary consequence, not sufficiently quick sense of the claims of others. In paper read yesterday before the American Social Science Association by Professor Johnson T. Platt of this city this remark and some other observations of MT. Spencer in the same line are taken for a text.
 Professor Platt thinks that in this criticism Mir. Spencer touched upon one of the most dangerous tendencies of our time, and that the fact that intelligent persons and inhuen- tial journals did not appreciate the drift and purport of what he said shows how deep- seated is the disease that he detected, it be. ing nothing less than the decay of the senti- ment of justice. Professor Platt would have men assert their rights, legal and other, as 8 duty, and not be too ready to compromise and forgive. He says on this point among other things: If 8 society is to continue vigorous and progressive the senti- ment of justice must be kept keen and active. A strong sense of personal rights, of what is due to one as 8 moral being, is an essential element of char acter. One may have learning, talent, genius and certain kind of wisdom, but if he do not feel outraged when those rights he has in respect to his person arc Intentionally viola ted, he is without character He does not respect himself, and is not respected by others. It does not follow that such per son is of litigious disposition-that he loves litigation for it's own sake. On the other hand, he may feel that the law has been vio- | lated as regards his person and that he is un- der duty to society and to himself to re- dress the balance. The proper state of mind under such circumstances is well Illustrated l by the conduct of Spinoza, who, when his rights in respect to the estate of his father | were denied by his sisters on account of his communication, took the proceedings necessary to sindicate those rights and after wards released to them the property to which his title had been judicially established. He has left on record his opinion: ''That in 8 | State where just laws are in force, it is not only the right of every citizen, but his duty | towards the common veal, to resist injustice to himself, lest peradventure evil men should find profit in their evil doing"
 In applying the principles he lays l down to some of the facts and cir cumstances of our own time Professor Platt asserts that corporations do not respond to their duties and that their rights are not re l spected by individuals. He would have more vigorous assertion of rights on the part | of individuals against corporations and stren- uous resistance on the part of corporations to all unjust demands. He also speaks of the rights of stockholders, or others bene- fcially entitled as against the officers of COT. porations, and says further: Commercial morality would be high if the dishonest trad CT could with less ease rsinstats himself after | insolvency, and be in position to repeat in the same or another community the career of fraud and plumber. The atmosphere would be more wholesome if more newspapers were l sued for recklessly spreading before the pub lie the details, real or imaginary, of private life; the whole served up with a sensational l garnish. and serving no purpose other than to gratify the unmanly appetite for scandal, and | sell a few more papers s4l7 Professor Platt calls attention in his paper, 1 whose substance we have imperfactly indi- cated, to great and growing evil, The peo- pie of this country will, as s rules s4stsnd'' almost anything rather than make fuss. They do not think it '.pays" to give much at- tentiou to Rindicating their rights .unless money is to be made out of thsr vindication. There are no signs of any change in this dis I position, but there ought to be. A change
 would, to be sure, be good thing for the
 lawyers. temporarily, at least, but it would
 be better thing for the people.