Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1889-02-28
YOUNG AMERICANS.
Why They Should Assiduously study t
Principles of Government

Why They Should Assiduously Study the
Principles of Government.
To say that he comprehends the Fed
eral power in all its immensely, in all
its ramifcations. in all its far-reaching
effects, is to pay him a compliment at
the expense of fact. To know the re-
atty. to know how far it is actually
working out the purpose for which it
was established, and how far it has
swerved from it's true course. he must
know more than constitutional prin-
ciples; he must know the laws, the
! agencies created by those laws. what
those agents are doing, and the
methods which they employ. His
knowledge, at the best, is but smat-
tering to him. at all. the Government
is little else than conjecture, fancy
an airy. intangible, invisible theory.
! This is blunt speech. For there are
tens of thousands of citizens who have
very clear and correct notions about
what the Government is, and about
what it ought to be. The average
| American is, to be sure, an indefinite
sort of person, and he is apt to think
and know more about public affairs
| than he shows. But there is one class
of Americans to which he does not be-
| long-Americans who, unfortunately,
| do take a practical view" of things.
| They know the Blue Book better than
| they know the Constitution; they look
upon the Government simply as a great
collection of offices; they know the
| sol oft 70 ND
their highest and only ambition, as
citizens, is to secure the best-paying
| offices for themselves. The American,
with his theory" and imperfect knowl-
edge, is so far ahead of this type of
enlightenment" as to put comparison
out of all question.
| The American who glories in the
majesty of the Republic, and who val
ues his own freedom, can not afford to
dream; the duty he owes to the COM
monwealth, to society and to himself,
he can not, with honor Or safety ignore.
The true grandeur of our Government
depends upon the justice of its laws;
those laws depend upon the virtue, the
| patriotism and the wisdom of the peO
pie. The fight for independence did
not end with the treaty of peace; nor
did the adoption of the Constitution
settle forever all questions of civil lib
erty and government. Dangers have
! appeared in the past; dangers menace
us to-day; dangers will yet arise. They
may come from the direction of the
Government, or they may come from
| society, as evils for the Government to
meet.
The subject of government is pro-
| found and momentous one, yet it is not
wholly beyond the grasp of the young.
1t would be an error for parents or
teachers to withhold it from you as a
matter reserved for older minds. You
can not be too much impressed by a
consciousness of it's gravity; you can
not take too broad a view of National
destiny and of your rights and duties
as younger citizens; you can not study
these things too soon.
You are not expected to plunge at
once into the depths of political
SCIENCE" you need not vex your early
wits over abstruse economic" puz-
zles. With time and experience will
come ability to handle disputed prob
lens, and to follow the drift of Ma
tional policy and power. At the start.
Off; the reality of government should
stand before your thoughts. Edmund
! Alton, in St. Nicholas.