The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1890-08-28
ALLIANCE COLUMN.
Ns- All communications intended for
this Column should be addressed to j. W.
BowDEN, Denver, S. G.
Tie Right to Rule.

If we correctly understood Gen. Earle
in his Orangeburg speech, ne denied with
great emphasis the right of the farmers to
control the government. His idea is that
the right to rule inheres in theintelligent
portion of the people.
This is the way We understood him /;
this is the way he is reported in the pa
pers.
With the claims of Gen. Earle as
candidate we do not propose here to deal /;
but as an expounder and teacher of the
principles Of government, affecting all
classes of citizens alike, we take issue
with him.
Passing by his implied division of the
people into the ignorant farmer majority
on one hand, and the intelligent minority
on the other, ne protest most emphati-
cally against the doctrine that majority
of the people have no right to control the
government.
If the farmers or any other class of
citizens, bound together by common in
terest, agree as touching any measure or
policy, by every token Of free institutions,
by every expression and implication of
Democratic government, by every obli-
CATION of citizenship, they not only may,
they are bound to control the government,
if they can. If they constitute MAORI
ty of the voting population solemn re-
sponsibility rests upon them to make that
measure or policy efective-if it be ne
cessary to control the government in or
der to bring about this result, then it be-
comes solemn duty for them to exercise
their right to control.
This does not necessarily imply the
election of noDe except farmers or any
special class to the various departments
of government. 1t does, of necessity,
imply, however, the pledging before hand
of all aspirants to Office to the support of
the measures proposed.
The only true idea of Democratic gov
ernment is that of an absolute majority
rule.
That majority may do some things not
in accord with the proprieties as construed
by the more intelligent, may violate the
sense of decorum as understood by some
but any limitation of the expression of
that majority is an Infringement of Dem.
ocratic government.
Granting for the sake of argument that
the position of General Earle is correct,
that'the farmers are the ignorant MAORI.
ty, that the intelligent minority would
rule better-who shall fix the measure of
intelligence that shall entitle one to par.
ticipate in the control of government?
We might even grant the assumption
that the intelligent minority have the
right to rule, that they rule better than
the ignorant majority and yet We sube
nit that this system of government would
not be Democratic-it would be perVer.
sion of terms to call a government based
upon such an idea Democratic govern
ment.
We maintain with all the earnestuess
of conviction, that the farmers or any
other class of citizens have an absolute
right to control the government, if they
see fit, and are able to do 80. We believe
that ct certain times it is solemn duty
of citizenship to assume control. More
than this-under existing circumstances,
with the convictions prevailing among
the farmers, we believe This is one of
those times.
That theory Of government which de-
MES the right of the majority to rule,
may be good theory, may result in a
good government but it is not the theo.
~ Of Democracy; it will not result in
Democratic government.
We do not believe such theory of
government commends itself to the genius
of our people, farmers or other classes,
however emphatically it may be asserted
or by wbomsoever it may be advocated.
We are set unalterably for the defense
of the right of the majority of the people
to rule, be that majority composed of one
class or many. The minority, however
intelligent, have no right to rule, except
as they can bring the masses to their way
of thinking by appeals to their rational
powers.-Cotton Plant.