The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1893-02-16
THE LESISLATURE SHOULD PAUSE

THE LEGISLATURE SHOULD PAUSE
The proposition contained III the
hill uending in the house that In cases
Of mob violence Travis county sh'uid
have concurrent jurisdiction with the
courts OF the offending county con =
,.jns very many elements subVers'Vc
or ALI Democratic ideas OF government
II is in the first place all expression
or the part of the state OF a wah' OF
conRd. nee in the people and courts OF
anv county where mob violence may
be precipitated. 1t is TO that eH'eH.
then n slur upon the whole people OF
Texas. as heinous crime such as mat
If Paris or some terrible upheava' Of
npbIic opinion is liable to preclplta'e
- mob in any county Of the Sta'e
Urder snch law what would 20" -"
if that mob should occur in Tr@Fis
county ? Will some other county theh
be given guardianship over us? VT
will YOU amend the law so that every
county will be the guardian OF every
other county and will you have I'll paso
courtv watching the criminal affairs
Of Jefferson county, and the courts OF
DaIlam county dragging the people OF
Cameron county a 1000 miles from
home trial
Again such a law would be an I'M
inst discrimination in favor OF Travis
comfy. We know we are law abld"
ing people. thai this is the grandest
county in the state in our own estlma'
ton, but we do not think it any
part Of the duty or rlghf
of the state TO declare all other coun-
ties 50 inferior to us in law, order and
patriotism, that we are to be held up
To them rs menace, as the stern
sword of state Justice suspended over
their heads by II political thread. 1t
is unjust 20 US to attempt to place us
in that attitude; it is very much more
unjust to the other counties OF the
state to put them in such n position.
But finally. We do not believe that
It is Travis county ms such that is thus
proposed as the stern mentor OF Texas;
il is the county where the seat OF state
government is located, regardless OF
the character of people who compose
that county. This shows the object
of the bill to be TO bring every county
whore mob violence may occur direct
" under the thumb ofthe state eXecu-
tive Mt the state capital And is it for
,his "A state constitution has been ere
oted by the people; an instrumei t
with which learned senators have just
stormed high Heaven and which with
the plainest and most uuerrlng con-
struction guarantees every county in
tic state n local self government And
will this constitution, that condemns
tbe ueople f Texas to the shame OF
coufessiLg they are bound hand and
foot and forbidden to answer n call OF
self respect made upon the civilized
world, permit of such a construction
ms ihisY Is cur constitution so much
greater and grander than all the peo-
ne who made it that it can thus not
only peremptorily forbid them to do
that which they most desire, but
compel them to submit to a
most tyranous requirement against
which they all bitterly protest. If so
what monstrous thing is our state
constitution and how much longer will
the people permit it to remain I'M
changed?
The occasion that gave rise to the
discussion of such radical change in
our laws was terrible in the extreme,
but it was not sufficient to induce the
people to quietly submit to an aban-
douInent of an immcmorial right of
local self government. The disease is
bad, but the remedy proposed is far
worse, far more fatal in its results.
Texas is long suffering and kind, but
she will have none of such blighting
legislation.