St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-08-27
MR.. ALBERT SCHALLER.
prominent Attorney of Hastings. MINI. |


prominent Attorney of Hastings, Mimi
Thomas jefferson. whom all Demo-
Gratis regard as the best exponent of
their party principles. held it 10 be
automatic ''that the people eau be en-
trusted with the management of their
own affairs" 1t is true that the people
in managing governmental affairs must
act by agents or delegates; but the
nearer these agents are to their princi-
pal, the people, the better do they serve
them. How quickly the national house
OF representatives. elected by the
people. responds to public opinion. TO
the public will; how reluctantly the
senate acts OH the same questions. 1t
needs no stretch of memory to recall
the painful scenes In the senate of 1893
over the Sherman repeal act. or the
shameful spectacle of 1894 in the same
body, where a few men dictated to
the nation their terms, and COM
PEELED acceptance under threat of still
greater disaster. In 1898 the almost
unanimous sentiment of the country
demanded the repeal of the Sherman
act. Every days delay added to the
insecurity Of business. The house
acted with reasonable promptness. The
senate wasted months. while public
confidence was every day being further
impaired; and senators talked by the
week, while the commerce aud business
of the nation were being wrecked. To-
day the people desire nothing so much
as the repeal of the duty on sugar. The
house recognized the fact. A bill re-
pealing the provisions which the sugar
trust (by its agents. the sugar senators)
added to the Wilson bill. and max
ing sugar free, passed the house
of representatives 10y all almost
unanimous vote. elghtysix Republic
ans, with Gar Reed at their head,
voting for it. The bill has reached the
senate. Will 1t pass? Not at this ses-
sion, probably. Senator Boodler must
first have his amendments added. The
agents of the sugar trust must have
time IN which to hear from their princi-
pals. Some of the honorable gentlemen
must first unload, and, "under the
rule" the matter must ''go over" until
everybody Is fixed. And when the hon.
orable senators have leiSurely attended
to their private business they will prob
ably give the people chance. What
do they care for the people? They
have to do with legislatures.
The senate was created by the consti-
tuition for two purposes; first. to satisfy
the claims Of the individual states, which
reluctantly yielded their sovereignty in
consideration of equal representation in
this body; and second, to act as check
or balance to the house of representa-
tives. 1t was supposed to represent the
states. The provision creating the
senate and providing the manner of
election was tie result of compromise.
The house represents the people. Whom
do the senators represent? .
The trend of our political life is to-
wards more direct responsibility to the
individual voter. We are gradually
coming to the conclusion that the preSi-
dent of the United States should be
elected by direct vote of the people.
The individual is asserting himself
more and more emphaticallY every day.
The voter does not wish TO delegate to
others the duty which he can better
perform himself. He will enforce in
political life the old maxim, "Delegatus
non potest delegare," and he is right.
Let the senate be the delegates of the
people and their servants, not the
servants of their servants, as they now
are.
An election directly by the people
would make the senators more quickly
responsive TO the public Will. 1t would
purify our state politics. remove one of
the temptations to gerrymander, pre-
vent scandal. and fill the senate with
men OF brains and principle, instead of
millionaires aud trust attorneys.
There is nothing in the way of this
change in the manner of electing sena-
tors except the traditions of the past.
But progress is being made in political
life. The ways of the past are not nee
essarily the best. We're mankind to
adhere to tradition only, we would still
be blowing with crooked stick. The
more the people govern themselves the
better and wiser will be the govern
ment. Bring the senate one step nearer
to the people by making the members
directly responsible to them. The sem
ators will then be the servants of the
I people. not their masters, as some of
them now think they are.
ID n a ~