The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1894-04-19
he Thinks That the Initiative and
Referendum Are lmprac-
ilcabe Ideas.
Power Is Delegated and the
People Can Approve or
Condemn.
Exhaustive Paper Read NJ the Unity Ciuh
to Prove Representative Cavern
ment 10 N0ta Failure.


club last night. under the title OF Has
Il y esentativs Government FailedT lie
aid tie referendum was the f.aemsnt OF a
2 eat question. and meant should the veto
power be transfer % from the executive 70
tie electors and be absolute. I'VE started
out" hs said. with the proposition that
tho eseto are entitled TO govern. None
shall say them nay. What thsY maturely
dosire must be theirs. II they desire their
wall with no bfEkos whereby Il mAT be as
csrtAlned that it Is a mstu q Judgment II Is
their light. aud no minority can OF Ought
20 DO permitted TO deny them that boon.
IL 10 an AFFAIR Of their creation. the conse-
seqnsnoes are apon their heads, none else
10 int ested. they should bssr uneha! lsnRed
sway. The majority have the legal righ' to
oondons wrong-possibly 10 command ID
This IL the thoo'y. thu Fundamental
principle on which our government IL
formed, and 10 10 principle broadening
And deepening with the years and stands
immutabe. But the instances which ariss
in the mingled affairs OF men ars myriad in
number and of varying consequences and
their . parate deter mination by all would
overWhslm us with their numbsr, would
susl en- industry. would make life an inAne
comedy, would be impossible as political
autonomies now exist, and would requirs
radical reAdiustment of governmental
! juris lictional lines. To save time for
other duties We delegate power; that tts
delegation may be helpful we choose wise,
learned. honorable representatives, with
| limited tsnurss. Our representatives. como
/ back to Us at regular recurring periods and
we approve or condemn.
10 9Th wwaufA eHnrH
| the area OF OUT whole sovereignty an oppor-
tunitY for eueh 10 hear all, would lose OBJ
/ lection save that 10 would remain impfac-
/ tioabls, clumsy, expensive and dilatory.
The initiative Is lint raetieable; utterly go
/ in the social conditions which Surround
sparssly settled and. The preparation Of
Law ia not only science; Il - also an
art. len thousand conflicting views would
insist on being heard and would be enti-
| tied 10 be hsar1. IL 10 not true that there
are no honest men TO help represent rs. II
there are not such men IL IL idle to leave
legislation 10 q Tabble of roguea- There Is
/ iufamed condemnation of the members OF
the present Montana Legislature but such
indiaoriminsto consure Is a godsend TO the
roRues. and a wrong 20 the honest men who
| toiled therein for our good the best tbeT
knew how. That some of them did not
know more Ia moi TO be i'm imputed to them as
a crime. and II may be safely affirmed they
represented our average intelligence"
] Ihe lecturer uhlu tuat 100 many Coos
men stay away from primary meetings,
and OF those who 90 too many are sWayed
BY personal politics and partisan i'm pulses.
/ There 10 too much neglect OF this duty.
/ he said, and in instances an oil too eager
desire TO humiliaie ana down the other
fellow" There Is nothing 10 justify the APP
prehension that BETRAYAL By representatives.
is 10 become chronic" he continued. In
/ oil lands representatives. occasionally be-
tray. IL 10 G eat crime-none greater.
l Bat the corrective is near at hand In our
/ biennial tenures Of offies, which. as TO the
Legislature ought never 20 have been pro-
logged.
II deny that representative governments
have failed. and II wished 10 tu n prophet
would deny that there is danger that they
will fail. We ell agree that in the evolu-
tion OF our industrial and political life
some things are awrY. One declaims
/ against banks, another rail Dads, another
! corporations, and so on. Some evils are
seeming and some are real, some insepara-
BILE from human convictions and TO be en-
dured, aud some within the comLGss Of
vernmental remedies. The haErant
wrongs which excite existing dis
/ content come from she fact that
wo have divided sovereignty.
that We have farmed some Of il out 20 IA
/ vorites WHO have confused the public mind
a. - the clear line of demarcation which
forbids legislation for private gaia and
/ l. o de II iuoXotably 10 the promotion OF the
public good. In recent magazine article
/ some agent of a single form OF borrowed
sovereignty argued she ability OF his mas
! te ., with the sovereignty they possessed,
/ to successfully lock horns with the state,
and by = trial Of strength determine who
should rule. and he appeared quite hopeful
/ that the improved highways we're stronger
than tbe government. Douotless IL Is
great com Din alton. bat when the times are
/ propltious and the people intellieently ia
siructed and unified, it will be a. chat, ana
/ the government will reclaim lis own.
! Whatever may be oar alteration from wise
poicies. We must RELY on our rep essnta-
tlves to co rect 10. Parties rise and fall;
4 policies are endorsed and condemned; lave
are passed er repealed; but people habit
uated 10 democracy reserve order, promote
/ pros perity. venture hesitatinRly on new
/ systems, and By moderation make sure Of
every advancing step.
II have said great objection 20 the ref
erendum il its olumsineas. its inadequAcy.
! its i'm practicability. IL IL no inoonoeivA-
bic burton for many of our citizens to come
out 30 vote. and We lose large per cent of
/ our votes each year because the voter IL 80
/ remote from the polls. Our Australian and
/ ballot laws, made necessary By crimes
! against the suffrage. have added 90 the bu
/ den of the elector and yet further aug
mented the Dumber Of missing votes. II
/ plattudinal . etensiou to nath, solemnly
/ TeAsserted, were always truth, representa-
[ tho specific cure for otherwise iucurRble
Z evils IL tho referendum. Wrongs are TO be
/ Tsmsdied with moderation. In u demoo-
rsey not every wong We see 10 TO BE- in
/ stently cortectec. ls 10 not better that all
/ the forces which seoundfelism commands
nni will US be directed 20 the coca
sioual procurement of treaohsTy In
% rep sentative instead of 10
debHuohing a whole peope shall not plu-
toctacI. which IA the source and cause OF
/ all o. nearly OIL, our failures. be compelled
10 work its fell design on conspicuous
: theaters where all indignant sTss gaze.
rather than IN the dark. IA private. IN soli-
/ tude among the weak and iCno ant. the
/ complainant or the cor upt There 10 re-
se vad no adequate punishment for those
Who Ia their individual capaaitT betTay.
I but for him WHO IN conspicuous rsprs-
sentative capacity manifests psrhdious
treAehery there l. punishmsnt almost ads-
/ quate to the crime.
| "Convsfsing With some dismal histO ians
1 OF hopeessness. With signal unnnimity they
I excuse thsif siAtemsnts anu seek TO Justify
| them by referring 10 our recent legisia-
tive ASSEMBLY,. Que or two OF ten in
I stances OF utter ami conspicuous TAI ute
would not iusufv 80 Wild aud violent "a de-
I duction. know how PAINFUL vas = single
+ phssr Of that legislative Il erieuce, hou It
humiliatfd our pfide anu imp q oar con-
l hdeure IN human nature. DO severe con-
I domination OF 70 can 10 g. mu ated thnn
I the fact / have intimsttd d. tnAt 80 many
I good men. because uf e. have iost their
fsith IA ths Institutions Of thrir countrT.