The advocate., 1895-08-07

Vidual happiness but secure it by making the world
he lives in happy, so that he may be happy in
happy world. So l think natures chief social laws
are, that every one shall so live and act that, were
all to live and act as he does we should have the
millennium and that everyone shall do his utmost to
inform others of this law and induce all to live and
act in this way The first of these laws the Golden
Rule as Christ meant it. Had the great men of the
Revolution taught these two laws to the people as
earnestly as they taught mere resistance to taxation
the people would not now be setting up a new law.
making Contrivsnce, but would be dispensing en-
tirely with human lawgiVers, being convinced that
Gods laws might be trusted to be ample if
obeyed"
"By Heaven, sir, all this three weeks of debate
begins to look paltry to me, sir. Even the ReVOlu-
tion seems murderous play. God Almighty must
be patient, sir, to put up with the antics Of we
damned fool men. l am disgusted, sir"
'All through this great debate one thought has
been uppermost in my mind; thought which has
tended to make me melancholy. 1t is that all the
splendid energies of such men as Patrick Henry are
wasted upon an unworthy object, What is it the
opponents of this new Constitution fearP Not the
Constitution That is only lifeless, inert ink and
paper, incapable of either harm or good What they
really fear is the character OF the men who may con-
Sttute the new governments for their character will
develop the real Constitution. The men set to rule
the country will have their views and will endeaVOr
to make those views prevail; and whatever views
do prevail will be the Constitution. The notions of
the rulers will not be made to adapt themselves to
those written words, but those written words will
be made to adapt themselves to the notions of the
rulers. In order to accomplish tha the man at the
head of the government must represent the views of
majority of the people, or minority possessed of
the prepondersting influence in the country. In
Short my friends, your government and its nstitu-
tions will be in exact accordance with the prevailing
political philosophy of the land. So, what the anti
Federals really fear is the phjIoSophg adopted by
the people, To be more specific: If to get rich be the
general object of the people, it will be the general
object of their government to further that ambition
and your administration of affairs will be sordid-
mercenary Laws will be made to favor wealth;
courts will favor wealth; the army will be used to
protect wealth. If the prevailing philosophy should
be, that all have equal rights to the enjoyment Of
natures resources and the inventions of man, your
government will protect those resources and inVen-
tiOns against all attempts at monopOlizing them;
the courts will scrupulOusly guard Gods common
from engrossment the army will be used to protect
men in the actual occupation, not in the monopoly
of the EARTH
"For, depend upon it, the wisest and best will
never be called to rule any people under any form of
government yet devised. The chosen rulers of a
country have always represented the current views,
instincts and desires of the aoeage people of that
country. Shakespeare has taught us to look upon
Richard III. as q monster. But was he so regarded
by the average Briton of his timeP Walpole has
been denounced as a most corrupt Prime Minister,
who secured the return of members of the Commons
by hardly concealed bribery. Yethe retained power
by the will of the people during period of twenty
years. If he retained his place by bribery, what of
those he bribed? Actual facts, plain. facts, too,
show that he fairly represented the Average con-
science Of his countrymen. The best evidence of
this is that when the people reformed, Wspole's
ministry ended. Who oVerthrew the great corrup-
IL TAYLgA Ia TTs-A