The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1895-03-01
Jasper INDIANA. FRIDAY. MARCH I. 1895.

not upon the honored dead or the
generations yet unbornY IL
II Jefferson could to-day revisit
the people he loved SO we'll, or ii.
those we call the dead are permitted
to be troubled with the affairs OF
the living, what would he think OF
the nation he helped to establish
and whose independence he put as
a message Of inspiration upon the
pages Of history, il he should hnd
70, ,OOO, 600 Of people, with CONT
nent for their inheritance, with IN.
exhaustible resources OF soil and OF
mines and Of forest, and yet one
half of the wealth of such a country
owned by less than $4,000 people,
and financially manipulated by al
, dozen men, who can at their pleas
/ ure control the currency OF the|
whole land and exact from the peo.
E ole such terms as they choose?
I And vet this is precisely the condi-
r ton jefferson would find should ne
r revisit the earth to-day. In this
: country the people rule, not only in
J. theory, but in fact. Theirs is the
) power and theirs is the responsible
!, itv, and this condition has come
IS about because a very large part Of
It the citizens of America fail utterly
r to realize that their citizenship i'm
N poses on them any binding obliga
,e ton whatever.
J. The blessings of citizenship the.
to enjoy as they do the sun in tn
heavens or the air that surround
e, them. They ease their consciences
IT, if perchance it ever troubles them
s. by saving we have no time to thin
tn Of public matters. They leave pol
nv itics, as they call it, to the pollt
ne clans, as they call them. Vote,
,at entirely convenient and nothin
ew better TO do. Indeed, they prld
,pt themselves upon the fact that the
be are better than their neighbor. :.
ms, In a recent issue Of the EvenlI
It'll News, of this city, based on Il
till authority Of the New York Time
alb it was editorially stated that at y
, of last election in eleven states OF II
in union there we're more than 5OO,V
,ro- voters who did not vote as comps
ed with the election Of 1892. d
the many did not vote in 1892, or WI
phv was the natural increase from ls
oor- to 1894, is not stated, but the sta
It ment as it stands is bad enout
ade That in eleven states more tn
lar. 500, 900 American citizens declir
,sti- to assist in determining the pol
lied Of their country. Declined TO I
opt fill their obligations as citizens, P
ople sumably because either they tor
late it, or found some. hing more cong
tory ial to do, or perhaps as the labor
! Of Of old, if they told the trnth u
Glib would say, 1--WE did not vote
ern- cause no man had hired u.s." !
i've statement was made only as
eirs. eleven states, and if the staten
ance Is correct, as have no doubt it
stion then it is entirely probable that
ntry, this country considerably more u
will / 600, 600 men failed to discha
ome. the highest duty Of a citizen
made November. 1t may be said
Ives. many of this vast army OF ,OOO,
/ to men did not vote because they
sired to rebuke this party, or
theirs party, by staying away from
us, poles. The obligation OF citizens
,ioy?is a positive Obligation. Some
peak Of the many parties must n
omas nearly represent the no
lara opinions Of an honest n
man and no citizen can escape the
with sponsibility Of studying to forn
and honest Judgment, and OF supper
est in with ali his might that party W
} has principles he finds more nearly
his resented in the constitution o.
,stant country and in the republic
at ne came from the fathers. If his
there science and judgment will not
y and nit him to do this, then he hi
et us right to be an American citizen
intel he should move to some other
equit- where classes are sun Iecosn'i'
Let law, where the importance OF
ali be as man is not recognized, wher
with inalienable rights Of man simpl
.ct All cause he is a man are not
and claimed in a declc ration OF
.;t;zen lpendence and moulded into a
given stitution, making such repub
\ andIis painted in the glowing wo1
,rtnnes Jefferson which have read "a
eonal I believe it would be for the 8
our land to make it an offense
titution ishable by law for a legal vt
yr;tten fail to vote unless his excu
such failure be sufficiently str
> heri. relieve him from jury service
rations. he be regularly drawn: 70,
. obli-lbe very certain the class o.