Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1895-09-30
JUDGE RICE'S ADDRESS.



government is u sort of mutual aid society,
and that this is a benevolence exercised by
the municipal authorities by which under the
the forms of law your money is taken to edu-
cate the children of your more needy neigh
Dor, you are mistaken, for even he, especially
II he happens to be the owner of Il little prop
efty' contributes proportionately with you.
III II were beneVolence | question whether
government claiming as ours does, to secure
to the citizen the right to be guided by his
own Judgement and conscience in such mat
ters, could consistently make your property
contribute TO the education of your neighbors
chlldren merely because he was poorer than
you. The state is not charitable organiza-
tlon, ana although it does in one sense, spend
money profusely in the support of charities
yet in most cases it will be found that some
proper governmental purpose is served there
by. The command to feed the hungry, to
cothe the naked and to visit the sick and in
prison, was not given directly to society nor
10 the ciNil government, but to the individual.
He cannot wholly delegate nor fully perform
these duties by proxy. The vainglorious
pharisec gave tithes of all he possessed, and
in the performance of that legal duty he is
not to be dcspised but commended but il was
not his whole duty in the sight of God. The
official visitor to have the law provide for the
almshouse, the hospital and the prison, cannot
fulfill your obligation in the sight of Heaven,
even though you help to pay his salary by
public taxation. Neither the government nor
organized society can take your place in the
cultivation of those fields, wherein grow flow
ers to blossom in eternity. Their duties are
with the present, and relate to their own Sc
curity, power and perpetuity. But the prop
erty owner says: IF my contribution to pub
lie education is not an enforced charity, by
what right then does the state compel me to
cOufribltpp | hoN+a M n chi - nr
educate them cheaper at home" Or, ''I do
not care to have them educated, and therefore
| am paying for what / do not uae or per
chance for what l do not need" Neither in
this narrow and selfish sense does he need
courts, or officers of the law, or Il militia or n
standing army, or navy, for perchance no
one has wronged him in person or estate But
in larger and tTuer sense he does need the
schools, and needs them most of all in II gov
ernment like ours. The great enemy of prop
erty is ignorance, and the most deathly foe
of law and order is not the criminal propensity
but ignorance. 1t is ignorance which breeds
loose notions of the rights of property. 1t is
ignorance which mades riots possible. 1t is
ignorance, and not lack of patriotism, which
leads men to set aside the law as means of
redressing grievances and to resort to fruitlcss
violence. Ignorance is the great foe that pro
perty and good order have to fear in II govern
'''' VI '"' P''PIc' hecauec thcrc IL teuus 10
fit men to appreciate and enjoy the blessings
vi llpcrtI' because IL is III the interest oil good
order and for the protection of private rights
the state in the brOadest wisdom, not in mere
spirit of bencVolcnce, has established the COM
ino" sohoo' Whcreiil siiail De carried on never
Cousins u'4u Hh''l'3 W pe suctcSslul '"arlare
"E,''"'' '"',i 'oAi'aioii ioc' ihcre are III Ihe
I""s anu plls"hs Oh Ihe commonwealth nun
"icus Vi ineh rcS'raiheu Oh thelf liberty that
i
S"ur persohs anu property may pe secure
i'"in 'nclr niaiice OF cupioi'y. YOU pay TO
,i'i,'.'i 'n'oo i'i9'i'ut'oi's a.'u nave no uonpt
'''' !" rs W S'ui 'ii.cfcs. 10 uo So but therc
~ i'i '"' t'TS pu"lo 9on"o' Vi the sti'e near
iuiiiioli oi'l'ureh' VINO Ill 'he near future VIII
w w 'l'e eicileiil III grown society
- no' tG''9' sun Ms i'o' result OF thelr
'c'on'"s une! are leariiIhe 'ho uuty OF opeai-
nv w Ia" "itu iespco' loi your rishts. smut
w u''i V, t''cSe sSlooiS, schu thc chllurch
'''iu "'''!' '''' 'i"pic 'rl''S vi 'c"'ncfs
WI" are c""'cliune aealhst your common zoe,
anu II W." Ho' re 'ohe peiore your properly
anu ~, 'nc ,'S nus ou noil most uear can only
" p.p''V.'u ~ d lorTe "iich III ti'e emu must
,c',Hio" ""u Suppiaht the government OF
WHICH WHICH ou 50 iiiuch ooaSt' nave spoken OF
@ ttoi",ce , us 'he particular enemy "nlch prop
Iiu9 iiI"t9 nave W iear' put thc worst
"'"oio's '''' van cAist uiluet Tree govern
'N''' - "''""p"i9 VI io'ihihs' Nohe more
'''"" 'iio I",iiii'h Peopie are ihtercstcu III the
V'"' 'lii uo'"l VI hio" ieuge. huuc'tloh Is
tne ooS' weapon WIN "hich Ihey can arm
g ''s s"iisl .he CUNNING the arrogance
"t't " 'nc "'ii"'.'ol Oh "hscrupulous men, VINO,
II not io9'it'i' ~ "ou!u ctIthli lhcir hpertles
anu e'lcro'cn upon their rights
i'"'"'ioi' ii'nS ioV pe tiic h'huhlhid Oh VIZ
tuc' amy more thou ignorance Is the hhndmaid
VI VICE. pit euue"o'oh Is the hahdmald OF
h"cr'a anu ignorance Is inc hhluhlld OF des-
P"'lsih' huucalloh OF the lhdlNldual may not
make MN hohest OF Nirtuous, but the cduca-
tloh Oh the masses TENDS to make them irce-
aoll-ioNhls ana law-apldlhg' Education tends
10 these results because thereby men come to
appreciate the real dignity OF human nature,
ana thclf capacity Tor self-goVernmcnt, be-
cause II ASSISTS 10 ht them to exercise Judge
meht' ana not mere passion or prejudice, upon
those questions ol policy or principle, which
lhey must decide by their ballots and intiu-
ehce, because men who reason must know
that II popular government is Just what the
wnlIl1 n