The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-09-14
ATTORNEY GENERAL HARMON'S
LETTER.

A letter from the Acknowledgements of
political campaign wherein the rights
OF the states and of the general gov
eminent are concerned is always an
important document. Such a letter At
torney-General Harmon has written.
He takes as his text Mr. Bryan's letter
of acceptance and disagrees with him
very radically. He says that Mr.
Bryan indicts the wisdom Of the franz
ers of the constitution by declaring
that the local authorities ARE better
qualified than the president to judge
of the necessity for federal assistance.
This in the attorney-generaPs judg-
ment, is a far more serious matter than
any money question or any of the
other questions now before the people.
AS to the Importance of the question
we are in full accord with the attorney
general, but we must dissent in every
particular from what he says about
Mr.. Bryan indicting the wisdom of the
trainers of the constitution. Mr.. Bry-
ans view of the case is as sound De
mocracy as anything that Thomas JEFF
ferson or Andrew Jackson ever said
or wrote. What does Mr.. Bryan say?
He says: Our revolutionary fathers,
fearing the tendencies towards cen
tralization, as well as the dangers of
disintegration, guarded against both,
and national safety as well as domestic
security, is to be found in the careful
observance of the limitations which
they impose. It viii be noticed that,
while the United States guarantees to
every state republican form of gov
eminent, and is empowered to protect
each state against invasion, it is not
authorized to interfere in the domestic
affairs of any state except upon appli-
cation of the legislature of the state,
or upon the application of the execu-
tive. when the legislature cannot be
convened"
There can be no sounder Democracy
than that 1t may be said that that
doctrine is the very corner stone of the
Democratic theory of our federal gov
eminent. BY way of illustration, it
may be said to be the theory of draw
ing a jury from the vicinage. In the
very nature of things the state, or
local, authorities must know when
matters have passed beyond their con-
troll better than the federal authorities
can If Mr.. Harmon is right in his
theory, then it is competent for the
federal government to interfere with
strictly state affairs whenever it
chooses. It is the right to play the
part Of the tyrant whenever it may
choose, using any pretext it pleases
Mr.. Harmon. for a man who claims
to be a Democrat, takes a very strange
view of the power of the general gov
eminent. He says: According to
Bryan, there is somewhere implied in
the constitution, for it is nowhere ex-
pressed, a prohibition of the use of
force by the United States against per-
sons who, within the limits of a state
may be successfully resisting its Of
ficers and completely paraIyzing all its
operations as q government, unless the
local authorities shall first make re-
quest or give consent" According to
Mr.. Bryan and all Democrats, whose
names carry the weight OF authority
with them, from the days of Jefferson
down the general government has no
powers but those which are expressly
conferred upon it by the constitution.
According TO Mr.. Harmon the general
government possesses all powers which
are not prohibited TO ii by the consti-
tuition.
There is nowhere in Mr.. Bryan's let
ter of acceptance anything whatever
to warrant Mr.. Harmon in saying that
Mr.. Bryan holds the doctrine that the
law of July %, 1861 OR. S. section 529S,
cited by Mr.. Harmony, is unconstitu-
tional. He particularly mentions this,
to Democrats, indisputable and con-
stitutional fact that the general gov
eminent is not authorized to inter
fere in the domestic affairs of any state
except upon application of the legisla-
ture of the state or upon the applica-
ton of the executive. when the legisla-
ture cannot convene" He stands by
the tenth amendment to the constitu-
ton. Mr.. Harmon's citation of sections
5297 and 1898 of the revised statutes of
the United States upholds Mr.. Bryan's
position and refutes his own theory.
His whole letter seems to be the jun
bled production of a disordered brain.
He has permitted his passion for writ
ing poetry to seriously interfere with
his acquisition Of legal lore.