The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1897-05-10
POPULIST LAW MAKING
Senator Young Leading
Thinker Among POpulists.
Writes a Thoughtful Article on
the Populist Legislature.
Gives His Views on the Failure of
Many Measures and How Pres
ert Modes OF Legislation
Should be Rem sdied-

Senator Young of Independence, Kan
sas. who is one of the most advanced
students on public and sociological
questions and who was a member OF the
last legislature, writes of mis- expert
ences and draws some interesting con-
illusions The article appears in his pa
per. the Independence Star and Kansan.
His broad statement that representa-
tive government is failure rs unWaf-
ranted but many of his criticisms are
pointed and well taken. He says:
A brief legislative experience has con
WINGED me that our method OF making
laws is very poor one Representa-
tive government is certainly talIure;
After trial of more than hundred
years in this country, 1t means the
throwing together for a few weeks of
hundred or two of men from various
fields of business activity to practice an
art for which they are totally unprepar-
ed and unfitted-that of making laws.
The results are bad enough, OF course;
the only wonder is they are not worse
Things run along. very much in the the
the few have acquired to fleece the
many they retain If an attempt is
made to correct an abuse, It gener-
ally proves abOrtive because the doc
tors don't see what the effect of the
change in medicine is going to
be- The average legislator don't
know what he wants to do; and the fell
low who has a more or less clear idea
of the results he seeks, don't know how
to go to work to secure them. So law
making does not proceed on any Scten-
tifc principle, but after the fashion of
the quack. Something is wrong and the
thing done is to try a remedy and try
it quick. Often it makes conditions
worse than they were before, but this
gives an opportunity to suggest and ap-
ply more remedies next time with
the best intentions, a man who had
spent all his life at the anvil wOuldn
make successful printer. Nor would
the man who had grown gray practic-
ing law succeed in digging coal Ine
merchant who has bought and Sold
goods for years would be out OF place
beside the dentists chair Every otheE
business except that of lawmaklng Is
understood to require some previous
preparation, experience and study 10
qualify any one to pursue It. But eve
~ man is supposed, under our system
to come into life fully equipped to IN
dertake the most responsible duty IN
which it is possible to engage, on d mo
ment's notice. Indeed, never heard
of any one refusing a position in the
legislature because he had any doubt
as to his ability to NJ IL SatlsIac'oIlly
Time and again I have heard changes
in the laws proposed and advocated be-
cause laws were not enforced The idea
tbst the remedy for the failure of any
law to act is more law was one that
met me at every turn. The statute book
is full of enactments to which nobody
pays any attention. Why,if you should
conscientiously try to observe every law
and ordinance in force in your own
state and city, you would have to give
your entire time to the study of govern
nent regulations, and there are SO
many of them that are conflicting and
contradictory you could never be sure
you had succeeded. But when some one
finds out that a law he thinks ought to
be enforced remains a dead letter, the
first thing he does is to try to get the
legislature to pass another law to en-
force the one we already have. The
remedy for a useless law is always
more law.
! All bills are supposed to be carefully
considered by committees. AS a mat
| ter of fact they are not, nor can they
| be, in the limited time legislature sits.
Fifteen hundred bills We're introduced