Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1897-09-16

The Rev. Alfred Wishart of the Contra
Baptist church, Trenton, last Sunday night
uttered some wholesome truths on the sub
ject of Constitution mending that will com
mend themselves to thoughtful people.
To make clear his position Rev. Mr.. Wish
art called attention to the character of our
government. He said that it is Democratic
so far as its laws are made directly by the
people at the polls, and Republican so far as
they are made by representatives of the
people, elected by them. TWAS now becom
ing less republican through the tendency tt
restrict the powers of the Legislature and to
enlarge the scope of the constitution, which
is the direct work of the people.
."What is the cause of this political
phenomenon" he asked, and gave the
answer, "We do not trust our Legislators. =
He showed that these Legislators were
elected by the same persons as make the
constitution and declared it to be ian appeal
from phillip drunk to Phillip sober"
IF the voter cannot stay sober long
enough to elect his representatives, how
long will it be before he cannot stay sober
long enough to adoptan amendment to the
cOnSGltuIlOn, was his query.
| He claimed futher that it was putting a
premium on public indifference to the
election of Legislators. Instead of endeavor-
ing to send good men there, the idea was
to send any kind and then fl the constitu-
tion SO that they could not do wrong.
If the people were willing to give up q
republican form of government, this would
be all right, only they should give up the
legislature as a needless expense.
In regard to the claim that it would take
continual fighting to keep the anti-gambling
law on the statue book, he said this was be-
cause we sent bad men to the Legislature
instead of seeing that none such got there.
1.-THE amendment were defeated and the
defeat aroused good men to attend the
primaries and to see that good men were
elected to the legislature it would be q
blessing.
1--WE 90 on piling up legislative restric-
tions and grow more Indifferent every day
to the bossism of the corner loafer."
"The movement is another evidence that
we have given over the state capitol to the
devil and now want to chain him in the
easiest, laz lest way possible that he will
not do any harIu," was his terse way OF
describing it.
| He claimed that it was wrong to the
young man to bring them up with the creed
that the Legislators we elect areso bad that
we can't trust them He futher argued
that blow at the assembly and senate
fell on the people of the state. 1t was all
nonsense to say that they did not represent
the sentiment of the people who put them
there.
Rev. Mr. Wishart held that to degrade
the legislature was to overthrow represen-
tive government and to bring about the
uprising of Caesar.
Few good men care to 60 to the legislat-
ure now, and fewer would care to 60 there
if it were stripped of what power it now
possesses. The course pursued should be
to hold it up, to dignity it more and more,
and there would then be no need of race
track amendments. There were too many
respectable citizens now excusing them
selves from their duty as patriots. They
should be willing to meet the race track
people every year if needed. 1t would
arouse more patriotism. Continual pro-
hibition of the saloon in Kansas and Maine,
when it could not be enforced all over the
state, had brought disgrace to their con-
stitution.
In conclusion, the speaker said that he
did not want to c0erce his hearers to vote
either for OF against the amendment. They
would have to do as their c0nsciences die
tated. He did not know which way he
would vote. He was afraid his distinc-
tions would not be appreciated, and that he
would be charged with supporting the
gamblers if he voted against it. If he
voted for it he would have to vote for an