Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1897-10-01
Majority Rule.

In a Democracy, where the maJoNty
| is assumed to rule, to be in reality the
governing power, there should De no
power, no law, no privilege, no prece-
dent. no constitutional or other legisla-
tive enactment that for moment
A., should stand between that majority
! and the exercise of that power-assum-
ing, of course, it is just power to De
Justly exercised No man, no set OF
men, no president, no house, no senate,
no lobby, no Judge, no court OF one nor
of five or ten, or of more or less judges
should stand between the majority and
it's Just wish and desire. IT, then, the
majority should rule, the people should
have an opportunity to express them
selves on any and all legislation pro-
posed under such form Of government.
In other words, every proposed law
should first be submitted to the people
for their scrutiny, consideration, APP
prevail or rejection. In order to KNOW
within what bounds they must be held,
a construction embodying certain well
known and accepted principles, defin-
ing the rights of each and every lndl-
yidual, should be established, and no
proposed law should be submitted for
the peoples rejection or approval that
did not clearly and without ambiguity
show forth its conformity to these
guaranteed constitutional prerogatives.
Today, at this time, and, in fact, at
no time in the history of these United
States of America, have such preroga-
tives ever been exercised by the peo-
ple as would or could have given them
government by the people and for
the people. This Is broad, sweep
ing. and to some it will appear an as
founding statement, but it is true, new
ertheless. The Declaration OF lnde-
pendence loftily declared all men were
born free and equal, but the constitu-
ton Of the United States, adopted Ia
ter, annulled that grand declaration
and left a great mass of its population
NEARLY 20 per cent? without its pale
and beyond its recognition. 1t provided
who should vote, for representative
form of government, with house and
senate. presidential veto power and a
possible supreme court review OF all,
said court having the power to annul
all that the house, senate, president or
any state might do, and thus were the
liberties, rights and privileges of the
people cunningly curtailed at the very
threshold of our national existence.
The situation may be represented by
funnel. The big end represents the
people and the ballot; the narrowing
down of the funnel the representative
form of government; and the supreme
court, with its power greater than any
majority in the land, the small end of
the same; and that is Democracy, and
democratic government as we have it
today. Men strut up to the polls on
election day. beguiled into the belief
that they are Democratic kings, Re-
publican monarchs, by their act mould
ing, shaping, directing and controlling
the destinies of the nation In minor
matters they perhaps have as much to
say as ever they did. In important
legislation they are represented to the
extent only Of the courage, honesty
and integrity of helpless minority.
What we want is majority rule-some-
thing we never had-and a new con-
stitution that guarantees it. That is
what the Blade favors and it will try
to make it the next issue in the next
and in every other campaign until it
The Blade is willing, within proper lin
its, to trust the majority, even if the
aristocratic Tories and other selfish in
terests of 1887 were not.-E. d. Nc
Graw in Oceanside (Cal) Blade.