Gardnerville record. (Gardnerville, Nev.) 1898-1902, 1898-09-20
The Peoples Freedom.
DR.. Franklin Discusses the Ques-
tion In An Interesting Manner.

tion In An Interesting Manner.
The great teacher announced to his
deciples that the truth will make you
free; and we are also informed by the
sacred scriptures that il you believe a
lie you will be damned. / am not an
anarchist; I believe in law He only is
free who obeys the laws Of the universe,
and the laws of his own constitution.
Whoever wilfully or ignorantly disobeys
any law of the universe suffers the pen
atty as means OF convincing him of his
mistake. We are social beings organized
into practical bodies and hence We must
have laws to govern us in our relations
to each other. IL those laws are just,
obedience to them gives freedom, and he
alone is free, or deserves to be, who obeys
all the inst laws OF the State.
There are two forms of government
despotism and democracy. Despotism is
paternalistic. and democracy is fraternal-
istic Under the one the people are ruled
by King or Patriarch, under the other
they govern themselves by laws made by
themselves in their capacity as body
polite. II King is wise and benefic-
lent he governs his subjects by just laws
If in democracy the people are wise
and moral they make just laws for the
government of themselves Our revolu-
tionary fathers rebelled against the pat
ernalistie government OF Great Britain
and won their right to govern themselves.
Alexander Hamilton and other con-
servative men did not believe the people
capable OF self government. Hamilton
said: III democracy is founded, the
ignorant voters will be controlled by
shrewd and selfish politicians and the
government will become corrupt and I'M
just 10 the last degree Jefferson had
faith in the people He believed that
they would maintain their freedom and
independence; that through their repre-
sentatives in the government they would
make just laws securing equal rights to
all and special privileges TO none.
Hamilton's views prevailed so greatly
IN the constitutional convention that the
American republic has more of monarchy
than democracy in its fundamental law.
There are four departments Of the
government. A house of Representatives
elected by the people, Senate elected
by the Legislatures of the States, a Presi-
dent chosen by the Electoral College and
a Supreme Court, the members of which,
are appointed by the President The
only democratic feature about it is found
in the House OF Representatives. Even
members OF Congress are nominated by
caucuses controlled by politicians and
the people can only vote for such as are
nominated, hence the people have very
little to do with governing themselves.
If Congress passes an Act, the Senate
can defeat it. If the Senate concurs, the
President can veto it, but should the
President concur and the Act become a
law, the Supreme Court can declare it
unconstitutional at will and thus defeat
the peoples effort to govern themselves.
These facts being true the question, Are
we free peoples is a pertinent one.
But this is not the worst feature OF our
system of government A large majority
of bills introduced into Congress and
nearly all OF those which pass that body
are prepared by lobbyists who represent
rings, combines, corporations, trusts, etc.,
who are paid to concoct schemes, have
them introduced into and lobby them
through in the interest Of employers and
against the interest of the great masses
of the people. A striking illustration of
this is found in the Medical legislation OF
the various States and also of the Ma
tional Medical rings composed of physi-
clans who desire monopoly OF prlvli-
eges of the profession and OF the profits
arising from the profession, prepare bills
and on the pretense that they are in the
interest of the people to protect them
against quaekery, they get them passed
through the legislatures. The assump-
ton that these medical statutes are for
the purpose of protecting the people
against quacks is absurd.
Medicine is not a science, hence all
physicians are quacks, meaning by the
term, quacks, experimenters or pretenders
to knowledge they do not possess. Some
are learned quacks while others are I'M
/ learned quacks, but the learned illustrate
the humorism of Josh Billings who said
"What is the use of knowing 80 much il
what you know is not So" They belong
to the class that Mark Twain referred to
who make the accumulation of Ignorance
the business OF their lives. My obser-
yations have convinced me that as rule
the learned quack is more dangerous to
the lives of patients than the less learned
for he takes more risks. He il more
reckless in the dispensing of poisons, and
besides he is in ring OF quacks who pro
tect each other against the legal conse
ouences of their blunders. The objec
of such laws is to give monopoly to thu
doctors who are in the ring and to out
law oil Others. In the language OF Prof
James of Harvard NJ dical College it is 9
system OF medical -unionism un
der authority of law. The effect of thi'
is to prevent progress in medicine, it II
therefore the enemy Of science. 1t de
nies the right to the people of choosing