The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1899-08-27

was elsewhere unparalleled In history.
This was q great contamination. as was
also the substantial recognition reeogni-
ton OF the rule Of Law IN every part OF
the Union Furthermore. Americans had
achieved. In an incredibly short space Of
time the complete abatement OF the
worst sort Of bitter feelings ordinarily 50
persistent and ineradicable after sang1i-
nary civil strife.
As to the defects in the working OF the
American constitution. these attached.
said Prof. Dicey. partly to circumstances
and in some degree 10 the constitution IT.
self. Circumstances had been most ia
vorable at the outset. but the strain OF 3
sort Of world invasion had been sudden
and severe, with results Of mixed good
and evil A trend toward a somewhat
exclusive interest In the greater concerns
OF the nation at large. 10 the neglect OF
local and state issues. had been accen-
tuated unhappily b. the unscrupulous
naturalization OF raw and ignorant inlmi-
grants, often OF more than questionable
antecedents. Then, also. there was the
custom inherent in various constitutional
provisions OF requiring thai a member.
whether OF congress or OF state iegis-
lature. or even OF the city boards Of al
deruaen. should be eligible only By his Inn
mediate nelghbors. No congressional dis
trict could be represented BY a member
whose residents was outside OF the mar
row limits Of the district. Apply such a
rule retrospectiveIy In England. and that
remarkable group OF reforming Whigs
who lived mainly in Edinburgh. founded
the Edinburg Review. and got them
elves elected to represent various Dor
oughs not in Edinburgh and many OF
them bearing the unsavory title OF Rot
ten Boroughs. could never have come to
the front. could never have carried
through that program OF necessary re-
form upon which the present soundness
OF the English constitution so largely de-
pended.
Inherent In the constitution OF America
were also several serious defects. which
could be summary connected with wha.
might be called its unresponsiveness. Its
wise trainers. fresh from the abuse OF
power at their expense by George III,
nurtured in traditions full OF analogous
abuses of power IN colonies by i-respon-
and other emissaries under the preroga-
tive, had devised a system OF checks and
balances which effectually hampered the
various powers OF their body polite But
in sthe working Of their system. respon-
sibllity had disappeared along with all
possibility OF the abuse OF power Hence
arose a situation in which the govern
ment at Washington did not feel re-
spOnsible for the acts OF the government
of say Illinois. while In Illinois neces-
sary acts of government IN the local In
terest were hampered and suspended I'm
a vague expectation Of interference from
Washington. In the matter of taxation.
there was an entire lack Of any provis-
lon making 1t any ones duty to consider
the whole amount OF taxation imposed
upon the people. Congress dealt with
Federal taxes. while the several states
imposed such local taxes as they deemed
necessary. The prevalence CT lynchIng
and the small proportion Of actual con-
victions FOR murder, az well as the alarm
ing frequency Of homicide. we're then adj
verted to In feeling terms. The lecturer
closed by limiting that the one thing most
Indispensable for Fighting the most gIar-
ing wrongs now made possible by the
working OF the American constitution,
was some modification Of those eonstitu-
tional provisions requiring those who re-
ceived political Office by popular election
to be actually resident in the district that
elects them. The good men and true are
there in America: let them be brought To
the front as they were when the constl-
tuition was framed. and eTectual RENE
dies will not be far 70 seek