Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1900-06-28
IRONTON, MO. THURSDAY. J
Rights and the Genera
Welfare.

promoted by the sacrifice of individu;
rights. This is contrary to a widel
prevalent idea, but it is the truth.
is impossible to separate the geners
welfare from the individual welfare
or individual welfare from individus
rights. The individual is not touche
through the masses, but the masse
through individuals. Whatever work
iagainst the individuals cannot fail
work against the masses.
This is not saying that the circum
stances of all individuals must be tn
same, Or denying the necessity of Ger
tain restrictions upon individuals TO
| the public good. 1t is only denyin;
the idea that the public welfare ma,
be something quite apart and essen
TALLY different from individual welfare
so that individual rights nigh: in som
cases be utterly set aside under the
plea of public necessity. The DANCE
is that people may be educated" t,
| the point of accepting this idea, anC
thus the barrier of public sentiment b.
removed from the pathway of mis-
guided zealots who would stop at moth
ing in their efforts to bring about Ger
tain moral reforms through which the,
imagine themselves divinely commits
stoned to save the nation.
Rome was greatest when the 1ndivid
ual Roman was most exalted by tht
privileges OTTOMAN citizenship. Eng
lands greatness dated from her Magma
Charta, which declared for the individ
ual rights and liberties Of the barons
and marked the dawning of the day O
individual liberty for all the people
The United States rose to greatness by
giving to the world the Declaration oI
independence, championing the cause
of the individual against the govern
ment, which under the plea of the
general welfare" or any other plea
would deprive HIM of his inalienable
rights of ''life, liberty and the pursuit
of happiness" The love of liberty has
ever been the chief factor in promoting
national greatness, and the love OF lib
erty is always the love of Individual
liberty On the other hand, the denial
of individual liberty under despotic
governments has always been defended
by the plea that it was necessary to
promote the welfare of the nation.
This is the way of the Russian govern
ment to-day and of other despotic gov
ernments that might be named. In
Spain, individual rights have been SO
long subordinated to the general well
fare that the nation is far advanced on
the road to. extinction and it's evident
decay is subject of general comment.
In every despotic government, the peo-
pie must sooner or later assert their
individual rights through revolution,
or the Individual spirit which animates
men to perform heroic deeds in the
name Of liberty must die out under the
crushing heel of the oppressor, and
decay seize upon the system from
which the life spirit has departed.
The protection of Individual rights
is for the individual welfare, and this
conservation of the individual welfare
directly promotes the general welfare.
The two can never be in antagonism to
each other. But once the line is drawn
between the rights of one individual
and the general welfare, the way is
open for debarring the rights of other
individuals, and there is no logical
stopping place short of the worst sys-
TENS of despotism which the world
has known.
The general welfare" is always the
sum total of Individual welfare, and
the body polite may be affected
throughout by the injury done to sim
gle member of it. Deny the rights of
one member and a blow is struck at
the rights of all. Promote the welfare
of one, and the good that is realized
flows out in blessing upon others.
Leave every individual free to enjoy
his God-given rights and thus to pro-
mote his own welfare, and the highest
state of the general welfare must be
the natural result. of Liberty.