Iron County register., 1900-02-22

added to her former title Empress of
India Under the English theory of
government power descends from the
throne, and the subject exercises such
authority as the sovereign snrrenders
to him.
''Such q government can govern the
people of England in one way, the
people of Ireland in another way, the
people of Canada in another way, and
the people of India in still another
and different way; in this country,
however, power emanates from the
people, and authority is conferred by
the people upon those who, from time
to time, hold office.
THE constitution created the Office
of chief executive, granted authority
to the occupant of the office and strict
ly defined and limited his powers. To
say that he can exercise power not
conferred by the constitution is to
say that the creature is greater than
the creator.
when the president of congress
does anything which is unauthorized
the thing done can not be called
law, because law is the act of the
people or of their representative act
ing within the limit of authority. An
unauthorized act of a public servant is
personal and individual.
"In an unlimited monarchy the
monarch can do anything that he has
the physical power to do. In a re-
public an official can do only what the
people authorize him to do. Constitu-
tions are of no avail if they can be set
aside as those who temporarily hold
the offices created by constitutions.
ITO impose upon the people of Por-
to Rico such taxes as congress may
determine when the people of Porto
Rico have no representative in con-
gress is to assert either that taxation
without representation is right or
that it is wise for us to do wrong.
IF the people of the United States
wish to enter upon career of empire
and possess the physical force neces-
sary for such a career, they need not
consult the constitution at all, be-
cause force knows no law. The
strongest nation has the physical right
{if the word right can be used in
such n connection) to do what it
pleases, but the people of this nation
have never decided to enter upon an
imperial career.
when the present congress was
elected in November, 1898, the treaty
with Spain had not been signed, and
therefore the question of Imperialism
could not have been presented to the
voters.
''If the republican leaders in con-
gress act without authority from the
constitution they must do so with
full recognition of the fact that the
people who make constitutions and
who elect public officials will have
chance to speak before a republic is
converted into an empire.
uniformity in our tax laws is not
only legally necessary, but it is wise.
Unless the people of Porto Rico share
in the benefits as well as the burdens
OF our laws they have no protection
whatever against injustice and oppres-
sion.
The president in his message to
congress said:
Our plain duty is to abolish all
customs taziffs between the United
States and Porto Rico and give her
products free access to our markets.
'1t is fortunate for the American
people that they have an early oppor-
tuiity to measure the weakness of the
highest considerations of justice and
gcc,s faith and our plain duty
wfe, they come into conflict with the
PEI s0nal and pecuniary interests #
people in this country who can make
their influence felt in campaigns.
'Sop; etimes it is difficult to deter
mine what IS ones duty in trying
position. but plain duty such as
the president describes, ought not to
be abandoned unless it conflicts with
manifest destiny which, in the opin-
icn of imperialists, rises superior to
duty, moral or political, no matter how
plain that duty is.
IF all annexed territory is given
territorial form of government with
the understanding that the territorial
fern is merely a preparation for COM
plete statehood, then no annexation
VIII be tolerated unless the people who
arc to come in are capable of sharing
in the full destiny of our people.
''In annexation two questions are TO