Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1901-01-11
The Rights OF Man.

Reason and liberty In human gov
eminent are what ArchemileS said of
mechanical power which he asserted
"if we had place on which to stand,
we might raise the world.
In civil government that place to
stand upon was given to mankind I'M
the formation of the government of
the United State and in its immortal
declaration of the rights OF man as
against the assumed "divine right
or Finss -pEinces, potautates and OF
all others assuming the right to rule
by divine authority. In Europe, Asia
and Africa freedom had been hunted
until to reason was considered rebel
lion, and the slavery of fear had made
men afraid to think. So deeply root
ed were all the governments of the
old world and 50 thoroughly had the
antiquity of habit established itself
over the human mind that no begin
ming could be made to assert the
rights of man except upon the newly
discovered continent OF America.
In casting our eye over the world it
is not difficult to distinguish the gov
ernments which have arisen out Of
society and those which have not.
Those which have arisen out of the
social compact recognize the rights OF
man. All governments that the
world has known have arisen from one
or the other of the following sources.
First, Superstition.
Second, Usurpation, power.
: Third, The common interests Of
society, and the rights OF man.
The first was a government Of
pricstcraft with pretense of being
founded III divine right.
The second, a government of con-
querors through the medium of war
and conquest, the usurping ruler as
sorting his divine right TO rule the
subjugated people and provinces.
The third is goyernmentofr reason
that recognizes the divine right O
the individual man. ss--r
la the aesAaef Supers tition set o.
aTtful men pretended through the
medium of oracies, to hold intercourse
with the diety as Familiarity as they
now march up the back stairs lie
European courts, and mankind wa!
governed by superstition. Whateve,
the oracleS were made to say was tht
la@,and this rt of government laStec
as long as the superstition lasted
After these came a rrce of lawgiveF
whose government was founded ii
power and the sword assumed tn
name of the sceptre. Government
thus established last as long as TIL
~ power to maintain them lasts, br
that the ones in authority mightava
themselves of every engine in thei
favor they united fraud with fore
and set up the idol of divine right
Through this the christian religio
was twisted into another shape calle
church and state and the key to heaN
en- and to the treasury became quartz
ed in the same hands and the wonde
ing, cheated multitude worshiped I'll
invention.
In tracing governments to the
origin we shall readily discover TIL
they have arisen either out of tt
people or over the people. If it hi
arisen out of the people it will have
constitution defining and limiting i
power. A constitution is not thir
in name only as in monarchical go
ernments, but a fact. 1t is antec
dent to government and the COVER
ment is only its creation. 1t is nj
the act of the government but of tt
people constituting the governmer
1T ignores the doctrine of the divi
rightof rulers TEMPORAL or spiritur
and secures to eyerv individual peril
religious freedom, and every polite
right not Inconsistent with the ci'
and political right of his fellow MAI
1t is too late in the twentieth &c
fury for one man to assert the divi
Eiaht to rule over another a
he who attempts it is simp
wasting his time in attempting to
give a doctrine SO repulsive.