The Butler weekly times. (Butler, Mo.) 1881-1918, 1903-09-17
Speech Delivered by Hon.
Joseph w. Folk
lAtShelbyville, ON Saturday, Sep.
TENDER IL, 1908, to a Crowded.
Eight Thousand People.

sGod and man. We nave no Tear OF the
knife which is probing for boodlers.
We have good government, honest off,
cials and an empty jail.
There is not a man, woman or child
> Is this county who does not seek to
honor the greatest exponent of good
government, not only of Missouri and
tine United States, but of the world.
This county is in sympathy with this
work in the past and in the present,
and is with him in his fight against the
.boodlers.
1T is said by some that this is the
doodle state, but certainly We have a
man who stands up and enforces the
law against those who put him in Of
flee. He had friends who told him,
Don't do it. The corporations said,
Don't do it, but he did 1t.
81 now present this man, Circuit At
torney Joseph W. Folk Of St. Louis"
Sucn was part of the introduction
which Mr.. Folk received Saturday at
the hands of Congressman James I.
Lloyd of the First district, who pre-
sided over the sixteenth annual reunion
of the old settlers of Shelby county.
Mr. Folk spoke as follows:
1t has been 60 years since the first
term of the circuit court in Shelby
county. The grand jury evidently
could find no wrongdoing, for no in
dictments were returned. At the next
term a number of the citizens Of the
county were charged with betting on
horses" an offense evidently very COM
mon in those days. Judge from that,
those early settlers were from Ken
lucky or Tennessee. The county has
been remarkably free from serious
crimes, an evidence of high order OF
citizenship and OF good government.
Thomas Jefferson once said; THE
time to guard against corruption is
before it shall have gotten hold of us.
1t is better to keep the wolf out of
the fold than to trust drawing his
teeth and talons after he shall have
entered" The people must be con-
stantly on the alert to keep corrup
ton out. Whenever the people be-
come inattentive to public affairs, cor
ruption follows as a logical conse-
quence. Under our form of govern
ment all authority is vested in the
people, and by them delegated 10 those
who represent them in official capac-
ity. 1t is valuable thing to be cit
izen in a republic such as ours, for
each citizen is constituent part of
sovereignty. Under a monarchy, the
king is the fountain head Of power;
with US the people are. AS king
should be careful and watchful in the
exercise of his authority, so should
the people in a republic. The people,
in giving attention to public affairs,
are attending to their own business;
yet how careless they become at times;
r how Indifferent to their own welfare
they often are. The people are part
ners in the affairs of state. Each in
dividual has as much power in Its
management as any other, yet the ma
jority of people are neglectful OF this,
their highest duty. If firm is COM
posed of dozen men, and ten of them
give no attention whatever 10 the bust
ness, leaving it entirely to the two,
they cannot complain when they awake
some morning and find that they have
been plundered. When good citizens
voluntarily abdicate the throne OF
American manhood by neglscting civic
@duties and leave the government to
the vicious minority, they may expect
to be robbed by dishonest officials.
Thomas Jefferson wrote that man is
the only animal that devours his own
kind" and that IF once the people
become inattentive to public affairs,
congress and assemblies, judges and
governors shall become wolves. 1t
:seems to be the law of human nature
in spite of Individual exceptions" The
majority Of officials, believe are
shonest, else we would have anarchy.
1t is true, however, that civic evils in
.crease as the exercise Of civic duties
sby good citizens decreases.
The indifference of electors is the
weakness of republican form Of gov
.ernment. To arouse them and make
them realize the necessity Of exercising
their civic duties is a matter Of SUI
Iprem6 Importance. INC responsibility
~of citizenship Is not discharged by Q
vote on the day Of some general cleo
rtion. Every good citizen should at
stend his party primary. Even this is
mot all; he should take part In the
first meeting of precinct, ward or
township where tickets for general
ELECTIONS or primaries are born. Nine
vty-nine per cent; Of the people are hon
lest, but the one per cent. of dishon-
eesty is perniciously active and works
while the ninety-nine sleep. The dis
regard by good citizens Of their civic
.duties breeds corruption by leaving
sths selection Of those who should rep
resent the people to the base and
ssordid. These demand of those elected
ito once that they be served even II
tthe public interests suffer. II the OH
-cial refuses to prostitute his Office for
the benefit Of this class he is put un-
<der the ban of their disapproval and
Forever disbarred from holding any
uther ONCE. that is, IL they have their
ray about It