The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-08-20
ADDRESSED THE PIONEERS
ExcoriateS SenSatiOnaliStS In
 and Out of Public Life.
Tendency of the Times He Says Is Towards Indulgence in spectac- ular Performance-2o,O ,OOo
 People Heard Him.

i Olcott Beach, N. r., Aug. 19.-At the annual picnic of the Niagara County Pioneers Association to-day 20.o00 per sons gave a reception co David E. Hill. An immense crowd gathered at the open air theater where the exercises of ! the day were held.
 Attorney General Cuneen was the first speaker. He paid tribute to Senator Hill, who followed.
 Mr. Hill, in opening, discussed Mob law vs. Due process of law" He said:
 Mob violence is not rendered less ob- 1ectionable even if il be true as ire quently asserted that unless 1t shall in- ferpose its strong arm,, the guilty may escape punishment through lax ad- mtnistration of the criminal law, or in- difference to its enforcement on the part of the people themselves. The very ex- cuse offered is a renection on the com Ynunity itself where the crime has been committed, and the remedy lies, not in the people themselves overriding the law, but in the people upholding and en- forcing the law and in an appeal to their patriotism, their good sense, their innate love of justice and respect for order, qualities which are seldom, if ever, in voked in vain. We cannot permit this government to become a mobocracy which acts upon impulse. feels no re- straint and recognizes no appeal from It's nasty pre-judgment.
 "Crimes which can only be punished by such irresponsible tribunals as mobs might as well not be punished at all, be- cause in the end the remedy will be Efound to be worse than the disease.
 The duty of every American citizen who loves his country and her free insti- tutions is plain. He should assist in the creation of a healthy public sentiment which should demand that no person charged with crime shall be punished therefor except under due process of law and by lawful officials, and after trial before a court and jury as provided by ! the wise and benhcient provisions of our i Federal constitution and these vital pro- visions, so essential to the public well fare, must be respected in every part of our domain and wherever our Ameri- | can flag shall permanently float and every man, whether white or black, na- tive or foreign born, rich or poor edu- cated or unlettered.. must be protected fin his life and liberty
 Taking up another subject, MT. Hill said "The tendency of the time is to- ward indulgence in that peculiar species of sensational performance which may be characterized in general terms as spec tacularism, if I may be permitted to coin that word.
 ! "Spectacularists usually affect superi-
 
 of patriotism they desire to be regarded as the only true patriots; they assume to possess all the virtues while other people in their estimation possess all the vices. They abhor silence and obscurity iThe assert the commonest kind of self levident propositions which have become moss covered from age, with an empha- sis as though they were oracles. and as though their platitudes were wholly orig final .. ,t-r
 They have their press agents who un- solicited supply the newspapers gratuit- ously with the details of whatever they do each morning, noon and night as though the world was holding its breath for fear that something would escape it pertaining to themselves. If they happen to hold public office they are delighted to see their smallest public acts paraded, magnifed and applauded. They are sure that there were never before such public officials as themselves-so earnest. so hon est, so self-sacriicing. They meddle with everything, whether within without their official jurisdiction. and usually muddle everything with which they have anything to do.
 ''Spectacularism as here interpreted Is a sort of disease, 1t expands the head and contracts the conscience and may appropriately be called egomania. which ts another name for egotism.
 ,i ''rhe hope of the country lies in the great mass of cool, deliberate and con servative citizens who pursue their avo- cations and perform their duties unosten- tatiously and entertain sincere convic- lions of their Ilfe's work. They neither delight in war, in contention nor in un- necessary strife. They carry no chip up- on their shoulders always looking for trouble. Their ways are ways of pleas antness and their paths are peace, and they believe that righteousness more than oyrhc OF vva nation MT. Hill criticised the last LegislN ture for the number of laws passed by it. and said the unfortunate tendency of the times seemed to be toward the eX- exercise of paternal functions of govern ment of individual independence and the development of self reliance
 I've should not forget" Mir. Hill con finued ''the old doctrine taught us by our fathers that that government Is pest which governs least. The fixing of the prices of products. the number Of hours which a man may labor in private em- ployment in the field. on the farm, in the store or in the shop. the compensation which he shall receive therefor and the persons with whom he may work. are largely matters to be regulated by private contract rather than by law"
 MT. Hill discussed fictitious Vs. real prosperity as follows:
 ''There is a chorus .Of assertion, con stantly reiterated, that the country at the present time Is enjoying period 5f>much prosperity, Yet there are grave reasons for doubting the entire correctness of the statement. It is conceded that many pub lie works are in process of construction and many important enterprises are in process of development, but the fact must De borne in mind that most of these schemes are being hoated upon borrowed capital-that the future is being largely fnortgaged-and that profits to hereafter accrue and dividends to be hereafter de- cIared are already being anticipated and there is no adherence to the good old fashioned and safe doctrine of paying as you 20. The country has been surfelted with the issue of various stocks and bonds which have been palmed off on a contid- ing public under the promise of profit never earned and not likely to be armed until a.. f1nancial reaction has set in Whlch has disturbed public confidence, in-