Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1905-04-13
ROOSEVELT AND THE LAW.
Indifference of the Chief Executive
to the Creator of His
Power,

The presidents attempt to secure for
himself the power to negotiate arbitra-
ton agreements without the consent
of the senate, the action of the gov
ernment's agents in the matter of the
recent protocol with Santo Domingo,
and now the effort of Mr.. Roosevelt
to establish a protectorate over Santo
Domingo without the cooperation Of
the senate and in the face of the re-
fusal of the 6 nate to ratify the treaty
which was designed to accomplish that
result, have all combined to direct
attention one more to the presidents
rather unconventional way Of doing
things, says the Indianapolis News.
During the late campaign we had
many stories of the overruling of the
decisions of the board of appraisers
in customs cases and even of the re-
fusal of the treasury department to
carry into effect the decisions of the
courts. And now another case Of the
same sort has been brought to light.
A short time ago President Roose-
welt appointed a board of architects
to direct the location of the new pub
lie buildings in Washington, the mem
bers to serve without pay. Later it
was discovered that the law prohibits
the employment by the government of
anyone without compensation. Then
it was announced that the architects
would receive $40 a day and expenses.
But the attorney general advised that
this could not be done, and that the
president had no right or power to
create commissions and Offices for
which provision had not been made
by congress. This, of course, is a
small matter, but it serves to show
onc more how prone the president is
to travel ahead of the law. He saw,
and he was plainly right, that there
| ought to be such a commission; that
the work was one that could be prop
erly done only by architects, and he
felt that no harm could come of doing
the thing that ought to be done. There
was no thought in his mind Of acting
illegally or extra-legally. What he
wanted was to get the thing done, apd
| to get it rightly done. In his absorp-
tion in the end he altogether over
loiked the means. And this is entire
ly natural to a man of his tempera-
mnnt. The disposition is one which is
not to be severely condemned. For
the law is often a restraint from right
action &c runn DC q rr0hihifiNn nf
wrong action.
And yet the president derives all
the power that he has from the law.
and there is nothing that he a. do or
should do except by authority Of the
law. The authority which creates his
office and gives him the only power
that he has ought to be s%crupulously
respected by him, and its limitations
should be sacredly observed. It seems
to us that this is specially important
in the case of President Roosevelt, i'm
portant if for no other reason than
that every doubtful act of his serves
to strengthen the senate, and to put
the president in the wrong in his rela-
JlOQ 10 II. luOSe WuO lelI DOuuu W
criticise the late arbitration treaty
were extremely reluctant to do SO, for
such criticism seemed to uphold and
Justify the senate in its general atti-
tude toward treaties. If we are, as
many believe, to have a direct issue
between the president and the senate,
it is greatly to be desired that the
president shall put himself in the
strongest possible position. This he
cannot do if he persists in his policy,
at least, of seeming to regard the law
as an obstacle to be got out of the
way, or to be got round. For though
people may applaud him when they ap-
prove the end that the president has
in view, they will, nevertheless, in
time come to distrust him, and to de-
mand that he be held with special
strictness to an observance Of legal
limitations.