The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1907-07-27
POLITICAL PRINCIPLES.

There never was time in the memory of men
living when presidential campaigns did not
bring forward lot of abstract principles" which
it was assumed required vindicaton at the polls.
principles" were "vindicated" in the days of Ham
ilton and Jefferson, as they are today Some of
them vindicated by the people voting for them
and about as many by people voting against them,
if, indeed, the people as whole voted their senti-
ments for against principles. In the century
and third since the American colonies declared
themselves free, a good many old principles have
been settled. Local autonomy VS.. Capitalization,
which furnished Jefferson and Hamilton an ISSUE
a governmental proposition is down and out.
Secession got black eye and slavery as principle
has been superseded and completely forgotten.
When the principle of the tariff was first an ISSUE
it was not a question of high or low tariff, but
whether any tariff protection at all was constitu-
tional A good many of the fundamental consti-
tutional and governmental theories upon which
campaigns fought have been settled or if not,
they have some way lost all interest to the present
generation principles over which to quarrel.
1t may be that as a people we have been too
busy developing the country and getting rich Cor
trying to get rich) to worry over political prin-
ciples, and have been content to accept what is
right. Perhaps we have so often heard prediction
of dire disaster to follow the victory of the prin-
ciple advocated by the opposition, and have been
disappointed often that have lost some faith
in the politicians. Or maybe we have watched the
legislation and grating in states which always are
controlled by one party and found that good deal
of the denouncing and viewing with alarm always
depends upon which party is in power. There is
a good deal of legislation enacted by Democrats in
one state which may be copied from laws enacted
by Republicans in another state, or vice versa In
state legislation is about as conservative as it
in another and the CRATER seems to be developed
wherever an opportunity at spoliation presents it
self.
In the midst of all the conservative principles
of the old parties, we have the doctrines of the
radical parties like the Socialists and the Popu-
lists, which, though they have never yet had their
principles taken seriously, take themselves as seri-
ously as fanatic members of other parties ever did
The Populist party seems to have been forgotten
when prosperity set in, but that is the time the
Socialist principles are the strongest. The real
simon-pure Socialist doesn't like prosperity be-
cause if he went to work and lived economically
he might work himself out of any desire to divvy
up with his brothers The professedly radical
principles, however, furnish great many ideas
which leaders of conservative parties adopt and
lefend belonging to themselves exclusively. As
ong as the conservatives find principles among the
radicals there is not likely to be decided denmark
alton as between radical and conservative Rather
70 the principles indicate means to get into Office
han making true doctrine of governmental prac-
ice The politicians seeing clearly that in re-
,ent years appeals to vindcate certain party prin-
principles are of Democratic Republican or other
,rigin or advocacy If they do not represent true
ioclrine, or if they do and are to be administered
~ charlatans, they destructive of the political
economy Of the state. fat-footed declaration
concerning concrete practical things, if sincerely