The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1907-04-25

the people as is practicable, and it will
be a great saving and convenience to
the people of northwestern Indiana to
be able to try their federal causes
be reduced to the minimum.
Political philosophers. ancient and
modern, agree upon the proposition
that there are three primary forms of
overnment-monarchic aristocratic
and democratic Our government is
composite in its character, combining
that which is good in all three of the
primary forms and eliminating, as far
as possible, the features that are OBJ
Jectionable. It is the habit of patrio-
otic Americans to boast of the sover-
eighty of the federal government
Sovereignty in that sense means poll
taical omnipotence-the unlimited pow
er to govern. We have no sovereign
government in the broad sense of the
term. Sovereignty abides with the peo-
conferred upon it certain attributes of
sovereignty under fixed limitations. All
of the residue of sovereign political
power still rests with the people, and
Will continue to abide there until they
see fit to enlarge the charter of govern
ment-the federal constitution-and
confer additional powers upon the gov
ernment. All political power is a trust
to be administered for the benefit and
welfare of the people. The Declara-
ion of Independence truly says that all
governments derive their just powers
| from the sonsent of the governed
Man Has Invaluable Rights.
"All men are endowed with what are
called inalienable rights-the rights
that form the very nature of man are
necessary that he may carry the re-
sponsibilities and fulfill the destiny
| that was appointed to him by the
Creator. Government Is ordained to
protect and foster these individual
rights, and any government that in
vades the essential rights of the indiv-
idual is to that extent despotic and un-
republican. This is a government of
the people, but that does not mean that
a majority of the people may exercise
political power in an arbitrary fashion.
1t is just as great a wrong for ma
| jority of the people to invade the in
alienable rights of a citizen as it is
| for a single individual to do So The
| people of this country in ordaining
| their government wisely placed limi-
| tations upon their own power and pro-
vided in the constitution that none of
the great powers of government
should be arbitrarily exercised" That
| the voice of the people is the voice
| IF God" is maxim Of dema gagues. The
0ice OF the people is the voice of God
~ when II speaks truth and justice
Id the worlds history teaches that it
has not always so spoken. Two thou
sand years ago the chief priests and
the rulers of the people with one ac-
cord said cruelty Him. cruelty Him.
and the Savior of the world perished
on the cross in accordance with the
voice of the people. Does any one pre-
tend to say that they spoke the voice
of God? The people of the democracy
Of Athens ostracized Aristides simply
because he was commonly called The
Just, and they grew tired Of hearing
that name applied to him Socrates
the immortal philosopher, was com
PEELED by the people to drink the dead
" hemlock."
Must Limit Government
The sway of the guillotine in the
first French revolution that poured
forth the crimson tide of human life
was instigated by the voice of the peo-
pie. Experience teaches that liberty
lies in absolute limitations upon tn,
power OF government. whether tha
government is a monarchy. an aristo
eracy or a democracy. or a combination
of all. Liberty consists in justice ant
j lContinued on page seven.l