Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1907-01-16
Class Legislation.

Legislation" at the jackson Day
Banquet in Waterloo last Tuesday
eevning:
Mr.. POSTMASTER AND Fellow
CIrlzENs:-l am exceedingly pleased
with my surroundings this evening,
although | may be in the position of
the boy in the Sunday School class
which had prepared for an exam
ination by the bishop. Each boy
was taught to give certain answer
to certain question. When the
examination came, boy number one
was not there, and the bishop pro-
pounded the first question, WHO
made you?" Boy number two re-
peated the answer which he had
learned, "Of the dust of the earth"
mo, no, said the bishop, God
made you" ooh no." said boy
number two, the one that God
made is not here. ] am of the dust of
the earth"
know that upon occasions like
this, a certain amount of "joshing'
is in order, and that serious requests
are apt to be disregarded; yet, not
withstanding that l want to have a
few understandings with our dis
tinguished Toastmaster. want it
distinctly understood that if | fail
to say what should be said, or say
anything that should not be said,
that the POSTMASTER will consider it
part of his duties to correct all that
may be amiss before passing to the
next number.
And as special favor, want our
Toastmaster to make few soothing
remarks before he unties Brother
Rheinhart, and if possible have him
faced in some direction opposite
from myself. While count Mr..
Rheinhart among my friends, l
know how he is armed with weapons
of wit and sarcasm, and how a place
in the background may be desir-
able while he is talking.
Now with Judge Wade, every
thing is different. He was never
known to stroke anything in the
wrong direction. / will have TO tell
story ontthe Judge without voucl-
ing for its authenticity can do
this, because the Judge is in no pc
sition to object to any story. And
according to the story, one OF the
first cases he ever had was the de-
fense of a constable, charged with
the crime of assault and battery up
on a woman. The woman was in
jured while trying to prevent the
constable from taking away plow
which he had levied upon, and the
case was before a country justice.
The Judge, who was then very
young lawyer, began by saying
"Your Honor, if ! could convince
you of the facts in this case as un-
derstand them, you would never be-
lieve my client guilty Of the crime
with which he is charged. 1t all
happened in this way. My client
was about to load the plow onto his
wagon when this lady suddenly
stepped in front of him, and when
he beheld her radlent beauty, lie was
SO overcome that he dropped the
plow, and she was injured in some
manner" The justice said to the
woman, "IIow is that? And she
said, "Well Judge, | don't think lie
meant to hurt me-" And in that
way, Judge Wade has been winning
new distinctions eversince.
But l must get down to the sub
ject assigned to me. for none of us
have come here just to talk, or hear
others talk, and then go home as
impressionless as we would from
Sunday dinner.
1t is claimed that all creeds, all
dogmas, all theologies, the Ten
Commandments and the Golden
Rule are focused in two words, fair
play" and that class Legislation is
the opposite OF fair play. So much
can be said against class legislation,
that / hardly know what to say in
the few minutes which am expected
to speak this evening.
High finance and low politics are
the handmaids Of class legislation.
Glass legislation stands for nearly
everything abhorrent in politics, and
un-American and dishonest in gov
ernment.
Everyone who believes in man.
|
governed rather than a property
governed commonwealth should in
stinctively oppose class legislation.
Governments are, established. not
for the purpose Of enabling few
men to take and convert to their own
use the earnings Of the many. On
the contrary, everyone surrenders to
the state certain natural rights for