The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1907-09-19
No New Constitution.

AiSoiuCht l~uiiunu y JdllCS Ol the
University of Illinois spoke on Illinois
day at jamestown last Saturday. His
topic was THE need of new federal
constitution. He argued that we
have come face to face in our nation
al development with problems of
such complexity and such magnitude
that they cannot be solved with a
large cooperation of the federal gov
ernment; and this cooperation can
not be extended within the lim S of
the constitution as it is-unless in
deed we are willing to adopt new and
enlarged principles of construction
which would practically nullify the
most important provision in the con-
stitution and convert it from an in
strument delegating certain limited
functions, into an instrument vesting
an unlimited and widening au-
thority in a government, which by its
very magnitude would become ever
more irresistible"
This is in general the view of a
great many people who from differing
motives want a new constitution. One
class wants it TO centralize power,
another to diffuse it; one class wants
it to narrow the trend Of all industry
and commerce, another to give these
elements of national prosperity fuller
play; one set of advocates wants a
constitution that will enable expan-
sion of the social and national life,
another desires to fix the boundaries
of individual prosperity within mar
row limits The advocates of a new
constitution have so wide range of
idea as to what the nation needs for
boundary to prevent encroachment
of federal power upon the state, or
the surrender by the state of powers
that should inhere. in it, that a new
one by any modern convention would
in likelihood be such a jun1ble of pro-
visions that no court could construe
it,, no supreme authority compel its
enforcement In our opinion it is
safer to trust the disposition of the
courts to construe as literally as full
Justice will permit the great article
under which we are acting, and to
trust all needed expansion to amend
ments than to attempt any new draft.
When the constitution was made
those who drafted it were students of
craftsmanship, of governmental prin-
ciples, Of individual and common
rights, of adjusted liberties, OF related
privileges. Now if a new consttu-
ton were TO be framed it would be
done by those seeking to establish
policies not principles, and those pol
icies would he such as related to
BIZ mess, trade, commerce. industry,
cls.,s or moral theories that are more
unstable than politics, not the broad
principles, 0O1 tNtH pOllSlCS, tudt
underlie democracy and make the
foundation of its stability. Our pres
ent constitution may need amend
ment, when the disturbances that
have rolled the social and political
conditions of today have precipitated
the Crystals of new principles. but
these will come naturally if needed.
To remodel the present great paper
would be to erect new and untried
standard, to build a new and insecure
foundation for the union, TO inextri-
cably mingle established principle
with improved policy in such a man.
ner that the courts could not un-
tangle them, and justice and equity
would grope in vain for a basis OF
construction.
Amend the constitution. but do not
attempt a new one-Elkhart Review.