Gainesville daily sun. (Gainesville, Fla.) 190?-1938, 1907-09-19
,MpER,AL,sM RUN WILD.

ne VI oCuANos VI Wv
gon will expire March 3. 1909. and he
Is now canvassing the State as a car.
didate for reelection. 1t being the
custom In Oregon for the voters to
instruct members OF the Legislature
how they shall vote on the election OF
United States Senators BY expressing
their will at the polls. Senator Full.
ton made a speech recently at Cor.
Wallis. in which he advocated the cleo
ton OF Senators by the people. a
proposition generally favored by DEM
ocrats and opposed by Republicans;
but he went q good deal farther and
linked this proposition with two 9th
ers which are entirely undemoCratic
and subyersive OF our whole system
Of government. In fact. he went as
far as Roosevelt or Root ever went
In the direction OF destroying State
and local rights: and put the PROPOSE
lions of those ultra imperialists into
plain language. Il am firmly con-
vinced." he said. that instead OF
deleEating certain specified powers to
the general government, all power
should be vested In II. and that the
States should exercise only such pow.
ers as Congress may from time TO
time endow them With. or. Mt the ut
most, their powers should be limited
and confined to subjects necessary to
local self-government. and all other
powers be vested In the general gov.
eminent" This doctrine Is simply
monostrous and reasonable. Ii would
destroy the equality Of the States In
the Senate and reduce the smaller
States to mere vallalage. II Is q re-
versal Of the theory Of Federal Gov.
eminent. and Is the very quintessence
and deadly virus Of imperialism. II IL.
indeed, Imperialism run wild. For, as
Il 10 now. the States alone have orisi-
nal DOW ers. and the United States Gov.
eminent has only delegated powers.
and can exercise no power not plainly
del, gated How could a government
having delegated powers only. dele
gate speh powers back to their original
possessor without leaving itself de-
void Of all powers" In effect. Sena-
tor Fuiton's idea Is for the govern.
mene Of the Union to make a quit.
claim deed Of an It's powers. and then
secure . new deed giving It all pow
ers. and making II like the old kings
Of England. the fountain OF honor"
and the only source Of power. having
local government to depend solely
on IT. favor. Again the Senator says:
The power to regulate commerce OF
every character. State and interstate.
should b vested solely In the Federal
Government. have prepared and
shall offer at the coming session .
proposed amendment TO the Federal
Constitution granting to the general
sovesnment that power" This Is
dangerous and futile doctrine.
The Federal Congress at Washing.
tion Ia far less responsive to the popular
viii than the State Legislature, many
of which are watched as carefully by
the electors ~ are the local munich.
pal councils. Most grievances are
more or less local. and when they
must be carried to Congress they can
with safety be perpetuated by the
votes OF members from districts in
no way interested. The railway in.
terests. on the other hand. are con.
centr,ted and thoroughly organized.
and can bring their political powers to
bear more e9ectually at Washington
than at the State capitals. As a gov.
ernmental establishment becomes
farther removed from and above the
popular source Of its authority the
stronger is its tendency to sacrifice
the public interest. What the people
need Is local seltgoyernment in all
matters involving purely domestic az.
fairs.
State Chemist r. E. Rose tells OF
the practical good a geological survey
will be to this State in the follow ing
few lines: The State has los,
thousands OF dollars by not having a
geological survey. Land owners have
sold land at ten dollars an acre pos
sessing one hundred times the value
In mineral deposits. Thus the native
land owner has lost. while the for.