Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1908-01-24
PLEA FOR STATE RIGHTS.
Judge Harmon Expresses es Sound Do.
ctPRnet 10 Birmingham Board Of Trade
RELATIONS Of NATION AND STATE
Il Che seuthom states Are Left Alone
by Washington, They viii 90 Up
awrds, Declares the speaker-Au-
thotlty of Each.
(Dy Associated Pressl

BIRMINGHAM, ALA. Jan. 23--For.
mer Attorney General Harmon of
Cincinnati. was the guest of honor
at the board of trade banquet tonight
and made the principle speech of the
evening. Among other things MIR.
Harmon said:
Alabama redeemed, doubled in
population, and more than doubled in
wealth. and her sons marching behind
Joe Wheeler and Fitz Lee, under the
full starrf3 ensign of the UnIon-one
thing. more than any other. made this
possible. 1t was the regaining at last
OF the right of the state to govern
itself. So long as the federal govern.
ment held control there was no hope.
When once this was withdrawn, the
future was secure. Any American
community great enough to be com
monwealth will work its way upward.
when left to itself, as surely as the
germ pushes toward the sunlight.
Mistakes may be made. tut they will
be corrected. New difficulties may
arise where the way seems clear. but
they will be surmounted, And out
of 1t all, will be evolved and develop.
ed the first essential of free people
patient. self.relinnce under the
grace of God.
The Southern states are the only
ones which have ever been denied the
full right OF self-government under
the constitution. and have had to
struggle to regain It. The natural re-
suit of their defeat in the contest for
right which they did not possess
was disregard of rights which were
undoubted. And the union of the con.
stitution had to be saved again from
an attack which was not the less
dangerous because 1t was meshea be
hind the forms of law.
I'm these times, when many seemcd
inclined to grow impatient the res.
traints imposed on official action and
resentful of appeals to the tribunals
to which the enforcement OF these
restraints Is entrusted. the people of
the South will not forget that the
chief agency which enabled them to
regain the right of self.government
was the courts. Regardless of abuse
and even threats, and OF the outcries
OF those TO whom n form of govern
ment IL of no consequence when 1t
stands in the way of their ideas. the
Supreme Court OF the United States
replaced and upheld tho barriers of
the constitution against federal in
yaslon of the rights reserved to the
states.
Il know you are too clear-eyed TO
be misled by any proposal, even
though made tempting by the promise
| of present convenience or advantage,
to let federal authority again displace
that of the state. The motives and
objects may he different. but the
principle Is Just the same as that
which oppressed you in the years of
reconstruction. Even If the appear
ance of present benefit should prove
real. it would come too high, like
Esau's pottage, for one usurpation
would certainly lead to others whose
results would net be pleasing. No
real good can ever come from wrong
act or foolish one; and 1t Is always
wrong for any public agency to over
step the limits of the authority con-
| ferred and always foolish for any free
people TO permit it.
| Two excuses are advanced for fed
eral intrusion into state affairs One
Is that the states do too little, and
| too much, in the way OF railroad and
corporate regulation and other correc.
| tive measures. These are not contra
dictory, as they might at first appear,
| because there may be both too little
and too much public interference with
the conduct of business. and both are
harmful, though my inherited and ac-
CURED ideas both lead me to fear the
too much more than l fear the too
little. It is often hard to draw the
line between useful regulation and
harmful meddling, and harder still to
have that line respected when poll
tics unfortunately become involved
with questions relating to business
and public feeling is aroused
| "The obligation is broader toward
| the state because it's authority has a
far wider range, and you are rela.
lively larger factors in It, while your
! Influence is greater in the inverse
ratio of the distances to Washington
and Montgomery. SO you are more
responsible for the course of Alabama
than for that of the United States, as
you ought TO be; and that is one OF
the reasons for preferring state to
federal control of home affairs.
"a great many things are none the
less home affairs because they may be
or becomes remotely related to com
merce among the states. the regnla.
ton of which is granted exclusively
to Congress. If the federal authority
should be expended over all these,
the states would soon become mere
regions. Tho pretsxt for such extern.
sion OF power is that railroads. tele,
graph, etc, have brought about the
commercial unity OF the states. But
that is no reason at all. because SUE
commercial unity WAS tho carx ohs z