Semi-weekly herald., 1908-12-10

Interpretation, for the result of such
action is TO take away from the peo
pie at large their sense of rcaponsi
bility and ultimately to destroy their
capacity for orderly self-restaint and
self-government. Under such a pop
ular government as ours. founded on
the theory that in the long run the
| VIII OF the people is supreme the ul
Innate safety OF the nation can only
rest in training and guiding the peo
pie SO that what they will shall be
right. and not in devising means to
defcat their will by the technicalities
OF strained construction.
| For many of the shortcomings OF
Justice in our country our people as
a whole are themselves to blame, and
the judges and juries merely bear
their share together with the public
as whole.
II is discreditable to us as people
that there should be difficulty in con.
yicting murderers. or In bringing to
| justice men who as public servants
have been guilty OF corruption, or who
have profited by the corruption OF pub
| lie servants. The result is equally un-
fortunate, whether due to hatrsplitting
| technicalities In the Interpretation OF
| law by Judges, to sentimentality and
class consciousness on the part of
| juries, or to hysteria and sensational
sim in the daily press.
For much of this failure of justice
no responsibility whatever lies on rich
men as such. We who make up the
mass of the people can not shift the
responsibility from our own shoulders
But there is an important part OF the
inability to hold to proper account
men of wealth who behave badly.
The chief breakdown is In dealing
with the new relations that arise from
the mutualism, the interdepeDdence of
our time. Every new social relation
begets a new type OF wrong doing
of sin, to use an oldfashioned word
and many years always elapse before
society is able to turn this sin into
crime which can be effectively pun
ished at law.
During the lifetime of the older men
now alive the social relations have
changed far more rapidly than In the
preceding two centuries. The immense
growth OF corporations, of business
done by associations, and the extreme
strain and pressure of modern life,
have produced conditionos which rem
der the public confused as to who its
really dangerous foes are; and among
the public servants who have not only
shared this confusion. but by some of
their acts have increased it, are GER
tain judges. Marked inefficiency has
been shown In dealing with corpora
tions and in resettling the proper at
titude to be taken by the public not
only toward corporations. but toward
labor, and towards the social questions
arising out of the factory system, and
the enormous growth of our great
cities.
The huge wealth that has been ac-
cumulated by a few individuals of re-
cent years In what has amounted to
social and industrial revolution, has
been as regards some of these indi-
viduals made possible only by the
improper use of the modern corpora
ton. A certain type of modern cor
poration, with Its officers and agents,
its many issues of securities and It's
constant consolidation with allied un-
dertakings. finally becomes an instru.
ment SO complex as to contain a great
er number of elements that, under
various judicial decisions. lend them
selves to fraud and oppression than
any device yet evolved In the human
brain.
Corporations are necessary instru-
ments of modern business. They
have been permitted to become men
ace largely because the governmental
representatives Of the people have
worked slowly in providing for ade-
quate control over them.
The chief offender In any given
case may be an executive. a legis-
lature, or judge. Every executive
head who advocates violent, instead
OF gradual action, or who advocates
ill-considered or sweeping measures OF
reform Especially II they are tainted
with vindictiveness. and disregard for
the rights of the minority is partic-
ularly blameworthy. The several leg
islatures are responsible for the fact
that our laws are often prepared with
slovenly haste and lack Of considera.
ton. Moreover, they are often pre-
pared and still more frequently amend
ed during passage. at the suggestion of
the very parties against whom they
are afterward enforced
Our great clusters of corporations,
huge trusts and fabulously wealthy
multimillionaires, employ the very
best lawyers they can obtain to pick