The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1909-08-12

publican form of government for one
thousand years; Carthage endured as
republic for seven hundred years,
and Athens lasted nine hundred
years-though there were intermis-
sions during that time. Florence was
republic for three hundred years,
and Rome for five hundred. These
governments were once great factors
in civilization, and their citizens prob
ably thought they would last forever,
that nothing could overthrow them.
We are likely to harbor similar ideas,
and 1t is possible that they will prove
to be wrong.
The conditions that caused the down
fall of those old republics, now al
most forgotten, were the same condi-
lions that will cause the downfall
Of the American republic, If it is not
to endure. The dangers lie in the
hearts of the people. We are likely to
believe too strongly in the efficacy of
laws. But laws are not the only es-
sentials. Rome had the Justinian
code-said to be the most powerful
system of laws ever devised by man
SO good that they are noodles to this
day, and yet Rome rotted and went
to ruin even while the Justinian code
was In full force. No fault can be
found with the old Roman laws, but
the hearts of the people were wrong.
The laws were there, but theey were
not obeyed, and contempt Of the
laws sprang up that ended the Roman
republic. When the laws are not
obeyed the government, resting on
the law as foundation, commences
to topple over. If the laws are bad
the people are to blame. If the laws
are not enforced the people are re-
1 sponsible-for a majority of the peo-
pie make the laws. The will of the
people crystallizes in the form OF sta
tutes, and the laws represent the
sentiment of the majority. But too
many are Indifferent, and this indif-
ference of voters is the greatest
menace to republican form Of gov
eminent. Arouse the voters to an
understanding of the danger, convince
them that they are personally and
directly concerned, get them moving
once and they are invincible. But
while most people are honest hey
are inactively SO, while the vicious
minority are perniciously active 1t
is not enough to be merely honest the
good citizen should be aggressive In
his opposition to graft and corruption
Law breakers have nothing to fear
from passive opposition, but they
must yield to active and aggressive
fighters. We need more fighters In
the army of peace. We must fight for
everything that is worth having, we
must fight everything bad. The farm.
er must not only be personally oppos-
ed to weeds, but he must cut them
down and make an active warfare
against them, or his crops will be
ruined In governmental affairs the
! evil as between the grain that must
be sown and cared for, and thistles
and weeds that will grow anywhere
unless destroyed Grain and weeds
cannot be sown simultaneously in the
same place.
There are no necessary evils" In
government. 1t is the abuses of gov
eminent about which all good citi
zens have a right to complain. Those
who have profited by the abuses are
usually the loudest in the denuncia
ton of those who point out abuses
in public affairs.
In the best governed city the goot
people are tremendously active ant
the vicious are notably quiet. II
what is perhaps the worst governed
city in the Union the good citizens
are deplorably passive in their good
ness and the vicious are ordinaril.
active. And yet suppose the Pre-
portion of good citizens in each o
these cities is about the same. II tn
honest voters in the badl. governe'
CITY would assert themselves the
could have a local government Q
which they would be justly proud.
While the people are to blam
where public abuses exist official