The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1909-02-11

VI.
ly challenged. we believe, by superb
cial thinkers and too jealous refOrmer'
WHO expect some mechanical contri
vance, IL adopted, to furnish adequat,
substitute for political energy and sin
certify.
Mr.. Root pronounced himself "a con
WINGED and uncompromising Nationalist
OF the school of Alexander Hamilton
He declared his belief in the exercise
of the powers of the national govern
ment to the full limit of the constitu
tiOnal grants, as those grants were con
strued by John Marshall"
Nevertheless, Mr. Root pleaded fol
State power within the limits of consti
lieve that the founders OF the republic
buiided more wisely than they knew
when they set the limits between the
exercise Of that national power and the
exercise of he local powers by thC
States
That is the truth. The United
States, which Is yet a nation, has be-
come a nation and escaped becoming
first, a centralized bureaucracy and
second. a warning mass OF separate
sections, because our system has includ
ell the contradiction OF active States
and sovereign nation, because Wash
ingtOn has exercised all her cOnstitu-
ti0nal powers without intruding on the
Fl. 10
have preserved their respective indiyid-
ualities and various virilities without
emasculating the powers of the central
government
That is an old story, many times re-
told. But the benefit this duality has
conferred upon our people cannot be too
much emphasized. Contrastingly, Eu-
rope has suffered always, either from
Capitalization so developed that it has
become tyrannous or inadequate for To-
cal needs, o. from disintegration into
local units that jealousy forbade the
establishing of any national govern
ment worthy Of the name.
America is the one great example of
that succeeds in being a nation with
out sacrifice OF local community life.
that succeeds in promoting vitality III
its units without reducing the central
authority to a shadow.
The f0rtuitous chance or the provi-
Dental inspiration that induced the
fathers to adjust this nice balance in
the beginning of our national life has
conferred upon us an invaluable inner
itance. Let us not, as Esau, traffic
lightly with that heritage. Let us pre-
serve it as the most priceless privilege
ever confided to a peoples care
For the truth is that on last analy-
sis the troubles Of most peoples may
be reduced to wrong adjustment be-
tween local and general government.
What is the British empire to-day but
a confederation blindly striving to de-
velop into a fed. ration? What were
the pains OF Germany before 1871, but
those OF too much local government.
and what are those to-day put of too
much central government.
For us this whole trouble has been
discounted in advance. All that Is re-
quired of us is TO preserve the nice adj
justment that we have inherited, to be
HamiItonians nationally, to be Jeffer-
sonians locally. For Hamilton would
not have exceeded the powers Of the
nation as defined in the constitution.
s,1 TaFaroor romamhar Was &C praSi-
dent a great eIemplar of true national
ism.
All that is required Of us is to pre-
serve In vigor both our States and the
nation; but ali of that is required of
ms. So we shall avoid those twin dan
gers which Mr.. Root perceives to men,
aee US the breaking down of the self
government OF the States, the break
ing down OF the government at Wash
irgton by casting upon it burdens the
States should not shift from them
selves
The States are units, living political
organisms, sovereign personalities-as
such they must be realized, must be
eOnII0upu- otdtC pAiuCs toldtC SOh-
seriousness must be revived. The peo-
ple of each State must learn to rise
seriously to the disposition of State
matters, as they do to the disposition
of national matters. States as States
must retain their representation at
washington. This matter of national
State representation is, as Mr.. Root
declares, yital.-Minneapoli Journal.
The Willett Incident.
IL was an exhibition OF wretched
taste on the part of Representative
Wiliett of New York when he engaged
I'm a bitter and senseless excoriation
Of President Roosevelt on the floor OF
the House. And it is gratifying to
note that many Democrats as well ms
Republicans united to cut short his in
temperate remarks, which were not
aprOpos of any subject under debate.
Criticisms Of Mr.. Roosevelt as a
public official have been plentiful. Nc