Los Angeles herald., 1909-02-23

was surrounded by ignorance. super
stition and laWlessness, and unrc-
stricted force prevailed in all its hide
BUSINESS. But, as the beauty and bril-
lancy of the star is sometimes revealed
through a rent in the sombrous clouds
Of stormy night, so the few brief
epochs strewn here and there over that
broad eXpanse, disclose some faint
traces of the radiant light and joyous
peace which mark the reign of law, and
they grow and sparkle like brilliant
chambers in the roaring night storms
of barbarism, tumult and confusion
that everywhere encompass them.
''There can be no liberty without law.
Burke has said: Where law ends
tyranny begins In our own country
especially is it true that liberty can
only exist in fellowship with law.
Is Guarded by Law
"Hence. under the guardianship Of
this law, our institutions have been
placed, to be ever protected and shield
ed from the savage assaults Of fraud
and force, and to be ever encircled with
barriers as impossible as walls Of ever
lasting granite and ribs of imperishable
steel.
when the noble founders of our
great republic peered into the hidden
future with prophetic eyes, they saw
it's mighty destinies and at once they
knew that the sublime governmental
trinity, liberty, equality and justice,
could not be maintained through the
manifold changes of remorseless time
unless they were placed forever under
the control of the immortal and inde-
structible dynasty of law.
Long ago the fathers erected this
republic, of all time the noblest edifice
of constitutional liberty. 1t has with
stood firm, enduring all storms and
tempests; it has remained from its be-
genning and is now the grandest Illus
tration of a government of the people,
by the people and for the people in
all the ages of the world.
"Oh, this splendid republici Not
alone the wisdom of the fathers and
the devotion of their sons and worthy
men from other lands have made thee
to be a refuge for the oppressed and a
broad field for the tOilers of humanity,
but the Almighty who shaped the des-
tiny of men and nations has helped to
make it great and beneficent; and in
love for its history and reverence for
the Providence which has been above
it, let every patriot of the nation re-
cord a solemn vow that he will COM
mand and demand that no man nor
men shall lay impiouS hands upon the
altar of it's constitution or assault its
social system, which is humanity 5
richest treasure.
Is Its Own Vindication
"This nation is it's own vindication,
the happiest, freest, greatest of nations.
Law is the highest American principle.
obedience to law is the noblest pol
icy of the citizenship of a self-govern-
ing nation.
"Disobedience of law, widespread and
| long continuing, is the curse and ruin
of republic.
"On this birthday of the immortal
first president of our republic we can
| joyfully say that we have no fear of
| the future. For our republic was
never so strong as now, its conscience
was never so alive before, its people
were never so intelligent, thoughtful,
| earnest as they are today. This nation
| in it's upward march reaches not yet
it's summit in the sky.
| Powerful, courageous, aspiring, it
will maintain its integrity against dan
gers from within as we'll as danger
| spiration of its united principles, lib
erty and law"
Judge Melvin Talks for State
The response to this toast to George
! Washington was made by Henry A.
| Melvin, whose topic was 'All for the
Sake of California
| The introduction was characteristic
Of the speaker, bright, crisp and buoy
ant and cheering, embellished with an
ecdotes that hit the mark. Judge Mel
vim said in part:
| Always boost. Try even to praise
the legislature. Perhaps, when you in
vestigate, you will find more cause
for praise than you suspected.
California will never achieve the
| highest greatness of which she is, OF
right, mistress until every one of us
realizes that he cannot kick a yellow
dog from Shasta or stone a vagrant
| cat from San Diego without injuring
the entire commonwealth.
You of the Los Angeles chamber of
commerce were the first to realize this
! truth, and part of my mission here
| this evening is to tell you how much
we up north appreciate you and your
| achievements. You invented the mer-
! chants excursion and brought into
vogue the custom of visiting other
cities and exchanging ideas with their
| mercantile organizations. This pleas
| ing plan has grown in favor until now
you can walk the streets of Oakland,
the parks of Petaluma, the prune
| groves of Santa Clara and the can
yons between the cloud-pushing build
king of new San Francisco almost as
well as you can traverse the broad,
| beautiful avenues of your own queenIy
city.
"And while we are working for the