Arizona republican., 1910-11-29
The Vicious Recall

heN HldLN bI lIle SldleSiltH at lilt capitol building are aware of the fact that the recall" which they fondIy suppose is d new-and there fore specific-remedy for political ills. was peremptorily thrown aside as d quack remedy by the conven- tion of real statesmen that framed
 How many of them have given thought to the probability that the great lawyers in the United States senate. democrats and republicans. being familiar with the history of the country. will as peremptorily reject the constitution of Arizona if it pro- vides for the recar'?
 The recall" instead of being a new and patent remedy invented in our own day. was already a discredited feature of popular government when the delegates assembled to frame the federal constitution.
 The recall was in force during the
  had been devised as an apparently good scheme to enable the people of the thirteen states to secure the best of service from their representatives in the congress. At first. as all students of our countrys history know, the meT in the congress were of an eXcep- tionalIy high class. They were noted not only for their unselfishness and broad patriotism. but for extraordin- ary intelligence. The war, although it was conducted in the field by Washington and his officers, was un- der the direct management of con gress. Franklin, sent as an envoy of congress to France, was supposed to do nothing without the direct instruc- ticn of congress. But the war dragged, and success seemed far off-as it was and doubtful at best. There were murmurings in the several states. The people at home were dissatisfied with their congress, and the legisla- lures began to recall the congress- men and send new men in their places. But, as a very natural se- quence. inferior men were sent in place of the men recalled" Men of real independence and ability to cope with the difficult war situation were not willing to go to congress, subject to a whimsical recall engineered at their homes by personal and po- litical enemies and shortsighted peo- pie who thought they knew all about tine best way to carry the war to success. The congress in fact so deteriorated in the quality of its membership that in the last days of the war it had practically no voice in the field operations, nor anything to do with foreign affairs. Washing ton. while tsctfulIy purporting to obey the orders of congress. conducted the war according to his own notions. Franklin, although bedeviled with let ters of instruction from members of
 
 his own way. ignored and disobeyed the letters. and secured the alliance with France. and the funds from France. which enabled Washington to defeat Cornwallis.
 The diplomatic correspondence of the revolution is full of letters to and from Franklin. which glaringly set forth the difficulties in which that almost superhuman statesman labored in his efforts to remain on good terms with congress and at the same time carry out a practical pol icy at Versailles. If he had not been the wisest, most tactful and most pa tient man then alive, his mission to France would have failed. And he would have failed, unquestionably. if he had followed the petulant instruc- tions poured upon him from congress. Fortunately there was no cable in those days. and the letters were three months or more apart. It was not practicable to recall Franklin, or congress would have sent to fiI his place one of its own hot headed members who were firm in the be- lief that King Louis and Vergennes. his prime minister. could be forced" to come to the aid of the struggling states. And Franklin's unhappy situ- ation was created for him by a con- gross which had become contemptible because of an inferior personnel. the result in a large measure. of the recall'' policy. O. Tn the proceedings of the federal constitutional convention. these facts were alluded to as a sufficient req son why "the recall'' should not be made a part of the American svs-