Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1911-07-06
)een the tyranny of the majority, but

the graSping, arbitrary rule of the
selfish few, who held the puplic Of
ficials in the palm of their hands. Any
one who fails to see that salient fact
has missed the great lesson of the
last decade and is incompetent as a
political guide. The real purpose which
the recall serves is to make the Of
fetal responsible to the majority of
the people directly, and not to the
minority who operate behind the
scenes and move officers like pawrs
on the political chess board. The ar
gument of the ex-secretary therefore
hangs itself by it's own rope.
Nor is his argument regarding the
initiative and referendum any more
convincing. 1t seems to be based on
the ground that these are ''innova-
lions" which as a term means nothing
either for or against the proposed
measures. If by resort to the fathers
he seeks to discredit the popular
movements he might read little far
edy for the ills of democracy is more
democracy Or he might digest the
profound work on politics and Admin
istration" by Prof. Goodnow, wherein
is traced the natural evolution of
American politics looking toward the
Capitalization of federal adminstra-
hn no nd
tralization of state and local legisla-
ton on the other. The whole genius
of the initiative and referendum is
not, however, that they are to be re-
sorted to at every turn of the road,
but are devices for rendering more di-
rectly effective the will of the people
regarding legislation. And the testi.
mOny of experience in the states where
the measures are employed justifies
the anticipations of their advocates.
The fundamental error in the philos
ophy of Mr.. Ballinger and of his ad.
herents lies in their attitude toward
the constitution. That attitude was ex.
pressed in the remarks interpolated in
the course of his address. Mr.. Bal.
linger praised the constitution and said
that he considered it as the rock on
which all the fabric of government
should rest, and then voiced what
seems to US specious reasoning: you
can adapt the changing conditions of
the constitution. Adapt conditions to
the constitution! What doctrine is
this! AS ii by breath you could wipe
out the great industrial revolution of
the last century and reinstitute the
economic conditions of 1916. Can you
make the spinning wheel replace the
power loom? Will the caravels of Co.
lumbuS sail again to US across the
seas in the place of the mighty Olym.
pics and Lusitanias? Can the vote of
legislature put the yoke of oxen in
place of the steam engine or the de.
cree of judge displace electricity
with the tallow candle? And the laws
Of century ago are essentially the
laws of the spinning wheel. the oxen
yoke and the tallow candle. To say
therefore that We can adapt condi-
lions to the constitution" is to say that
the stage will arrive from Seattle with
its regular passengers and mail some
time next week.
This fetish worship of the constitu.
tion seems strangely out of place
among an enlightened people BY what
divine inspiration did it's authors for
mulate it as political Bible? What
prophetic insight or strange perspicac-
ity enabled them to legislate for the
railroad, the factory system and the
intelligence widely diffused through
press, platform and pulpit? We &C.
knowledge due respect for the consti-
tuition and foudly hope for it's perman-
ence as our political organic law, but
we protest against the institution of
constitutional onfucianism that binds
the American people in the political,
Intellectual or economic groove of our
ancestors.