The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1911-08-10
sUTHERLAND's ABSURDITY.

We notice in a number of Utah ex"
changes astonishment expressed that
The Tribune should have the temerity
to criticise the Senator Sutherland
stale speech on the initiative, refer
endum, and recall. That astonishment,
| of course, must arise from the fact that
those papers which expressed it have
not read The Tribune Is criticism. We
stated the grounds on which we op.
posed the basic idea in Sutherland s
| speech very plainly in our criticism
of it. Evidently, however, this is lost
sight of by the Utah papers which won
that we had criticised the speech is
held up as horror. It is also stated
that Sutherland s speech has been we'll
received by newspapers throughout the
country, many Of them commencing
it, and there being, it is said, consid-
erable demand for copies of it, We can
well believe that the standpatters,
those who wish TO hold all progress ex-
actly where it is, and arrest the devel-
opment Of new political ideas in this
country, should approve of Sutherland s
speech, because it is a speech simply
advocating the continuance Of the old
order. Naturally, those who object TO
changes, and who desire to have all
progress shut off, approve the Suther,
land speech; for it is simply a plea
fn,- l,
proposition to have things as they are
to be.
The whole discussion arose over the
admission of Arizona to Statehood; the
| objection to Arizona being put upon
the ground that the proposed consti
tuition of Arizona provides for the in,
itiative, referendum, and recall, and,
awful to relate, it does not except the
judges from the operation of the re.
call. Judge may be recalled the same
as village trustee, or a city mayor;
hence the tears. But, as no one out
side of Arizona would suffer by reason
Of the operation of these propositions, it
is difficult to see why there should be
such widespread opposition to the
recall of the judges in Arizona. Since
the people of Arizona want it that way,
why not lot them have it7 The people
of Oregon have precisely the same thing
as is proposed in Arizona, and the peo~
pie of California are about to institute
the same in that State. Beyond all
that, however, the people Of Arizona
could restore the recall of judges at any
time after Statehood, even if they con-
sented now to have that provision elm.
mated from their proposed constitution,
in order to allay reactionary objections
So what does the opposition to the in
itiative, referendum, and recall in Ari-
zona amount to as a National PROPOSE
tion? Why should Sutherland or any,
body else go out of his way to under"
take to kick the stuffing out of the
proposed Arizona constitutions 1t is
a waste of effort, mere meddlesome.
ness that cannot possibly arise to the
dignity of a National issue, because the
final disposition of the question will
rest with the people of Arizona ex-
clusively.
The central idea in Sutherland's
speech was, that the referendum on
State statutes was all wrong, because
the people were neither fitted, nor com,
petent. to pass upon State statutes,
nor had they the time to devote to the
study of legislation by statute. At the
same time he confessed that it was all
right to have the people pass upon con,
stitutional questions, voting upon a
constitution as a whole, or upon amend.
ments to constitution at any time
that such amendments might be pro-
posed. The absurdity of claiming that
the people have not the capacity, abil-
ity, or training, to pass upon statutes,
but have the ability, capacity, and
training to pass upon constitutional
questions, is such an absurdity from
the comparative standpoint, that the
bottom drops out of the Sutherland
speech the moment the question is
fairly formulated, For. TO claim that
the people are competent to pass upon
constitutional questions, upon consti-
tutions, and amendments thereto. and
not competent to pass upon mere. stat.
utes, is such glaring bit Of nonsense
that speech built upon it must neces.
sarily tumble to the ground when the
sandy foundation Of il is blown away.