The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1911-05-30
RELATIONS OF THE STATE
AND FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
Address of Gov. Wilson in Which He Took
New Ground Upon Old Subject

legal grOWth. The Fedora govern
ment can in the nature of the case go
no farther than the broad outlines
Of regulation, the establishment Of
those conditions Of law which viii fit
the country as a whole. which will pre-
vent the collision, the undesirable
rivalry and opposition Of its several
parts. 1t can only sketch in broad
outline the economic and political reg
ulatiOn which is necessary for the life
Of the The States must I'LL
in the detail, must undertake the regu-
latiOn which adjusts enterprise to
the daily life of the community, must
see to it that there is no essential an
tdgOnjSm between the use of wealth
and the development of a wholesome
life. that the gates Of opportunity are
kept open, that men are everywhere
free to work, hat communities are
protected against disease, particular
classes against the crushing burdens
Of certain kinds of labor, that the
streams are utilized as the sources of
power and refreshment, that the for
ests are conserved within their Dor
deIs, that the resources whOch ought
to be m are not mOnOpOllZed
and used exclusively for private bene-
fit and profit.
More and more, therefore. it would
seem. will the energetic men of this
country find their profitable field of
service in the politics of our States.
1t is becoming evident that they are
to be the battle ground of political
reform. 1t has never been possible
so far to maintain anything that could
be fairly called a national political
machine. 1t has only been to speak
figuratively when we have spoken of
any man as a national boss. The ma
chine which We fear, which we mean
A. -
problem Of political reform for us, is
a local affair. We find it in cities
and in States. The States are the
units Of organization in our politics.
and being the units of organization
are also the units OF reform. the units
of publication. of simplification and
Of correction with regard to every
thing that threatens to go wrong IN
our national life. Moreover they are
of necessity the chief battle ground
of economic reform. It is the States
which incorporate the great undertake
ings which threaten to bulk larger
than the states themselves in the
power which they exercise. The
whole problem of the regulation Of
public service corporations, for exam
pie, is a State problem except in so
far as the great railway systems of
the country are concerned, which are
AiIS NJ 1So vi I t.
For the daily convenience and free
dom Of u people the control OF troll
ley lines, of gas companies, of electric
light and power companies, is even
more important than the control Of
great railways. The way in when
these local public service corporations
are managed has a vast deal to do
not only with the convenience and
comfort Of our several communities,
but with their development, with their
actual existence, with the whole ques-
ton of the congestion of population
and the maintenance Of wholesome
and sanitary and convenient condi-
ions. Their control is necessarily a
question for She States and as the
States act wisely " unWisely. cour-
ageously or hesitating1y in their con-
troll, or will the life Of their people
be clogged or cleared, assisted or inl-
peded, so will Political and econoinic
conditions be improved or rendered
worse.
Even the larger matter Of conserva-
ton IS more 4 question for the States
than for the Federal government.
The Federal government can act IN
that matter only insofar as it still
controls ands and forests and mines
and water courses. The great bulk Of
the land Of the continent and Of its
has passed out of federal
control long a~o. 1t is the states
which must determine by their policy
whether the natural Of the
country are to b. exhausted or re-
neWed, wasted Or conserved, and the
matter Will require all the more care
full craftsmanship and planning be-
cause it will ouch life very intimately
at many points.
In short, politics is not a matter of
broadly outlined plans. 1t is a very
intensive matter and nowhere will
legislative regulation have to be more
carefully and j~udiciously planned tina
within the several States. Their well
fare and development are IN their own
hands. It is Well for the stimulation
of their people that it should be so.
They can depend upon no one but
themselves to effect their emancipa-
ton from conditions which are oner-
Gus to them. Necessity will force
fInnn than ~ notfxyn- aJa-o