The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-12-05
SENATOR LODGE ON
 INITIATIVE, REFERENDUM

Senator Lodges address on the in- itiative, referendum and recall, de- nvered recently before the North Car olina Literary and Historical Associa- ton, has all the defects of his unscl- entific methods of approaching the subject.
 The best way to ascertain how an institution will work is to see how it does work. If the thing, or in- stitution is not in being the best way is to put it into being and try it.
 The initiatve and referendum has been tired in Switzerland for forty years. It has no enemies there. Its effect has been not to destroy repre- sentative government, as Senator Lodge fears the same powers will do here. but 1t has made representative government really representative. which might be expected, since there is little gained when legislative body passes bill which the nation does not want, or fails to pass one that it does. waftn tn]ns9 d1f75f
 Oregon has done pretty we'll under the initiative and referendum for a number of years. Many other states. i. some 20, have adopted it, or are about to dc, so.
 Senator Lodge does not believe in the wisdom of the whole. He has a picture of the : American people committing national suicide with an overdose of Democracy.
 He defies science which teaches that the swarm contains the instincts necessary to the perpetuation of it's species.
 He defies the common experience of mankind, and the lessons of history, which show that the lot of man has improved in the last. few centuries in 1almoste preeisea degree that democracy has progressed.
 His fears that the courts will be deprived of power to perform their duties by and through the recall are equally groundless.
 There is no. other nation in the world which permits nine judges to override the will of its parliament, as the Supreme court of this country may override the will of Congress and the nation, saying on one day that an in- come tax may be laid and on another that it may not; saying on another day that the Sherman law forbids combinations in restraint of trade, and on another day that it does not.
 There may be somewhere in the modern world an institution more dangerous than the 1odgment of law l, making power together with judicial power in the hands of nine men ap- pointed for life but it is not discov- erable among any of the great pow CTS of the world, excepting possibly Russia.
 Senator Lodge is 8 special pleader. He views the initiative and referen- dum Tn the light of the fact that at present the people are more radical than their legislatures, because the legisls lures have become unrepresen- tative. But within a few years the character of legislatures may change Their majorities may be radical. Leg islatures will tend to outrun the de- sires of the people, as they now fall behind. The appeainto the people will then prove exceedingly valuable The nation is conservative nine-tenths of the time. It is the safest of all tribunals.
 Senator Lodges views upon this question do not much matter. The same political forces that retired AL drich have all but retired him. Re publican and Democratic the men who are coming 4o poWWef frsHff sfn Doth grea, parties are committed to the initia- tive, referendum and recall, Senators La Toilette and Bourne leading the Republican movement, Governor Woodrow Wilson, Senators owen and Gore, leading the Democratic move ment.a s-.3
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