The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-08

islators of the various states of the union have been, as d general rule, Inc picked and chosen men of the communl- ties from which they have come, and have been honest, wise and patriotic From whose hands have come, during the century or more of our existence, those laws under which we have grown and prospered and held higher measure of freedom than has ever come to the lot of any people? The statute books of the American states are filled with wise and beneficent laws through the operation of which they have grown into great and powerful commmonwealths. It was a great statesman, from whose lips words of idle or extravagant praise never fell, who said:
 The statute books of these common wealths can be read by the patriot with out blush. I am not afraid to com- pare them with the 200 parlaments through which for 500 years the freedom of England has broadened down from precedent to precedent
 Members of the legislatures of the diff ferent states are the agents and direct representatives of the people, and if it be true that as whole they are incom- petent, unworthy and corrupt, it would follow necessarily that the masses of the people from whom they Sprang and from whom they are selected were also either corrupt or crimDally indifferent to their interests or liberties. They possess the same characteristics the people from whom they came, and if after repeated trials and selections, the community can not secure an intelligent and honest man to represent it, I would not like to live under laws initiated or adopted by the sovereignty of that people.
 Placing Responsibilities
 of is a sound poyarnfnanto1 pripct,te that political power should always be accompanied with responsibility located and identified. Where responsibility can not be placed it does not exist. and an irresponsible power in government inevit- ably leads to oppression or the loss of liberty. That this responsibility shall not be evaded under our representative system of government, the constitution of every state requires that the legislative record shall disclose the presence or the absence of each legislator, his vote and his position on every bill. Where, in tine system of the initiative would this so- bering knowledge of responsibility rest? ? What right would one citizen have to call another to account? Each would repre- sent only himself, and with the utter
 lack of responsibility on the part of the law making body, arbitrary and irrespon- sible power would be enthroned and the reign of anarchy complete.
 We should not overlook the fact that
 under the initiative, wherever introduced, the state constitutions can be altered or amended with greater ease and facility than even an ordinary statute under the representative system. No submission of the proposed amendment by a two-thirds vote of tho legislature Is required. A small per cent of the voters can at any time propose the most radical or fai reaching constitutional changes and the fundamental law which our people have ever been taught to regard as 8 shield ol ldefense against the attacks of irresponsi- ble power, which has ever been hedge1 around with those difficulties of approach
 so essential to stable government, would
 become
 l As variable as the shade
 By the light of quivering aspen made i I've all recognize the truth of Madson's declaration that too much legislation is
 one of the evils of republican govern
 ment. and hence every recent constitution has wisely adopted numerous restrictions
 and limitations on legislative power. Yet
 we know that notwithstanding all these limitations, every state has been burdened