The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1912-03-21

| ercises that function he has no right
to let his political philosophy reverse
and thwart the will of the majority. In
| that function the Judge must represent
| the people or he fails In the test the
Supreme Court has laid down.
Compensation Act.
Take the workmen's compensation
| act here Is New York. The legislators
| gave us a law in the interest Of hui
mainly and decency and fair dealing.
In so doing they represented the people,
and represented them we'll. Several Judges
declared that law constitutional In our
state, and several courts in other
States declared similar laws constitu-
tional, and the Supreme Court of the ma
, ton declared a similar law affecting
men In Interstate business constitu-
tional; but the highest court in the
state of New York, the court of APP
peals, declared that we, the people of
New York, could not have such a law.
II hold that in this case the legisla-
| tors and the judges alike. occupied rep
resentative positions; the difference was
| merely that the former represented us
we'll and the latter represented us i'll
Mr.. Taft again and again, in quo
tations i have given and elsewhere
through his speech, expresses his dis
belief in the people when they vote
at the poll. In one sentence that the
the momentary impulse of a majority
OF an electorate and prepares the
way for the possible exercise Of the
grossest tyranny Elsewhere he
and unstable determination of laws
by temporary and changing major
tiles, and again he says that the
system l propose would result In
suspension or application of consti-
tutional guarantees according to
popular whim,' which would destroy
all possible consistency in constitu-
tional Interpretation.
"Fitful Impulses"
II should much like to know the
exact distinction that Is to be made
between what Mr.. Taft calls the fit
full impulse Of a temporary majority
when applied to a question as that
raise and any other question. Re-
member that under my proposal to
review a rule of decision by popular
vote, amending or constituting, to that
extent, the Constitution, would take
the election of the Legislature which
passed the act. Now. only four
ton and the election of a man as
PRESIDENT to NIL for four years the
most important office in the land In
one OF Mr.. Taft's speeches he speaks
OF the voice OF the people, as com
parently. then, the decision Of the
people about the Presidency, after
four months elaboration, is to be
put n after two years of sober
children shall be protected in indus
try or men protected from excessive
n hours Of labor under ,unhygienic
pensated when they lose life or limb
In the service OF others, then their
decision forthwith becomes a 'whim'
and feverish' and unstable and an
the laying Of the ak TO the root OF
the tree of freedom
IF Mr.. Tafts language correctly de-
scribes such action by the people. then
have been elected by the fitfuI Impulse
OF temporary majority then the
constitution of each State, and the
constitution OF the nation, have been
adopted. and all amendments thereto
have been adopted. by the ftfuI i'm
pulse of temporary majority If he
Is right. 1t was the fitful impulse of
and another ftful impulse which per,
petuated, this nation. "
"old, Old Doctrine"
Mr. Taft's position is perfectly clear.
1t is that we have in this country a
special class of persons wiser than the
people, who are above the people, who
cannot be reached by the people, but
who govern them and ought to govern
them; and who protect various classes
This is the old. old doctrine which has
been acted upon for thousands OF years
abroad, and which here in America has
been acted upon sometimes openly
sometimes secretly. for forty years by
many men in public and private life,
and / am sorry to say by many judges;
a doctrine which has, in fact, tended to
create a bulwark for privilege, bull
wark unjustly protecting special inter
ests against the rights of the people as
whole.
"Thts doctrine is to ME dreadful
doctrine: for its effect is. and can only
e to make the SETs the sn she'H Na Of
orally. every upholder and beneficiary
cf crooked privilege loudly applauds
the d"ctine Vt is behind hodt the shis!
creep into laws, that men az wealth
and power control legislation. The
men OF wealth who ,prai se this. doc
member that to Its adoption by the
courts IS due the distrust So many OF
our wageworkers now feel for the
Tots dsn o that hat that Rs s faS9y e has
tinue 1t. most earnestly urge that
the evils and abuses it has produced
cry aloud for remedy: and the only
to govern !1irectlv to the people and
to make the public servant directly
responsible to the whole people-and
to no part OF them, to no class of
them.
Tyranny of Small Minority.
"Mr Taft is very much afraid of
the tyranny Of majorities For TWEEN
ty-five years here in New York State,
in our efforts to get social and indus
trial justice, We have suffered from
the tyranny of a small minority. We
have been denied, now by one court,
now by another, as in the hakeshop
case, where the courts set aside the
law limiting the hours OF labor in
bakeries-the due process clause
again--as in the workmens compen-
sation act, as in the tenement house
cigar factory Case-in all these and
many other cases we have been dent
ed by small minorities, by a few
worthY men of wrong political phil
osophy on the bench, the right to pro-
tect our people in their lives. their
liberty, and their pursuit of happi-
ness. AS for 'ConsistenCy'-wE the
record of the courts, in such a case
as the income tax for instance, is go