The advocate. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1901-1913, 1912-03-21

dshx tSPea king peoples since .MAanaSr
ChArta. Untfi. within the IaSE 1fxtyf
years B they were treated Xas hayinsi
ypecifc meanings. Property meant
tangible property; liberty" meant
freedom from personal restraint or, In
other words, from imprisonment in It's
largest definition. About 1870 our
courts began to attach to these terms
new meanings. Now property, has
come ITO mean every right Of value I
which person could enjoy, and -1ib-
erty' has been made to include the
right to, make contracts. As "A result
when the state limits the hours for
which women may labor 1t H. told by
the courts that this law deprives them
Of their liberty" and when it re-
stricts the manufacture of tobacco in
a tenement It is told that the law de-
prives the landlord Of his property"
Now. do not believe that any people,
and especially our free American peo-
pie, will long consent that the term
liberty" shall be defined for them by
a bench Of judges. Every people has
defined that term for. itself In the
course Of it's historic development. OF
course it Is plain enough to see that,
In large way, the political history Of
man may be grouped about these three
terms, "life, liberty, and property;
There is no act Of government which
cannot be brought within their detini-
ton, and, II the courts are to cease to
treat them as words having a limited.
specific meaning, then our whole gov
eminent is brought underline practical
ly irresponsible supervision OF judges.
AS against that Kind Of government,
insist that the people have the right,
and can be trusted to govern them
selves. This our opponents deny, and
the issue Is ,shdrply drawn between US.
People Cannot Turn, Back.
prefer to work with moderate, with
rational conservatives, provided only
that they do in good faith strive for
ward toward the light. Butswh hen they
halt and turn theiI' backs to the light
and sit with the scorners on the seats
Of reaction then I must part company
with them. we the people cannot turn
back. Our aim must be steady, wise
progress. 1t would be we'll If our peo-
pie would study the history of a sister!
republic All the woes Of France for a..
century and quarter have been due
to the folly of her people In splitting
into the two camps OF unreasonable
conservatism and .unreasonabler radical
ism. Had brerevolutionary France lis
tened to men like Turgot and backed
them up al would have gone we'll.
But the beneficiares of, privilege, the
Bourbon reactionaries. the shortsight-.
ed ultra conservatives, turned down
Turgot and then found that instead of
him they had obtained Robespierre.
They gained twenty years. freedom
from all restraint and reform at the
cost OF the whirlwind of the red ter
FOR, and In their turn the unbridled ex-
tremista Of the terror induced blind
reaction, and so. with CONFUSION and
oscillation from one extreme to an
other, with alternations Of violent rad
icalism and violent Bourbonism, the
French people went through misery
% shatteretk goal. There is no
danger OF revolution In this country,
but there are grave discomfort and un-
rest, and In order to remove them there
Is need Of all the wisdom and probity
and deep seated faith in and, purpose
to uplift humanity we have at our COM
mand
Social and Industrial Justice.
Friends, our task as Americans is to
strive for social and. Industrial Justice,
achieved through the genuine rule of
the people. In order to succeed we
need leaders Of inspired idealism, lead
ers. to whom are granted great visions,
who dream greatly and strive to make
their dreams come true. who can kin
die the people with the fire from their
own burning souls. The leader for the
time being, whoever he may be, is but
an instrument, to be, used until broken
and then to be cost aside, and II he is
worth his salt he Will eare-no- more
when he Is broken than soldier
cares when he is sent where his life Is
forfeit In order that the victory may
be won. In the Long fight for right
eousness the watchword for all Of us
~ SF>AN "bNs w opChI' AZ 40 VI Alu0
matter whether any, one man fails or
succeeds, but the cause shall not fail,
for 1t is the cause OF mankind. We
here In America hold In our hands the
hope of the world, the fate Of the COM
Ing years: and shame and disgrace
will be ours If in our eyes the light OF
high resolve is dlmmed, If we trail in
the dust the golden hopes of men. If
on this new continent we merely build
another country Of great but unjustly
divided material prosperity we shall
have done nothing. and we shalt do as
little II. we merely set the greed saf
envy against the greed of. arrogance I
and thereby destroy the material well
being Of all Of us. r.. ;>...,
Aaainst Ar Tyranny.