The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-11-04
CARDINAL GIBBONS
 IS VERY OPTIMISTIC
Delivers N0n-Partisan Elec-
 tiOn Eve Sermon
REPUBLIC IS STABLE
Will Not Go Down, No Matter Who Is Elected-"No Man Should Be Drone in Social Beehive"
 He Declares

DrOne Tn S0cIdl Beehive,
 He Declares
 Baltimore. November s.-Cardinal Gib- bons. in the cathedral here today. deliv- cred an election eve sermon designed to l awaken "the supine citizen who never takes an interest in the political welfare of his country. He declared that if the future historian is called upon to record the decline and fall of the Amer ican republic he will ascribe as the cause "the indifference, lethargy and political apostasy of her own sons.
 The sermon was non-partisan as to the personal preferences of the cardinal to- ward the three conspicuous candidates for President He asserted his intolerance toward pessimistic prophets. who each campaign predict the end of the govefn- ment unless their favorite candidate Is elected and by discussion of our form of government sought to show that the results of our election cannot seriously affect the endurance of the republic. The sermon follows:
 Cardinal Gibbons Sermon
 Tt is the habit of pesslmistic prophets to predict that our government viii soon come to an end and that 1t is already in the throes of dissolution. and the dis aster is sure to occur if their favorite candidate is defeated. These prophecies are usually more frequent on the eve of a presidential election. I have been listen ing to these dire representations for over half a century.
 But in every instance the American people wake up on the morning after election to find that they were disquieted by false alarms and that the government is transacting it's business in the same quiet and orderly manner as before. T propose this morning to state as briefly as possible the grounds of my confidence in the stability and endurance of the American republic
 By a wise provision of the constltu- ton of the United States political au- thority is not concentrated in one in- dividual, or In one department of the administration, but is judciously distrib- uted so that the balance of power may be preserved. Our general government con- sists of the executive, the legislative and the judicial branches. If anything goes wrong with any one of these departments the evil is checked by the other two, and usurpation of power Is prevented. There is an habitual jealousy among these branches. They are on the alert, zealously watching one another, so that no one branch may exceed Its legitimate bounds Eternal vigilance Is the price of lib- erty.
 Causes for Optimism
 Then. again, besides the federal ad- ministra tion we have state governments and county rule; we have city and town and village municipalities. If all of these minor corporations were absorbed by the general government, if our governors and state legislators, and sheriffs, and mayors and counoilmen were all under the control of the President; if he could at will decap- itate all obnoxious subordinate rulers, with one blow, all our political liberties would be at an end. But happily all these lesser officials enjoy full autonomy in their spheres and are independent or the chief magistrate
 Our system of government is very complete It may be compared to CO., lossal engine containing an innumerable wheels within wheels Each wheel works in it's own orbit, like the planetary sys- tenn If the great federal wheel gets out of order, the smaller wheels are not much deranged, but keep on moving tiil the big machine Is repaired
 eve are all familiar with the memor- able Titanic disaster, which resulted in the loss of so many precious lives, as well as the peerless vessel itself. Had all inc oompartmcnts of that steamship been watertight the loss of life would have been avoided.
 The State Gives Security
 Now our government is often called a. chin of state. This great ship of state is divided into 4s minor states. Each of these states may be said to be water proof in the sense that the engulfing Of one would not involve the sinking of the other. California, for example, might be overwhelmed by the waters of a political revolution without disturbing the neigh boring states of Washington, Nevada and Arizono.
 If our states were mere provinces or territories, without autonomy and sov- ereignty, like other republics less favored than ours, we would enjoy less stability and less hope of enduring freedom than we now possess
 ..The safety and permanence, therefore, of our republic largely depend on the autonomy of the several states, without the danger of absorption by the general government. Should our government and legislators ever become the subseryient creatures of the federal government they would be mere puppets, subject to the will Of the chief executive. They would cease to be waterproof and would share the fate of the Titantic.
 Another Ground of Confidence
 "Another strong ground of confidence l have in the stability and permanence of the republic rests in the enlightenment. the good sense and patriotism of the American people. You and your father have now for century and quarter experienced and enjoyed the blessings of d strong and free government. And if you compare the results of our political sys- tenn with those of other civilized na- tons, I do not think that our republic. With all its drawbacks and shortcomings. will suffer in the comparison. You can say: America with all thy faults, 1 love thee still
 "Cold. indeed, and torpid, obtuse and apatnetic is the soul that is not aroused to warmth and enthusiasm in contem- plating the history of the United States. which has been the home of liberty and the haven of rest to down trodden mill lions in other lands.
 .But the survival of the American re- dation than the patriotism of our cii- gems, the genius of our statesmen and the wisdom of our laws. It must have a stronger basis than fleets and dread narghts and standing armies: for the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong Our enduring stability can be.secured only under the abiding pro- tection of the Lord of Hosts
 n-- Ol~..Il D.