Elmore County Republican. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1910-1915, 1912-01-06
ANARCHY
Yausky.
Yausky.

One can state without fear of de-
NAL that our land and age are sadly
marred by lawlessness; and further,
that this lawlessness is increasing.
This, by no means implies that as a
nation we are going to perdition, nor
is it in any sense, the wall of a pes
simist. The writer processes to poss-
ess historical sense which preclud-
es pessimism. He simply invites a
dispassionate view of conditions coup.
led with a brief inquiry into causes,
Lawlessness may be defined as a
contempt for those obligations and
restraints imposed by Providence,
by society and by the relations OF
life-that Is lawless spirit which
dishonors the relations in which man
stands to man. That Is a lawless
spirit which defies those institutions
Of society which make for the high
est good of it's members. That Is
the spirit of lawlessness which sets
at naught the will of the Father as
made known in His revelation and
in His providences. To cite con-
crete case:
A few years ago, in the State OF
Pennsylvania, a strong effort was
made to prohibit he sale OF news
papers on Sunday. The editor Of
one Of the leading papers OF Phila-
delphia, paper calling itself a
guardian of the public morals and
public safety, made the declaration
that 1t mattered not what changes
might be made in the law, the pub
fishers would continue to print and
publish the papers as heretofore.
That was anarchy. Back OF that
statement was the same spirit that
actuated the bomb throwing In Chi
cago and the assassinations commit
ted by the Molly Maguires,
Again. The employees of great
traction system go on strike, and
endeavor to tie up the whole line.
In this attempt some deeds of vio-
lence are committed against person
and property. The public at once
condemns this conduct, and 1t mer-
its the severest condemnation. But
that company has been guilty OF a
prior and worse laWlessness. 1t has
flagrantly set at naught the municipal
ordinances; 1t has watered its stock;
1t has defied the authorities where 1t
has not bought them; 1t has refused
to comply with the law of the state
and provide safeguards for life; IT.
has paid no heed to law except SO
far as law suited its convenience.
There can be no doubt concerning
the laWlessness of the crowd that
takes the law In its hands In the
lynching OF a suspect But how a.
bout the grand jury when 1t refuses
to indict men when indisputable evil
dence of guilt and completely in guilt
is placed before them? The hold
up" who robs his victim in seclud-
ed spot, is undoubtedly an outlaw.
but are We not compelled to apply
the same term TO the saloon keeper
who keeps open when BIZ ought to
be closed, ard also to the manufac-
turer who adulterates the peoples
food supply, Violence on the part
of the strikers Is certainly lawless-
ness, shall we say less of the con-
gressmen who block the way of ben
eficial legislation In order to graft
fy selfish ends? That spirit which
seeks to throw off all restraint and
make its own preferences dominant,
Is the spirit of lawlessness.
Conditions rightly considered will
give us a correct idea of the facts
to be faced but cannot supply the
remedy; in order to do this causes
must be considered Anarchy has its
causes just as easily determined as
yellow fever. Crime is as much a
social product as panic. One miglt
set aside the whole thing by attribut-
ing 1t to the innate depravity of hui
manity. While this may be true in
fact yet 1t does not explain.
This innate depravity can but fur
nish the field In which the lawless-
ness may flourish, but it does not ac-
count for the particular harvest,
which like every other harvest de-
ponds upon the particular seed sown.
Here Is the question We must an
swer: Why do the evil impulses In
man manifest themselves in partic-
ular way? In one form rather than
another?
AS modern society is complex so
are the causes of this deplorable con-
dition Tho maka.un of tho tudivid. |