Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-09-22
1.-THE MAJESTY OF
THE LAWS"

| you are bound to laugh over THE MAJ
ESTY OF THE LAWS. by Henry
| Kitchel1 Webster. in Our next SUNDAY MAG
| AzINE; but while you are laughing you will
realize that your chief sensation is amazement
And then you will begin thinking,-good lively.
pregnant thinking.
And it is worth thinking about, especially at
this time when the able gentlemen who are
anxious to represent us in government are tell
| ing us about the laws they will have passed and
the laws they will have enforced. 1t is perfectly
plain that Mr.. Webster has given the matter
much thought; because, if you will look up the
| laws he quotes, Sand you can find them on the
statute books very easily,-you will realize that
| he has been studying them. And it is equally
plain that he believes we have altogether too
many laws, especially fool laws. There doesn't
seem to be any end to them, and some make the
| old blue enactments at which we are accus-
toned to jbe seem generous and liberal. Ut
course some of these modern laws that Mr..
| Webster makes seem so ridiculous, and which
are likely to raise the ire of some of us, really
don't amount to much; for people have sense
enough not to pay any attention to them. And
others they use to serve more or less excellent
purposes.
| Notwithstanding the attributes of majesty
that the law claims, it hasn't much real working
| force unless it has the spirit of the community
| to give it life. Man may exist to obey divine
| laws and natural laws; but there is no doubt
whatever that nan-made laws are to serve men,
Some folk labor under the impression that
| human beings were created merely to obey acts
| placed upon the statute books. A little more
right thinking, little clearer understanding a
little more common kindness, and. above ALL a
capacity to see things as they and in their
relation, will do lot more good than an end
| less array of BE it enacted" carefully placed
in books.
| A ND when you have become properly in
dignant about prohibitive and restrictive
legislation that interferes with our personal lib
erties-and the other phrases to masterpieces
turn to the article in which related the inner
secrets of the drug trade. 1t is called GET
| TING WISE IN THE DRUG BUSINESS.
and is recorded by Henry Irving Dodge.
When it is made plain to you how legislation
put an end to the abomnable open traffic in
morphine, cocaine, and other drugs, driving
the druggists who trafficked in them out of
business. and thus preventing a vast amount
of misery and suffering, you realize there is an
other side to drastic restrictive legislation. And
| it is easy to understand how well meaning but
not highly enlightened makers of laws can
| bunder.
| There is a lot more in the article about the
drug business than the evil dealing in drugs. In
| fact, it Eliminates never so many surprising
phases of a business familiar to as any. but
which we really know nothing about. The part
that has to do with the mistakes made by ply
sicans is specially amazing. The wonder is
why so many bright men become pharmacists;
| because there is no profession that demands
such long working hours and is SO lily paid
| And yet the drug clerk must have not only an
expensive technical education, but highly in
telgent skill as well.
becoming FAN AT SIXTY. by Boze-
- man Bu1ger. will not appeal to baseball
enthusiasts SO much to plain human beings
| This authority on the national game came to
know the father of celebrated player, and he
lets the old gentleman tell the story. You will
not be sure whether you like best the mother.
the son, or the father, which is the finest possible
tribute to them. And you will be moved by
| the tale, whether or not you hang about
baseball, because it rings true.
THE LUCK OF ROCKING LIGHT is a
splendid tale of the Barnegat life savers. by
| S. Ten Eyck Bourke and Charles Francis