The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1912-02-23

The important thing Is thls-that
under such government recognition as
we may give to that which Is benef-
icent and wholesome in large busi-
ness organizations we shall be most
vigllant never to allow them to crys-
talllze into condition which shall
make private initiative difficult. 1t Is
of the utmost Importance that in the
future we shall keep the broad path of
opportunity Just as open and easy for
our children as IL was for our fathers
during the period which has been the
glory of Americas industrial history.
In a word, then, our fundamental
purpose must be to secure genuine
equality Of opportunity. No man
should receive a dollar unless that
dollar has been fairly earned. Every
dollar received should represent n dol
lars worth of service rendered No
watering of stocks should be permit
ted, and It can be prevented only by
close governmental supervision of all
stock issues so as to prevent overcnD-
itallzatlon.
We stand for the rights Of property.
but we stand even more for the rights
OF man. We will protect the rights OF
the wealthy man, but we maintain
that he holds his wealth subject to the
general right Of the community to reg
ulate It's business use as the public
welfare requires
Welfare Of Labor.
We also maintain that the nation
and the several states have the right
to regulate the terms and conditions
of labor, which is the chief element
Of wealth, directly in the interest Of
the common good. 1t Is our prime
duty to shape the Industrial and social
forces so that they may tell for the
material and moral upbuildlng of the
farmer and the wageworker, just as
they should do in the case OF the busi-
ness man. You, trainers OF this con-
stitution, be careful so to frame it that
under 1t the people shall leave them
selves free to do whatever is necessary
in order to help the farmers of the
state to get for themselves and their
wives and children not only the bene-
fits of better farming, but also those
of better business methods and better
conditions of life on the farm.
Moreover shape your constitutional
action so that the people will be able
through their legislative bodies or, fail
ing that, by direct popular vote to pro-
vide workmen's compensation acts, to
regulate the hours of labor for chill
dren and for women, to provide for
their safety while at work and to pre-
vent overwork or work under unhy
gienic or unsafe conditions. See to 1t
that no restrictions are placed upon
legislative powers that will prevent the
enactment of laws under which your
people can promote. the general vel
fare, the common good.
So much for the ends Of govern
ment, and l have, of course, merely
sketched In outline what the ends
should be. Now for the machinery by
which these ends are to be achieved.
and here again remember only sketch
in outline and do not for a moment
pretend to work out in detail the meth
DDS Of achieving your purposes. Let
me at the outset urge upon you to re-
member that, while machinery is i'm
portant, 1t is easy to overestimate its
Importance and, moreover, that each
community has the absolute right to
determine for itself what that machin-
cry shall be, subject only to the funda
mental law of the nation as expressed
in the constitution Of the United
States. Massachusetts has the right
to have appointive judges who serve
during good behavior, subject to re-
moval, not by impeachment, but by
simple majority vote of the two houses
of the legislature whenever the repre-
sentatives of the people feel that the
needs of the people require such re-
moval New York has the right to
have a long term elective judiciary.
Ohio has the right to have a short term
elective judiciary without the recall.
California, Oregon and Arizona have
each and every one of them the right
to have a short term elective judiciary
with the recall. Personally Of the four
systems / PETER the Massachusetts
one II uuulllOH De Lndue W IL III htlS
matter indicate.
In the first place, / believe in the
short ballot. You cannot get good serv-
ice from the public servant If you can
not see him, and there is no more cf-
fectiye way of hiding him than by mix
ing him up with a multitude Of others
so that they are none Of them impor-
tant enough to catch the eye OF the
average workaday citizen. The crook
in public life is not ordinarily the man
whom the people themselves elect di-
rectly to a highly important and re-
sponsible position. The type of boss
who has made the name Of politician
Odious rarely himself runs for high cleo
tive office, and If he does and is elected
the people have only themselves to
blame. The professional politician and
the professional lobbyist thrive most
rankly under system which provides
n multitude OF elective officers. of such
divided responsibility and OF such OBJ
security that the public knows and can
know but little as TO their duties and