The weekly Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1911-1922, 1912-03-21


public we should discuss and hear
much of the popular will and of the
right of the people. This is gov
ernment based on popular control.
Reflection on Government.
'We all concede that the opera
ton of elections and the operations
of government are not perfect, and
are sometimes subject to corrupt in
fuences and control, and that it is
the part of patriotism to remove, as
far as possible, the obstacles which
prevent honest primaries, honest
elections and the honest administra-
tion of the government In the inter
est of the people, but the continued
iteration and reiteration of the prop
osition, let the people rule if it
has any significance at all, and is
intended to be a reflection on the
government that we have had down
to the present time.
"Now, in spite of all the corrup-
ton, in spite of all the machine
politics, in spite of every defect in
operation of our government that can
be pointed out, l do not hesitate to
say that the history of the last 135
years shows that the people have
ruled. They may have been defeat
ed at times by corrupt and corrupt
ing influences, congresses and Iegis-
latures may have been halted by sub
terranean methods in carrying out
what the people desire, but in the
end. under our present Constitution
and our present laws, we have had
a really popular government.
Does Not Do Justice.
Il don't mean to say that we can
not make it better. | don't mean TO
say that we may not remove some
obstacles by which corruption or ma
chine methods may be minimized, but
what / do say is that the cry that the
people do not rule and are not in
control, or an intimation to that eff
feet. does not do justice to the Amer
lean people or their history, and
holds us up to the world at large in
light which does not do us Justice
Certainly there is nothing in the
growth of this country from the
adoption of the Constitution until
now, or within the last twenty or
thirty years, that justifes any at
tack upon our structure of govern
ment, or any sapping of the founda-
tions that have stood SO firmly and
upon which our whole popular civil
ization has been reared.
''The occasion for these remarks
is the attack upon our judiciary and
the proposal by Judicial recall, or
recall of judicial decisions, to des-
troy its independence and thus take
away from the arch of government
the keystone. l deny that there is in
the decision of the courts, or the
character of the judges, or the result
of litigation, that which justifes
such a radical innovation. / am
not unmindful of the necessity for
judicial reform, but that depends, not
upon changing the character of the
judges, but upon the change of pro-
eedure, the expedition of judgments
and the reduction of the expense of
litigation.
Tendency in Politics.
Zone can easily discover a ten
dency in modern politics to exali
above the written law and above the
written Constitution what is called
popular will, as if that were a
higher law to which We must all ad
NIT allegiance by Obeying it, anG
ignore or transgress statutory ant
constitutional limitations.
'This heresy is not stated exactly
In the form of an assertion tha
judges and others are to ignor,
statutes and Constitutions because o.
a conflicting popular will. but it i
the more insidious proposition tina
plain construction of the statute O
Of the Constitution is to be de
| feated, and a strained and otherwis
impossible construction put upon tn
| language of the statute Of Constitu
ton, In Difference to what is sup
posed to be the popular will.
The President here quoted a west
crn Governor whom he did not nam
who had declared whatever j
right is constitutional. and VIII
had taken Lincoln's words, "the lif
of this nation is greater than an
! Constitution to sustain his view.
SIT is impossible to escape th
meaning of such a view," said th
, President, "and that is that th
plain construction of the Constit,
e tion is to be prevented because it
4 thought that the people at preser
5 would prefer not to be subject to IL
: limitation contained in the Constitl
0 tion lawfully adopted" The quo
e led words of Lincoln have here I