Perth Amboy evening news., 1912-03-19

purDoEe, Their u 10 restore,
not to destroy. representative govern
ment. II must be remembered By
every candid man who discusses these
matters that we are contrasting the
operation of the initiative and the ref
erendunr mt with the representstiy
government which we possess In theo-
ry and which we have long persuaded
ourselves that we possessed An fact,
but with the actual state Of affairs,
with legislative processes which are
carried on In secret, responding to the
Impulse of subsidized machines and
carried through by men whose unhap-
piness 1t is to realize that they are not
their own masters, but puppets in a.
game.
Legislatures Must Represent People.
"If we felt that We had genuine rep
r~esentative government in our state
legislatures no n would propose the
initiative or referendum In America.
They are being proposed now az a
means Of bringing our representatives
back to the consciousness that what
they are bound In duty and In mere
policy to do Is to represent the sover
eisn people whom they profess to serve
and not the private interests which
creep into their counsels by way OF
machine orders and committee confer
ences. The most ardent and successful
advocates of the initiative and referen-
dunn regard them as a SOLDERING means
of obtaining genuine representative ac-
ton on the part of legislative bodies.
They do not mean to set anything
vigorats rather.
1.-THE recall is a means Of admtntstra-
tive control. II properly regulated and
devised 1t Is a means OF restoring to
administrative officials what the inftia-
tive and referendum restore to legisla-
tors-namely, a sense Of direct respon-
sibility to the people who chose them.
1.-The recall Of judges is another mat
ter. Judges are not lawmakers. They
are not administrators. Their duty is
not to determine what the law shall
be, but to determine what the law is-
Their independence, their sense Of dig
nifty and OF freedom, IL Of the first
consequence to the stability OF the
state. To apply to them the principle
Of the recall Is to set up the idea that
determinations of what the law Is must
respond to popular impulse and to pop
ular Judgment. It Is sufficient that
the people should have the power to
change the law when they will. It Ia
not necessary that they should direct
ly influence by threat of recall those
who merely interpret the law already
established. The Importance and de-
STABILITY Of the recall as a means OF
administrative control ought not to be
obscured by drawing 1t into this other
and very different field.
1.-THE second power we fear Is the
control Of our life through the vast
privileges of corporations which use
the wealth of masses of men to sus,
tain their enterprise. 1t is In connec-
ton with this danger that 1t is neces-
a to do some of our elearest and
frankest thinking. 1t Is a fundamental
mistake to speak of the privileges Of
these great corporations as If they fell
within the class OF private right and
OF private property. Those who ad.
minister the affairs Of great Joint stock
companies are really administering the
property Of communities, the property
of the whole mass and miscellany of
men who have bought the stock or the
bonds that sustain the enterprise. The
stocks and the bonds are constantly
changing hands. There is no fixed
partnership. Moreover, managers Of
such corporations are the trustees Of
moneys which they themselves never
accumulated, but which have been
drawn together out Of private savings
here, there and everywhere.
Captains OF industry Are Trustees.
what is necessary in order to recti-
" the whole mass of business OF this
kind Ia that those who control 1t should
entirely change their point of view.
They are trustees, not masters, of pri-
vate property, not only because their
power is derived from a multitude of
men, but also because In it's invest
ments 1t affects a multitude Of men.
1t determines the development or de
cay of communities. 1t Is the mean
of lifting or depressing the life Of the
whole country. They must regard
themselves as representatives of a pub
lie power. There can be no reasona-
BILE jealousy Of public regulation in
, such matters, because the %opportunl-
ties of oil men are affected. Their
| property is everywhere touched, their
savings are everywhere absorbed, their
employment is everywhere determined
by these great agencies. What we
need, therefore, is to come to a com
mon view which will not bring antag.
onisms, but accommodations. The
| programs Of parties must now be pro
grams of enlightenment and readjust.
ment, not revolutionary, but r~estora.
tive. The processes Of change are
largely processes OF thought, but IN.
happily they cannot be effected with
out becoming political processes also
and that is the deep responsibility OF
| public men. What we need, therefore
in our politics Is an instant alignment
OF all men free and willing TO think
and to act without fear upon theil
thought.
'"This is just as much q constructive
age In politics, therefore, Rs was tbs
great age in which our federal govern
ment was set up, and the man whs
| aoAs ,o% auvaEa RI tina ofsnnr4unitv shs