Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1912-02-24

Mr.. Roo6eveIts Famous smile.
point Is. II is often said that ours Is
a government OF checks and balances.
But this should only mean that these
checks and balances obtain as among
the several different kinds of repre-
sentatives of the people-judiclal, ex-
ecutive and legislative-to whom the
people have delegated certain portions
Of their power. 1t does not mean That
the people have parted with their pow
er or cannot resume 1t. The division
of powers Is merely the division
among the representatives Of the pow
ers delegated to them. The term
must not be held to mean that the
people have divided their power with
their delegates. The power is the peo-
pies and only the peoples.
Make Popular Rule Effective.
hold 1t to be the duty Of every
public servant and of every man who
in public or in private life holds posi-.
ton of leadership in thought or action
to endeavor honestly and fearlessly to
guide his fellow countrymen to right
decisions, but l emphatically dissent
| from the view that 1t is either wise or
| necessary to try to devise methods
| which under the constitution will auto
matically prevent the peon0 from de
Gliding for themselves what govern
| mental action they deem just and prop
err. 1t is impossible to invent constitu-
| tional devices which will prevent the
popular will from being effective for
wrong without also preventing it from
being effective for right. The only safe
course to follow in this great American
democracy is to provide for making the
popular Judgment really effective
Lincoln, with his clear vision, his IN
| grained sense of justice and his sPl,t
| of kindly friendliness to all, forecast
our present struggle and saw the way
| out. What he said should be pondered
| by capitalist and workingman alike
He spoke as follows q condense):
I hold that while man exists 1t is his
! duty to improve not only his condition
but TO assist in ameliorating mankind
| Labor is prior to and independent of cap
| ital. Labor Is the superior of capital and
| Capital has Its rights. which are as worthy
of protection as any other rights Nor
| should this lead to a war upon property
Property is the fruit Of labor. Property
| Is desirable. Is a positive good in the
| world. Let not him who ia houseless pun
down the house of another, but let him
work diligently and build one for himself
thus by example assuring that his own
shall be safe from violence when built
10 f,ts =.
| shows Linco,l's homely, kindly COM
mon sense. His Is the attitude that we
| ought to take. He showed the proper
| sense of proportion in his relative esti
| mates of capital and labor, of human
rights and the rights of wealth.
Prosperity Must Be Distributed.
The ends % Gool government in our
democracy are to secure by genuine
popular rule high average of moral
and material well being among our
citizens. 1t has been wen said that in
the past we have paid attention only
to the accumulation of prosperity, and
that from henceforth we must pay
equal attention to the proper distribu-
ton of prosperity. This is true. The
/ only prosperity worth having is tina.
which affects the mass of the pecple
We are bound to strive for the fair dis
tribution o. prosperity. But ii be.
hooves us to remember that there is no
use in deyising methods for the proper
distribution OF prosperity unless III
prosperity is there to distribute. / hoo
1t to be our duty 10 see that the vase
worker, the small producer, the ord
nary consumer, shall get their fai
share of the benefit of business pr1>
perity. But it either is or ought 20 L
evident to every one that business ~
to prosper before anybody can get al
benefit from it. Therefore / hold III
he is the real progressive, that he
the genuine champion Of the people
who endeavors TO shape the policy all
of the nation and of the several state
so as to encourage legitimate homes
business at the same time that he war
against all crookedness ana injust,
and unfairneys and TYRANNY IN the I'm
Continued on page four.