The advocate. [volume] (Charleston, W. Va.) 1901-1913, 1912-02-22
point Is. II Is often said That bHtS ID,
a government OF checks and balances.

point Is. TITS often said YKat D1f5 nj
q government OF checks and balances.
But this should only mean that these
fchecks and balances obtain as among
the several different kinds Of rcpre.
sentatiyes Of the people--judlclal, ex-
ec1tiye and leglslatlve-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:cnnnot resume It. The ''dlVision
OF powers Is, merely the division
among the representative Of the DOW
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.
Mako Populsr RuIo Effective.
hold it to he tho duty Of every
public servant and Of every man who
In public or in private life holds a 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 It is either wise or
necessary to try to devise methods
which under the constitution viii auto
matically prevent the people from de-
Gliding for themselves what govern
mental action they deem just and prop
or. It IS lmpossi BILE 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 spirit
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 condenser:
I hold that while man exists it is his
duty 10 improve not only his condition.
but to assla. In anielIoratinG mankind
Labor Is prior TO and Independent OF cap
itnl Labor Is the superior, OF capital and
deserves much the figInHr consid !Hn
Capital has It's rights. which are as worthy
or protection as any other rights Nor
Property Is the fruit Of labor. Property
Is desirable. IS positive good III the
world. Let not him. who Is houSeless pull
down the house of another but let him
work diligently and build one FOR himself,
thus by example assuring that his own
shall be cate from violence when built
+, This last sentence: characteristically
shows Lincoln's homely, kindly com.
. mon sense. His Is the attitude that we
|, ought to take. lie showed the proper
sense OF proportion in his relative esti
mates Of capital and labor, Of human
rights and the rights OF wealth.
---Prospsrity Must 1s Distributed.
The ends OF good government in our
democracy are to. secure by genuine
popular rule a high average Of moral
end material we'll being among our
citizens. 1t has been well said that in
the past we have paid attention only
to tho 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 that
which affects the mass of the people
We are bound to strive for the fair dis.
t1ibutiOn Of prosperity. But it be-
hoOveS us to remember that there is no
use in dcvising methods for the proper
distribution Of prosperity unless tho
prosperity Is there to distribute l hold
1T to be our duty to see that the wage
worker, the small producer the ordi
nary consumer, shall get their fair
share of The benefit Of business pros
ttI- pNtt + ~
evident to every one that business has
to prosper before anybody can get any
benefit from it. Therefore / hold that
he is the real progressive, that he is
the genuine champion OF the people.
who endea"ors to Shape the policy alik q
Of the nation and Of the several states
so as to encourage legitimate honest
business at the same time that he wars
against -eFookeanesS- antl-injusticc
and unfairneSS and tyranny in the bust.
ness world, for Of course we can only
get business put Oh n basis Of perma.
nent prosperity when the element Of In.
justice is taken out Of it. This is the
reason why | have for so many years
insisted as regards our national GOV
eminent that il is both futile and mis-.
chievous to endeavor. to correct tho
evils of big business by an attempt to
restore business conditions as, they
were in the middle. of the last century,
before railways and telegraphs had rem.
-dered larger business organizations both
incvitaD!e ard desirable.
The effort to restore such conditions
and to trust for justice solely to such
proposed restoration is as foolish as if
we should attempt to arm our'troops
with the flintlocks Of Washingtons
Continentals instead Of with modern
weapons Of, precision. Flintlock legis-
lation Of the kind that seeks to pro
bibt all combinations, good or bad, is
bound to fail, and the effort, in so far
as it accomplishes anything ut ALL
merely means that some Of the. worst
combinations AFRO nor chocked and fLot