Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1912-04-02
PEOPLE MUST RULE,
ROOSEVELT Theme
Colonel Again Outlines His Views
Before Immense Mass Meet
ing at St. Louis.
FREE GOVERNMENT HIS AIN

Of Privtle0e-Tyranny oy minority
Msnace ~ Representatives
Chosen to Garry Out the
viii Of Those Who
Elected Them.
st. Louis, March 2S-Colonel Theo-
dore Roosevelt: made his second key
note address In the west at the First
Regiment Armory tonight before an
audience that crowded the building to
its limit, while thousands were unable
to gain admittance.i
During the day the colonel spoke n
the Merchants Exchange and the Col
iseum.
Colonel Roosevelt's address at the,
Armory was as follows:
When l say that believe not only
in the right of the people to rule, but
In their duty to rule themselves and
to refuse to submit to being ruled BY
others. ] am not using figure 81
speech, / am speaking of vital issue
which Fundamentally affects our whole
American life. not merely admit but
insist that in all government and espe-
cially In popular government there
must be control; and furthermore that
II control does not come from within
1t must come from without. There
fore 1t is essential that any people
which engages in the difficult expert
ment of self-government should be
able to practice self-control. There
are peoples in the world which have
proved by their lamentable expert
ences that they are not capable OF this
self-control; but contend that the
American people most emphatically
are capable OF It. I hold that In the
long rum, taken as whole, our people
can and will govern themselves great
deal better than any small set OF men
can govern them. The attempt has
recently been made to improve on
Abraham Lincoln's statement that
this Is a government of the people.
for the people. BY the people" As =
substitute therefore 1t Is proposed that
this government shall hereafter be q
government Of the people, for the peo-
pie, by q representative part Of the
people. 1t is always dangerous mat
ter to try to improve on Lincoln when
we deal with the rights and duties OF
the people, and this particular at.
tempt at Improvement is not q happy
one. In substance 1t OF course means
nothing except that this is to be
government Of the whole people by
part Of the people. We have had such
government in various parts OF this
Union from time to time. and stripped
Of yerbiage It simply means q govern
ment OF the people by the bosses.
government of the whole people
against instead Of for the interest OF
the whole people by a part of the PEG
pie which does the bidding Of the
holders of political and financial priv
ilege.
Appeals TO the Individual.
Now want each OF you to consider
this governmental proposition from
his own individual standpoint. Our
contention is that just as each indi'
vidual wishes, and ought to wish. to
rule his own life for himself. 80 that
ali individuals taken together; that
IL, the people, must wish themselves
to rule their collective life and not be
be ruled by others. Each Of US here
wants to lead his own life himself.
Is not that true of each Of you? It
certainly Is true of me, and If found
It was not true Of any OF my sons.
would feel like disinheriting them.
want to lead my own life for myself.
and not to have anyone else lead 1t
for me or boss me In leading 1t, and
each Of you are In my class, the par.
ent class, you mothers and fathers,
want to feel that way about your boys
rs they grow up. After the boy has
gone out into the big world, II he 10
worth his salt he will want to boss
the Job of leading his own life him.
self. and II you find that he wishes he
had guardian. or needs guardian,
you won't think much Of him. This
does not mean that none Of 10 make
mistakes; on the contrary, each Of
us will sometimes make mistakes You
will make them. ! will make them
But they will be my own mistakes and
not somebody else's; and will know
that they are mistakes, and will cure
them myself, whereas II somebody
else was making them for me, maybe
he and would not agree as to what
were mistakes and what were not, and
in that case he could not cure them.
Free Government.
Well, 1t is Just the same way about
the people n a whole. All Of us, you
and /. all Of US together, want to rule
ourselves. and We don't wish to have
any BODY or outsiders rule us. That
Is what free government means. II
people cannot rule themselves. then
they, are not At for free government.
and all talk about democracy is q
sham. ] do not for moment mean
that we. the people. viii not occasion.
ally make mistakes. but, after all,
they will be our mistakes, and not
somebody eise's. and We can cure
them ourselves. whereas IL other peo-
pie rule, over us, under whatever form.
even II they, are, entirely disinterest.
ed. thew may make what we regard nj