Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1912-12-04
THE RULE or THE PEOPLE.

stg5& The RUIE 5Of TIE FEOFLG'
In republic everyone does, or at
/ least should, believe in the rule of
the people. But how shall the peo-
q pie rule? Shall an unrestrained ma
jority rule upon the impulse Of the
moment as may seem best to that
& majority, or shall the people rule, &C
cording to the will Of the majority eS.
pressed in their sober moments, care
fully and with intent to protect all
4 the people, including the minority?
The unrestrained rule of a majority
is not q rule by the people. At best,
ii Is only the rule Of the larger half
of the people. AS distinguished from
such rule constitutional government
4 means government by all the people
4 the minority as we'll as the MAORI
ty. All agree, that subject to the limi-
( lotions Of the constitution the ma
q. T. e. %
4 jority shall govern. The constitution
# safeguards the rights Of the minority,
4 and with their rights duly safeguard
ed they can safely become a part OF
4 the governing power Of the country.
+ It is this will Of the majority, the
!. cp6stitution protecting the minority,
(Which gives us the only form Of gov
eminent Of all the people, by all the
B people, and for all Of the people.
Under our constitutional form Of
u Eoyernm ent we have far exceeded, In
" progress and development, every 9TH
er nation that now exists or ever
u has existed.
There is no better way Of judy
Ing tree than by the fruit it bears.
Every limitation in every one OF our
4 constitutions represents a concession
or safeguard which was considered
necessary when adopted. When
changed conditions call for addition
3: constitutional limitations or chang
es in those previously adopted, con-
/ stitutions can. be changed. But these
changes can not be made without
I due deliberation, and in every in
4 stance they are not within the reach
Of a mere majority. If they were,
what would constitutions amount to-?
Are they not for the express purpose
4 of restraining mere majorities? And
sometimes mere majorities become
4 rastiye under constitutional restraints
and call them dead hands upon prog
ress' when in fact they are the
hand maids 81 progress, because there
( can be no lasting or substantial prog
resg that is not buttressed and pro-
tected by fixed and certain laws.
4 Liberty and progress can only begin
and continue under stable and just
laws. Neither one is possible under
Z tha rule Of a mere unrestrained ma
jority. The rule of such majority
would be little better than the rule
scf a mob. It would be productive CT
revolutionary changes, uncertainty
business depression and intimately
stot our decadence as people. ..s..
# The rule Of the people does not
mean the unrestrained rule OF mere
5maiorities. This is a lesson in civil
government which every young man
/ should learn and long remember. The
more this lesson is studied by young
men. the better will they be prepar-
lea to safeguard the country's organic
law from the attacks of its enemies.
let the rule Of the people In this
country for the next hundred years
be the same as it has been for the
past hundred years and our progress
will continue undimed by injustice
due to lnrestrained impulse.