Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1912-02-24

to recover as his due the money that
the law intended to give him. Yet the
court by its decision forces that man
to stagger through life manned, and
Keeps the money that should be his
In the treasury of the company in
whose service, as an incident of his
regular employment and in the endur-
ance OF ordinary risks, he lost the
ability to earn his own livelihood.
There are thousands of Iveses in this
country: thousands Of cases such as
this come up every year; and while
this is true, while the courts deny es-
sential and elementary justice to these
men and give to them and the people
in exchange for justice a technical and
empty formula, 1t is idle to ask me not
to critlcise them AS long as injustice
Is kept thus intrenched by any court,
l will protest as strongly as in me lies
against such action. Remember, when
am asking the people themselves in
the last resort to interpret the law
which they themselves have made, that
after all l am only asking that they
step in and authoritatlvely reconcile
the conflicting decisions of the courts.
In all these cases the judges and
courts have decided every which way,
and 1t is foolish to talk Of the sanctity
Of a judge-made law which half of the
judges strongly denounce. II there
must be decision by a close majority,
then let the people step in and let It
be their majority that decides. Accord
ing to one of the highest judges then
and now on the supreme court Of the
nation, we had lived for a hundred
years under a constitution which per-
mitted a national income tax, until
suddenly by one vote the supreme
court reversed its previous decisions
for century, and said that for CEN
tury we had been living under wrong
Interpretation Of the constitution (that
is, under wrong constitution, and
therefore in effect established new
constitution which we are now labor
iously trying to amend so as to get II
back to be the constitution that for
a hundred years everybody, including
the supreme court, thought It to be-
When l was president, we passed a
national workmen's emancipation act.
Under it q railway man named How
ard, think, was killed In Tennessee,
and his widow sued for damages. Con-
gress had done all 1t could to provide
the right, but the court stepped in and
ldecreed that congress had failed. Three
OF the judges took the extreme posi-
tion that there was no way In which
congress could act to secure the help
less widow and children against suf-
fering, and that the mans blood and
the blood Of all similar men when
spilled should forever cry aloud In vain
for justice. This seems strong state
ment, but It is far less strong than
the actual facts; and / have difficulty
In making the statement with any de-
gree Of moderation. The nine justices
Of the supreme court on this question
split into five fragments. One man,
Justice Moody in his opinion stated
the case In It's broadest way and de-
manded justice for Howard, on grounds
that would have meant that In all sim
1 ilar cases thereafter justice and not
injustice should be done. Yet the
court, by a majority OF one, decided
as | do not for one moment believe
the court would now decide, and not
only perpetuated a lamentable injus-
tice in the case on the man himself
but set a standard of injustice for all
similar cases. Here again ! ask you
not to think OF the mere legal form
alism. but TO think OF the great i'm
mutable principles Of justice the great
immutable principles Of right and
wrong, and to ponder what II means
to men dependent for their livelihood,
and to the women and children depen-
dent upon these men, when the courts
OF the land deny them the justice to
which they are entitled
Now, gentlemen, In closing, and In
thanking you for your courtesy, let
me add one word. Keep clearly In
view what are the fundamental ends
OF government. Remember that meth
ods are merely the machinery by which
these ends are 10 be achieved. ! hope
that not only you and but all our
people may eyerfremember that while
good laws are necessary, while II Is
necessary TO have the right kind OF
governmental machinery, yet that the
all-important matter is TO have the
right kind OF man behind the law A
state cannot rise without proper laws,
but the best laws that the wit ~ rsaa
can devise will amount to nothing II
the state does not contain the right
kind Of man, the right kind OF woman.
A good constitution, and good laws un-
der the constitution, and fearless and
upright officials TO administer the
laws-all these are necessary. but the
prime requisite In our national life is,
and must always be, the possession by
the average citizen Of the right kind
OF character. Our aim must be the
moralization OF the individual. Of the
government, Of the people as whole.
We desire the moralizatiOn not only
Of political conditions but Of industrial
conditions, 80 that every force In the
community, individual and collective
may be directed towards securing for
the average man, and average woman
a higher and better and fuller life, In
the things OF the body no less than
those Of the mind and the soul.
DO you know that moro real danger
turks IN common cold than IN any