The Washington socialist. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1914-1915, 1914-04-22

upset without the consent Of the money
power.
z Would the recall overthrow the
main purpose of the constitution?
Answer: There is quite divergence
of opinion as to the main purpose OF
the constitution However, we Social
lists hold that purpose to be "protec
ton of property" AS long as the daily
press is at the command of the highest
bidder there is no danger to property
from below. But from above there is
The tendency is consolidation The
smaller property holder is disappear
ing. The constitution does not and
cannot protect the middle class 1t is
doomed to furnish the workers of the
next generation since the workers of
this generation are not sufficiently
paid to reproduce itself.
8. Is the majority able to decide
wisely and justly whether judge is
doing his duty honestly and inteIi-
gently?
Answer: You are doubling the eff
cheney of democracy. Of course you
are right in SO doing. We all think we
are wiser than the mob. And we are.
But not to a very great extent. Thou
sands of years of experimenting on
the part of intelligent minorities have
only demonstrated their inefficiency
as rulers. The mob pays the price.
The majority may be wrong; we will
admit that it always is wrong, but it
alone has right to be wrong. An in
telligent minority after having con-
WINGED the majority of the good sense
in permitting the minority to rule,
must make good. 1t has always failed
in it. Why? Because it can never
represent the interest of the mob The
judge that does not act SO as to satisfy
the majority should be recalled, dis
cussing the question theoretically.
But only theoretically, because the
daily press is there and no unham-
pered public opinion can exist until
the influence of the capitalist press
is annihilated.
g. What is your opinion of the argu.
ment that courts are the buwark of
special privilege?
Answer: The courts are the instru.
ments of the money interests as a
matter of course. We all are. The
money power rules the press, the
church, the school and through these
agencies the public opinion. The So
cialist press lives hand to mouth ex-
istence. Thousands of preachers are
churchless because they spoke the
truth. The teacher who dares to let
his pupils know that John Hancock
was a sumggler who needed separa-
ton from England to save him from
the penitentiary, and that George
Washington stole thirty thousand acres
of land, will teach no more unless a
Socialist school board should be elect
ed somewhere. To teach that the in
vention of machinery or in fact any
change i'll the mode Of production ne
cessitates economic changes, which
again force political changes, is treas
son to capitalism. To teach that re-
ligion and morality change as we
change our mode of making living is
fearful offense. The fact that can
nibalism was moral when cannibalism
was necessary to prevent starvation is
heresy. The courts must be the most
conservative force in society or their
occupation is gone. / could instance
the HUMPHREYS incidents in Seattle
but they are exceptional since that
judge went so far that it became nee.
essary for capitalism itself to repudi-
ate him.
With best wishes, yours for a united
working class in a speedy revolution,