The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1914-04-14
ANSWER TAFTSANDLOWEJL'S
CRITICISMS OF THE INITIATIVE
REFERENDUM AND RECALL
p Charles Fremont Taylor, Editor
of Equity.)

20 the United States expired, he ac-
,-.pted q Yale University professorship.
a. the preface of a recently publish
ID book entitled Popular Govern
ment, It's Essence, It's Permanence, |
and Its Perils," he say that being
oasr the end of the school year, it
wss no practical to add his courses
IN Constitutional law to the curricu-
uIu that year; but that 1t was sug-
gested that he deliver u course of lee
lures on some questions If modern
government" This he did, and these
i~ectnres together with an address be-
fore the American Bar Association,
constitute the aforementioned book.
II is widen in the preface as we'll
as in the book itself, that the chief
object of the lectures, and of their
publication in the book form, is to
combat the rising title Of sentiment in
favor Of more direct participation by
ne voters in the processes of govern
ueut. by means Of the Direct Pri-
mary as a method Of selecting an
did3tes, the Recall as u method of
controlling public officers. and the In
tiatjve and Referendum as a means of
anal control of public affairs by the
electorate. Besides these lectures and
mis- book, MT. Taft has delivered ad-
dresses before many public bodies, and
published articles in many widely dis
tributed publications, since he left the
White House, and in few, if any, Of
these efforts has he failed to oppose
ihe Initiative and Referendum. SO
We may consider ex-PreSident Taft
our most active as we'll as our most
prominent opponent.
With this introduction, let us con-
slider the Indicated portions OF MI.
Taft's book. And the preface plainly
shows hat this book does not consist
u lectures delivered off and and then
--A, A-. - 4l~A fnc-1 nf - Ion1v
The authors expression, Since L a
prepared this boo for the press"
proves that his expressions here pub
liShed are deliberate.
Errors Of Professor Taft.
on page 38 he says:
1T is said tina the representa-
tive system is a failure because it
gave rise to these evils"
The advocates of the Initiative n
Referendum movement have never
said hat the representative system is
q failure, but that it is imperfect:
and hat the Initiative, Referendum,
and Recall are means OF perfectinS
the representative system. On page
~ he expresses the same thought in
The following words:
Il now come to the consideration
of the system which 1t is proposed
10 substitute for the representative
system. The new system embraces
three parts: the referendum, the
Initiative, and the recall"
This is a grave error, as no one
wishes to discard the representative
system, nor substitute any other Sys-
tenn for it. The representative sys-
rem can scarcely be praised too highly.
Sut those who consider themselves It's
special friends make a great mistake
when they assert that the represen-
tative system as it has been used by
the Anglo-Saxon people during the
past several centuries cannot be inn
proved. The simplest and most eff
Client instruments ever devised Tor Its
improvements are the Referendum
10 correct misrepresentation, the mi.
native. to supply deficiencies in rep
-~~esentations, and the Recall, TO vote
representatives. out of office when the!
tail to represent. 1t is strange tina
MI. Taft cannot see what is so plail
and evident. He freely admits in hi:
book that the movement to incOr
porate these things in our govern
mental machinery is growing rapidly
~ is strange that he cannot see why
The Referendum Not "Compulsory.'
on page 40 he says:
This new theory, however, is tina
W are to have a compulsory REFER
endum, that the legislature shall b
compelled TO refer all laws OF i'm
poIldncc 10 the people, ana That lHl
referendum may be effected, with
ont the Intervention of the lesisla
lure at all, but through anothe
inStrumentality which l have men
toned, 10 wit, the initiative"
There are two i~nexcusable errors i
Wis single sentence. In the popula
Tue referendum, the legislature doe
not do the referring. If Mr.. Taft ha
read a single one of the /. and r. con
stitutional amendments that have bee
adopted by more than a dozen states
ne would a ~ seen this plainly. Ant
III his country, no n favorS tn
compulsory Referendum. h Law
passed by our legislatures are far to
numerous for any one to seTiousl
mink of applying the compulsory Rel
"rcndum to them. The optional Re
"rehdum is the only kind that is ac
tocat"d in this country. Mr.. Taft, ]
ms preface, refers to President LIZ
wells book, to be mentioned later