New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-04-03

successful assault on It must originate
in the domain OF the states.
Two of Mr. Lodges addresses deal
with the encroachments Of direct gov
eminent within the states. There the
situation is different. State sovereignty
is completer and much more visible
than national sovereignty Is. The use
of power by the people is far less ham
pered. Being a unit with q fairly de-
veloped self-consciousness the elector-
ate does not shrink from experimenting
with direct action. The federal consu-
tuition. with its guarantees of the rights
of minorities and individuals not TO be
set aside by state legislation, provides
an element Of permanence and staoll-
itv; there is, therefore, less risk with
in the local field in applying such novel
devices as the initiative. the referen-
DUN and the judicial recall.
A somewhat different argument must
be framed against the use of direct
methods in state government 1t Is
rather surprising to find Mr.. Lodge &C
cepting. in view of this necessity, so
dubious contention as the one that d.
rect government must mean, in this
domain. q government by minorities. In
his address to the Massachusetts Re-
publican State Convention of 1912 he
cites the results Of referendums in Ohio,
and in another address results OF di-
rect votes in Maine and Massachusetts,
TO show that fewer voters take part IN
, direct law making than vote for csndi-
dates for state officers.
This is a common phenomenon. But
I does it prove anything? SO far as or
binary legislation goes, do the laws
passed by legislature represent
larger volume Of public opinion than
laws adopted by the minority of an
electorate? Putting aside cases in
which, through the boss system, two.
three or a dozen men control legis-
lature's action, it is manifest that leg
islatures are easily swayed by minority
interests in the form of labor and trade
organizations. A small and active mi
nority in a constituency can usually
win the vote of the legislator represent
ing that constituency. The 20, 80, 40
or 60 per cent of the electorate voting
on a proposition is, therefore, as rule
/ less Of a minority than the power be-
hind most legislation passed by legis-
lature.
Even II II were not, why impute u
az fault 10 the direct system that It
favors the minority, when in the fed
eral system the indirect method IS APP
plauded az one of the chief safeguards
of the rights Of minorities? Under
either system government remains
largely in the hands of q minor frac-
ton of the community. Real majority
government is still far ahead of US.
The faults of the direct system arc
clumsiness, Indifference and irrcsponsi-
bility. The public will not SHIFT from
the indirect to the direct method unless
it sees a real chance of betterment
, Western states are balancing the ad-
vantages of the referendum against
those of intermediary legislation. 1t
is a school in political experimentation
in which much may be learned at com
paratively little cost. The defenders OF
the representative system need not be
unduly alarmed at a process which Will
give the old style as well as the new
style Of popular government fair and
searching trial. But, as Mr.. Lodge
proves, the federal system will be long
secure from the effects Of any changes
in the states in the direction of more
direct government.