New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-09-12
"Our Government Is Organized Not
to Represent the People" Writes
the immigration Commissioner.
lit Must Be Simplifed. and We
Must Achieve the German Eff
cheney of Social Legislation If
we Are To Be an Effective Com
petitOr Of Germany"

sity But we need TO extend social insurance
very much further so that it includes protection
against old age, against sickness, against in
validity and against unemployment as well
For men do not now own their tools. They
cannot control conditions or employment, and
when hard times and the introduction of new
devices throw men out OF work they have
right to claim some protection from the vicari-
Gus price which they pay to society because OF
conditions which they cannot control.
These are things we are beginning to do.
And as times goes on / am satisfied we will do
them as we'll if not better than Germany. And
We will do them through democracy rather
than through paternalism. We are rapidly
getting away from the ndvidualism OF pre-
vious generations in the nation the states and
the cities, and the next generation is likely to
see much more rapid advance than in the
past.
think the war has brought realization of
the necessity of such a programme to Great
Britain and to the other countries OF the world,
and also conviction that if America and
Great Britain are to meet the problems which
will confront them after the war 1t will be
necessary for them to realize that the efficiency
of Germany is not efficiency Of arms. 1t
is an efficiency born Of social legislation for the
care and protection Of all classes. 1t is an
efficiency bern OF a system OF education and a
specialization of life, to bring it into harmony
with modern industrial conditions, with great
cities and aegregations of people who to-day
are living under conditions which they can not
individually control and which can only be
Cd b,,t H.. cti0 ~ State
itself In other words, the State must do
great many things it has not done in the past
if it would meet its obligations and be an efee
tive competitor with the Germany which in vic
tory or defeat energies from the war.
In a democracy this means the education
and cooperation OF all the people. 1t means
new sense Of political responsibility on the part
of the voter, but more important still It in
wolves simplifcation OF government so that
the individual will be able to express his con-
victions and hold his agent or representative
responsible. One OF the reasons we have not
gone faster than we have is that our govern
ment does not really represent the people.
AS matter OF fact, it is organized not to rep
resent the people 1t is so complex and in
,ricate in its work. We are changing this very
rapidly. Our government is becoming simple
rather than complex, and in direct ratio the
people control the government II represents
their ends This is what has happened in the
800 cities which have adopted the commission
form CT government This is what has hap
pcned in the Western states where the people
have gotten into control. So in order to broad
en- he meaning of social democracy, i, is nee
essary TO broaden the meaning Of political de-
mocracy also, until women as we'll as men are
able to participate not only in the making OF
public opinion but in making that public opin-
ion politically effective as well