Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1916-06-06
Where Are We Drifting?

An aged 1rlenQ OF tile JUL Hdi Ca
ploded his wrath as he entered our
office, Monday. I'm tired and SICK
Of It ALL" he exclaimed. I'VE might
as we'll have a monarchy and done
With it. The Constitution is outraged
by this executive usLrpaticn OF Con-
gressional prerogatiyes: this bullying
and domineering in the place of recon-
nending and suggesting. Whoever
gave this President, or any other,
right to dictate to Congress? Why do
these men we have sent there round
up like so many dummies and let the
President run everything. even to the
making Of the third equal body Of our
system of government? Why don't
you write something's
Our friend closed his harangue with
the sharp query. and SO we are
writing something; there it is. his
words.
We believe there are. in this coun-
try. thousands like our veteran friend
VINO nave IOltQ tlie dillipol uSciCSS
ness of Congress-the waiting, shift
ing dallying, afraid. Of the party die
tator "lawmaking body"
Under orders, the majority party
can do things; at other times it watch
fully waits Cor political advantage
The Democrats rushed the legislative,
bill carrying s38.196,762.65 through the
Senate in about an hours time. There
was only d brief and scattered discus
sion The Senate Cid, however, take
sufficient time to adopt number of
amendments increasing the sum total
of the bill as it passed the House.
Forty million an hour is going
some for a party committed to the
sacred principle Of economy. But an
order had been received TO put it
through
And some of the executive leanings
are socialistic, but what can the poor
henpecked Congress do? 1t swallowed
the rural credits bill, because an cleo
ton is at hand and the favor of the
cxecutive-the party head, if you
please-is necessary to reelection. And
If these are the frs steps in socialism
Whittier do they tend.
In the House of Representa- tives the
r. ,,fN
the only Socialist member, was dis
tussing a bill TO regulate the govern
ment of Porto Tico and he said that
the terms of the measure We're such
that Porto Ricane would he justified in
assassnating the officers whom this
country might send down there to rule
them. There was much commotion at
this declaration, the W ords were tax
en- down preparatory to a vote Of cen
sure, and London withdrew them in
order to escape this punishment.
Shortly thereafter the Socialist
nominee for the Presidency was max
ing a speech in New York and he de-
clared Inat III 1nlS country should mo
itself in war the Socialist laboring men
would see to it that the munition fac
tories were not allowed to work, thus
paralyzing the attempts of our forces
to do battle.
These utterances are the stern real
tiles Of socialism. They represent the
ultimate of socidlistic doctrine. Who
ever embraces social SIN, even philo-
sophically may expect to find himself
sooner or later occupying the same
position as London and Beimer 1t is
well, therefore, to avoid the tendency
to evil. 1t is time that Americans
awake to unity in preparedness against
the menace within as we'll as without
It is time we had Americans in every
department of our government-and
every department INDEPENDENT IN
ITS OWN RIGHTS.