The Mena weekly star., 1917-03-08
|6ISLATURE AD-
 THURSDAY
Made Record for Constructive dislation-Next Big Job Is the |skinq of Delegates to COnsti-
 tutional Convention.

zsse al to The Star.
 Little Rock, March 6.-The Leg
 1|a<,Ire will adjourn sine die at
 aob. Thursday.
 4hd at once will begin the active
 1zI2paign all over the state for the SI5Eiion of delegates to the Consti- 44sbnal convention. In fact, many
 .sn|rants are already announcing
 zE|r platforms and getting into the 4a6s There will be no lack of ma
 s4ial from which to select the dele
 #.ips who are to write the Consti- I6tion of i9iS.N The important .1,sstion confronting the voters 4<aywhere will be, 'Who is the best
 m to represent us?"
 Bare must be exercised to pre-
 <t0t stocking the convention with
 i0y many men of any one class.
 7|are must be a diversity of in
 srests and professions, or the re- ss,IItant document may not find favor tzi the hands of the people to whom fH hust be submitted for ratification. Il convention of lawyers, or cor f8(fation attorneys, or farmers, or
 kiness men, or school teachers
 xauld not be desirable, but all of N|ese should have a chance to be
 fSpresented in a body of fl4.
 The drafting of a constitution is 4host serious proposition. Deliber- atom is the first requisite. Every
 Idea must be weighed deliberately III dispassionately. Ample time is
 <sen no time limit having been set.
 Ihe convention may be in session
 for three months. Thousands of Propositions will probably be pre- <Rbted that must be rejected as
 alical or unfeasible.
 The present constitution will be
 aken as basis for the new There &fe many provisions of the organic I&N of 1874 that cannot be improved 'uton Provisions fer conditions that f5ye since arisen, under the changes 51at have come within the last 40 Sfars, must be added to meet the 0feds of an expanding industrial and Enmmercial commonwealth.
 lhe one thing that must be guard 70 against more than any other is 4he importantly of the dreamer, the Uopian, the extremist and the im- Practicable socialist. The tendency W the day has been toward top Hayy paternalism, a restrictive ahou shalt not" policy, rather than 8 progressive thou shalt" program Ihe convention will have to steer it's @urse between the Scyila of ram Hant socialism, and the Charybdis of Htrogressive conservatism On the Hcks of either it will go to pieces. Aence the necessity of choosing the visest and most level-headed men of each community.
 I The Legislature of 1917 will go Down in history as one of the most in many years. A lit fe furry of scandal, a possible ex- fess of local legislation, a lack of de Hberation on account of the restric- i0n of the session these things sannot detract from the facts of ac- flal work done And back of it all has been the influence of one man, Governor Brough, the school-master governor who has considered his piiiee one of responsibility. Charged klth the execution of the laws of Ehe State, he has properly consld- Pred himself interested in the char Rcter of the laws he must enforce De has. therefore, taken an active 'nterest in the law making branch pf the government. He has recom- nended and urged the passage of salutary laws and reform measures, Rnd has kept actively behind them, nntil fully five-sixths of the laws he has recommended have been enacted pr are assured of passage. Even in |he mass of local legislation there IS a large amount of constructive york in the building of roads, the |urtherance of local school interests, md the application of the salary 'ystem to many counties, that will indirectly benfit the whole state, The General Assembly has for the most part worked harnonionsly with the governor in the realization pf his program, and he has assured The law makers that he is willing to accept full political responsibility Tor the consequences. If that is done, ' win probably land him in the United States Senate.