Saturday news. (Watertown, S.D.) 19??-19??, 1918-02-14

sSA ~ CuAEIdle lHGl sV~l01aLlCnGsDy OIN-
ers AS the patriots Of seventy-six
did to the support of the Declaration
sof Independence, SO to the support of
theConstitution of the United States
and the laws let every American
pledge his life, his property, and HIS
sacred honor. Let every man remeam-
Der that to violate the law is to tram
pie onthe blood of his father, and to
tear-the charter of his and his chill
dren's liberty. Let reverence for the
laws be breathed by every American
mother to the lisping babe that pratt
ties on her lap. Let it be taught lii
the schools, in seminaries, and in col
leges. Let 1T be written in primers,
spelling books and almanacs. Let it
be preached from the pulpit, pro-
claimed in legislative halls, and en-
forced in courts Of justice. And in
short let it become the political re-
ligion of the nation"
LaWlessness In Our Own Land.
The United States has become a
iawless nation. Murders and riotings,
strikes and strike breakers, mobs and
lynchings, make us none too proud Of
the record WI have made. This
growth of lawlessness is somewhat to
blame for the lack of interest many
people take in defending the govern
ment at the present time. Secession
and rebellion, under the red flag Of
the /. w. Wis no less secession and
rebellion than was the withdrawal OF
southern states from the union. OF
this Mr.. Lincoln said: PLAINLY the
central idea of secession is anarchy.
As majority held in restraint by CON
stitutional checks and limitations, and
always changing easily with deliber-
ate changes of popular opinions and
sentiments, is the only true sovereign
of a free people. Whoever rejects it
does, of necessity, fly to anarchy or to
despotism. Unanimity is impossible;i
Y the rul of a majority, as a perma-
nent arrangement, is wholly inadmis-
isble;; so that rejecting the majority
principle, anarchy or despotism in
some form is all that is Left 1t is
clear as daylight that Mr.. Lincoln
saw the common ground held by autoc
jracy and4the modern apostles of
chaos, the Bolsheviki, in their com
mon motto, Necessity knows no law,
Let US follow Mr.. Lincoln's utter
ances on two subjects: the issue OF
war and thequestion of human equal.
thy. Dealing with the labor question.
especially as 1T related to the negro,
he said, in 1854, There is no perma-
nent class Of hired laborers among
us. Twenty-Five years ago / was1a
hired laborer. The hired laborer OF
yesterday labors on his own account
today, and will hire others to labor
for him tomorrow. Advancement, i'm
provement in condition, is the order
of things in a society Of equals. AS
labor is the common burden $of our
race, SO the efforts of some to shift
their Share of the burden onto the
shoulders of others is the greatest
curse Of the race. Free labor has the
Inspiration of hope; pure slavery has
no hope" In his message to congress
december !, 1861, he presents a sim
liar argument: Labor is prior to and
independent of capital. Capital is
only the fruit of labor and without
labor could never have existed. Labor
lis the superior of capital and de.
serves much the higher consideration.
Capital has its rights. which are 81
worthy Of protection as any other
rights"
Capital and Labor.
Doubtless Mr.. Lincoln would have
been able to keep abreast or the
times. Many men have risen to pros
perlty along the lines he describes
perhaps as many more have gone
down to financial ruin through the
unjust practices and combinations 81
other men. The individual dealer to
day has a hard time starting out I'd
compete with any OF the great mod
ern trusts and combinations. More
over, hundreds of thousands ofSlabor
ers do not have any good chance oil
ever rising out Of their condition OF
virtual servitude. The ideals OF Mr.
Lincoln we must sacredly adhere to:
the methods Of bringing them to PASS
may need revision.
The republic must continue to bear
the strain OF great emergencies: II
must not be too strong for asfree PEG
pie, but It must be strong enough tc
maintain the rights OF all. It musl
not fail to give heed to- the cry o1
oppressed peoples within our own land
but It must not surrender the func
tons Of q stable government. $50
SAP, quoting Lincoln again, sin tbs
lrelation that all men are created
equal. lett be as nearly reached al
We car. III we cannot give freedom
Ito every creature, let us do nothing
that will Impose slavery upon any
Iother creature. & The rights of both
lcapital and labor received considera
HAM Mr. ST.f.,nnIu xsr1u#v1n nS,f; nn4xitrI