The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1919-03-03
GREATEST EVIL AND PERIL.

GREATEST EN Lis AMI FEnAL
The spirit which uses force instead OF per
suasion to impose it's ideas, practices, concep-
tions and conclusions on others is now, as it al
ways has been, the greatest evil and peril when
peoples emerged from barbarism have to fear.
The instinct to rule others, to make them con-
form their lives and thoughts and faiths to pat
tern set up for their edihcation and improve
ment is deeply rooted in the race. 1t has IN his
itoric times brought more woe upon the world
than any other single cause. 1t retarded human
development. 1T brought, night OF the ages
on Europe. 1t drove from many nations the
worthiest and most useful clements OF tneH
populations. Progress has never been possible
while bigots in any nation have been able to I'M
pose their will upon the rest. And the spirit
which would do this is always the same. The
men who proselyte by force are always OF one
and the same unvarylng type. Ihey are never
to be trusted They have passion to regulate
| the lives of others and always misuse whatever
power to do so they can acquire. 1t is much to
! be doubted if earth has ever yet produced an
Organization of any kind which can be trusted
with power All of them always and immed-
lately proceed to do precisely what they have
so bitterly resented in others. The moment
they feel strong enough to do so they begin to
dictate, dominate The only wholly good and
safe elements in human society are those which
have not come to power.
/ The teachings Of history are instructive. The
Ikingly OF political caste ruled earth with an
iron hand. When it became insupportabie an
other caste arose to break and limit its author
lily When this in turn became too arrogant,
science attacked it, punctured its weakness and
dragged it down from the seat OF power COM
mercialsm seized the vacant throne, immersed
the race in materialism and brought on the
&c +l,n
proletarians have put king and church, capital
list and bourgeois under foot and taking
their turn at undisputed rule This last, and in
| some respects worst regime of all, is self-de>
! structive as the others were. 1t cannot last
that much is evident; but it is far from clear
L what will come next.
u Surveying these things we see that the only
safety for human society, the only hope for pro
9 gress peaceful development and as near an APP
proach to justice the race at It's present stage
: can gain, lies in a balancing OF the elements
(which compose a nation under a guaranty OF
[ freedom for each which does not impair the
: ieaual freedom of the others. This is why per-
sonal liberty is so vastly more important to q
ipeople than anything else can possibly be. II
ishould be engraved golden tablets and kept
secure from proclamation in the ark OF the cove
nant of the nations; for it is the cornerstone on
: (which all enduring national achievement must
he built, the principle of supreme and surprising
worth. The spirit which ON any pretext what
ever attempts to limit human liberty must be
1 eternally feared and fought.
The latest fad in child welfare is to bring NJ
! children ON the psychoanalysis plan. In spite
e of the disposition to poke little fun at the
psychoanalysists we have undertaking that
t perhaps after all the plan has something te
, y, n