El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1920-06-30

HAVEN'T we gone little crazy on government by COM
mission and government by executive ruling and regu
laon? The executive branch has grown huge especially
the United States to war that it is top heavy
Besides the ten departments having chiefs who mem
hers Of the presidents cabinet there Of federal
commissions and bureaus to deal with everything under
the
These commissions exercise their rule nomnaly under
the supervision Of the president and congress; actually
they almost autOcrac and their codes of rules and
regulations having the force Of law, really the
mandS OF lew men acting on their own initiative IN
practice these commissions bureaus, and departments are
their prosecutor, judge, and jury, they combine
within themselves all the functions OF government egiSa-
tive executive and iudicisI Aupeas from their decisions
difficult to press and doubtful Of issue that the
public has learned by experience to bow to this irregular
law as absolute and immutahle
Any one having experience with the army knows how
far this business Of law making by fiat has been carried
The thousands and tens Of thousands Of paragraphs In the
army codes have equal weight and all have, IN Practice the
force of law, with civil and criminal liability and the sane
ton Of military Justice" The similar rules and regula
tons IN the different departments commissions and bureaus
multiplied until there hundreds Of thousands Of
such written paragraphs Of irregular @law" which have
been Coded for public and reference; which not
only government employees but the entire public pre-
suned to know by hearts and which congress knows moth
ing about
Of the many federal bureaus exercising almost
autocrac jurisdiction, the interstate commerce commits
sion:
"There is no parallel in any other country to the
enactment which places greatest industry, down
to its minutest details under the almost absolute
power Of seven men owing defined accountability 10
one, selected for relatively short terms and
cordng TO no particular standard OF training or quail
fications. On this commission, which has greater
power concerning the industrial life of the nation than
is exercised by probably any other tribunal any
where IN the world, there has yet been ap-
pointed who to it qualified by first rate
experience railway operation, by broad business
experience, any considerable experience IN finan-
cial matters"
late years there has been steady growth of
tive power The president Of autOcraic type who
never formed about himself group of wise and reliable
cOunseor; who showed confidence his cab
met; who consulted with well informed In out
Of political hfe who held himself alOof physically and in
teectuay, from the people, from leaders Of his
party; who trusted and listened to whose
views did coincide with his own and who did not hest
tate his powers to carry out transactions that
would have received the approval Of his depart
meut chiefs Of congress- Of his partisans.
There IS need for thorough revision of the executive
paTnents and need larger and representative
cabinet. There is much overlapping and conflict of
authority; much through duplication Of work and
fields Of work The government IS tTespassng different
domains Of private enterprise In ways that the public viii
not approve when knows the facts There too many
public funconaries interested chiefly IN charging their
Jobs and tying IN permanently to the treasury There
too many channels opening to schemers who learn
ing how take advantage Of the chaotic condition Of public
Management to advance their private projects at public
expense.
One why senator Harding ought to make good
president this time Is that he IS Of type of
dramatically opposite to Woodrow Wilson In his attitude
toward government and public business Harding VII
adopt from the first broad gagged policy Of adminstra
ton; he viii keep closely in touch with the people, directly