Indiana daily times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1914-1922, 1920-01-30
INDIANA DAILY ZINES. FRIDAY. JANUARY 30. 1870

cause am convinced that our greatest
| need today, nationally az well as in the
state of Indiana, is a recurrence to the
fundamental principles on which our
government was founded. There have
been many volumes written about the
| conflicting ideas of Thomas Jefferson and
Alexander Hamilton, but the one i'm
portant difference between them was
that Jefferson believed that they needed
a governing class to act as guardians
of the public welfare.
Abraham Lincoln was preaching JEFF
ferson doctrine when he said that no
man was good enough to govern another
man without the other mans consent,
for Jefferson was always opposed to the
! institution Of slavery. If the American
people were capable of self government
a century ago they certainly ought to
be capable of elf-government now, with
all the advantages OF education, and the
newspaper and other facilities for con-
sidering public questions. Yet ask
you to consider very seriously whether
! they are capable of self government II
! they permit, without protest, the VIOLA
tion by their chosen officials Of their
official obligations.
At submit to you that you are not
| governed by your own consent when
! your officials violate the constitution, or
/ the laws that have been made to Tegu-
/ late their action or the obligations 10
conscientious performance of duty
which is implied in their official oaths.
What are you getting in Indiana? You
NAV perhaps have heard that among
other blessings, you have a reform tax
law. You provided in your constitution
that the general assembly should not
pass any local or special law for the
assessment and collection of taxes for
/ state county, township or road pur-
poses In defiance OF that provision
this law undertakes to pass special and
local tax laws for every county, town
ship, city and town in Indiana. Why
On the avowed principle that the people
Of Indiana are not intelligent enough for
local self government, and must have
guardians who can administer their local
Affairs wisely. They tell you that If they
had not violated the constitution In this
matter, and In the matter OF bond is
sues, local officials would have been
foolishly extravagant in local expendi-
lures
TAN BOARD
HITS SCHOOLS.
well. what do you think of your
guardians? Some of you may have been
obliged to go down to Indianapolis. and
get down on your knees to them to OBJ
decide. What Of their wisdom in gov
erhing you? One of the things that has
been matter OF pride to Indiana has
been the devotion of the people to edu-
cation. Their schools and public IL
nraries have attracted praise from many
visitors to the state I am told that the
state tax board cut the revenues of the
public library over here at Hammond to
such an extent that its usefulness would
have been crippled and that they did
not make any provision whatever for the
public library at Whiting; that in con-
sequence of these misacts the 1ncompe-
tent local officials had TO get together
and devise means by which the wrongs
to their local institutions could be
rectiHed
These are not exceptional cases. All
over the state activities have been in
stituted to enJoin obedience to the orders
of the state tax board in the courts.
The teachers of the state. convinced that
the system means the ruin of the public
schools, are In open revolt, and have