The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1921-12-09
ANSWERING AUTOCRACY

The following wall of the Wash
ington "Herald" seems to be spon
sored by a spirit to find faul with
everything that the present admins
tration does.
"The Conference is doing well
How would it do to let it legislatt
for the United States in the place
of fool Congress?"
If the Washington Herald" wa:
not of such a jealous attitude they
would have to admit that the recent
session of Congress has a record OF
achievement greater than that OF
any other similar session in the his
tory of the United States.
If the Sixty-seventh Congress is a
fool Congress then every other Con-
gress has been a fool Congress, our
government is a fool government,
and the people are fools for using
their votes to clothe with power the
individuals who compose the Con-
gress. A review of what the Sixty
seventh Congress accomplished be-
fore the adjournment of the first
session on November 90, is sufficient
refutation of the scandalous remark
of the Herald"
One hundred and thirty-six laws
were enacted in the six months of
the first session, and scores of others
are pending in various stages of
legislation, ready to be taken up
again when the second session con-
vened on December 9Th. The more
important bills enacted into law are
as follows: Internal revenue act,
budget act, emergency tariff extern
sion act, peace resolution, Veterans
Bureau act, immigration act, anti
beer act, $25, 100000 farm loan act,
navy and army appropriation acts,
grain futures act, packers control act,
war finance agricultural loan act,
100000 State highways aid act,
maternity act, Shipping Board act,
export aid act, cable control act,
Indian Bureau act.
This program of legislation was
prepared and enacted into law by
Congressman and Senators, each in
dividual of whom was selected and
sent to Washington by the popular
vote of his constituency. Students
of democratic government the world
over have pronounced the American
system of popular elections the most
nearly perfect that human ingenuity
can contrive. Every member of the
House of Representatives and of the
Senate knows perfectly well that if
he does not guide his actions and
votes according to the will of the
majority of the people whom he rep
resents he will be retired from Office
at the next election and another man
sent to Washington who will do their
bidding. That means that the legis-
laion enacted by Congress is, in fact,
the will of the people written into
law.
1t is unfortunately true that GER
tain other papers in the United States
permit themselves to make ill-consid-
cred reflections upon Congress SINH
lar to that quoted from the Wash
ington Herald" Did they but real
ize it, they are attacking directly
our form of government, and giving
aid and encouragement to the vari-
Gus evil forces within our borders
who are bent on wrecking the Con-
stitution and substituting a radical
regime more or less similar to the
Russian order. The people in the
United States have always ruled and
always will rule. The present Con-
gress is of their own choosing, and
future Congresses will be likewise.
There is no surer way to lower
the standard of the body that makes
our laws than to instill into the minds
of the people the idea that the pres
ent Congress is a "fool Congress"
and that a radical change is neces-
sary. Congressman and Senators to-
day are statesmen, lawyers and bust
ness men who have sufficiently gain
ed the respect and esteem of their
fellowmen to win an election to
Washington. There can be no change
except for the worse.