Twin city review. [volume] (Champaign, Ill.) 19??-1929, 1922-12-08
GOOD CITIZENS NEED
BILL OF RIGHTS

to improve the conditions Of the hu-
man race. We still send people to
prison who think differently from
those in control of society, even
though later generations may wor-
ship the jailbirds of our time.
No 1t isn't for the sake of criminals
that the opponents of the Constitu
ton fear this restricted bill Of rights
and perhaps it is not the criminal
that these restrictions are aimed at.
The law IL tremendous weapon
in the hands of any class and law
supplemented the ever encroaching
equity powers" of our Judiciary is
something TO fear. The recent
Daugherty injunction against the
striking shopmen is an example Ct
the equitable powers assumed by
courts in spite of the restrictions
placed by Congress upon Federal
Courts. Yet, Daugherty as United
States Attorney-General, possesses no
such powers as are proposed for the
Attorney General of Illinois, nor has
the Federal judiciary any such pow
ers as are proposed for the Supreme
Court of Illinois. \
To the plea that the Attorney
eral and the courts can be relied up
or to be reasonable, we may say that
power is given to rulers and agents
for the purpose of using it. Ere
quentiy that power is misapplied, for
We find that the espionage acts are
impotent against foreign spies who
low up mills, but are all powerful
against those conscientiously opposed
to war; that the Sherman antitrust
law listed no trusts but was a splen-
did weapon against organized work
ers; that the Fourteenth Amendment
never stopped racial discrimination
but made child labor legislation un
constitutional; that government by
injunction is pushed vigorously
against strikers but no one can enjoin
a profiteer; that millions may be
spent by the Departments of Justice
in quelling imaginary revolutions 81
that there isn't time nor money left
to convict war grafters and send
them to Jail. And of these experiences
make the advocates of human rights
anxious to preserve such rights as
are now enjoyed.
The proposed constitution would do
justice to feudalistic society but has
no place amongg free men and woin-
en-. 1t Is bareback to some ancient
time when the people were ruled
with an iron hand-and this ancient
state of mind in the convention ran
to the judiciary as being least respon-
sive to the peoples will. II is there
that all the power that could be
taken from the legislative and the
executive departments is now pro-
posed to be lodged. The American
system of government with its checks
and balances has been lost sight of
in making the courts supreme. Even
then the Circuit Court judges elected
by the people Throughout. the state
are to be no longer Independent
judges of their respective districts,
but are to be vassals of the Supreme
Court to do as they are .old. while
the States Attorneys will be on par
with messenger boys in the new judi
cial system.
The keystone of the judicial power
is in Section 122. When neither the
law nor equity can bridge the gap,
the new departure providing for
'declaratory judgmAnts or binding
declarations of right. will fit in. 1t is
such terrific grants of power as are
proposed to be taken from the people
and their Legislature and to be given
to the Supreme Court that makes us
afraid. We have all the lessons Of
history to warn US not to surrender
one jot or title of the rights now en-
ioyed, regardless of the pretext Of
fered or the argument used as to why
such surrender should be made.
There is still a need for the good
citizens of even such an enlightened
state as Illinois to preserve and de-
fend the right of bail of habeas cor
pus and trial by jury and all of
these are threatened in the amended
ed bill of rights in the new Constitu-
ton.
"The only people who lose their
liberties are those who do not know
how to defend them"