Evening star., 1922-11-12
BY THOMAS r.. MARSHALL,

BY THOMAS n. MARSHALL,
Former Vice Preslaent Of the Unitel
States.
T 10 not q question Of what we
can do. or what We have 4
right to do. but rather Of what
we should do to justify our
form Of democracy In the eyes Of
contendinG forces in the old world
II government means that nothing
10 sacred from the impious touch Of
every man who concludes to lay
his hands upon 1t, then 1t has
ceased to be guided by flxed prin-
cip!es and is subject to change by
every wind Of destiny, whether that
wind blow from good or evil
source.
Most man resent the idea that
ours 10 not a government OF laws,
but Of men. They say there are
certain nxed and unvarying prin-
ciples to which the conduct Of
mankind must be amenable. re.
gardless Of good or Ill to the indi-
vidual. But in public discussion
statement am about to make
the right Of free speech 10 made
the avenue Of assault upon these
principles. with the result that
their value Is lessened almost as
much As though the principles
themselves were put to the touch
OF a popular revolution.
r X X X
The legal mind Is the exceptional
one now. Men are slow to discrim-
mate between desire and duty.
Patient submission to the DEGREES
Of the courts has almost ceased.
Obedience to the laws largely re-
mains the prerogative Of old men
who arc too feeble to break them. 1
sometimes wonder how many Of
our hundred millions give any con-
sideration to our system Of gov
ernment with its coordinate
branches, how many in the light OF
passion. prejudice and personal ad-
vantage realize that our govern
keeping its three branches dis
tinct and separate. each supreme
in it's own realm. How many. may
I ask. put ice packs on their heads
and ask themselves: rs it better
to live as I do in q government
whose laws are made In one
branch. construed in another and
rather submit my life. my prop
erty and my happiness to the
shifting caprice Of a government
which combines in one depart
ment the making, Interpretation
and enforcement OF the law? A
moments serious contemplation
must convince any citizen that
such q government would neces-
sarily be unstable ~ water.
Respect for law has fallen to so
low an estate that attempts to en-
force it even against grave Of
lenses are frequently regarded as
4 joke. The more successful the
law-breaksr, the more he appeals
to the popular Imagination. I can
not be convinced that this is in
consonance with the wish of the
people. It has been fostered by
the new idea Of rearing the young.
You are not q modern parent II
you make your four-year-old boy
do anything that you cannot con.
vince him he ought to do. Al!
"OulO DC W0ll IL CVSAy ohC "SuAN
aKree that every one else might do
Just as he pleased. and consent
that no complaint should be made
about any ones conduct. Then,
perhaps. we might pass over this
lack Of law observance. but. unfor-
tunately, this agreement cannot be
reached. All laws are valid and
binding: we cannot make excep-
tions OF those we do not like.
To illustrate: A man drives home
with a nice little still, which he
hides in his cellar. In his eager
ness to put it to work. he fails
to watch his car. Later. he finds
his car gone. whereupon he rushes
of to the police station and de-
mands Its recovery and punishment
Of the thief. II the wheels Of JUS
tice move slowly. he inveighs
against the degeneracy of the
times, the immortality Of the pres
ent generation. and the inefdciency
OF the criminal department Of our
government. But he does not tell
the chief Of police about his baby
still. I wonder how 1t would work,
IL, treason and murder alone ex-
cepted, it were made q complete de-
tense to a criminal prosecution II
the defendant could show that the
prosecuting witness himself was a