The Republican journal., 1922-01-05
Too Many Commissions
BY WILBUR Z. SUTTON

are overwhelmed BY multiplicity
-st,,rs nv committees, commissions aud
,.,.r.l bureaucracy. The American peo-
-. xbo long have boisted Of their free
dom. some day will have to begin tearing
.s,,r, some Of their statutes and abolish
- few thousand commission boards,
- systems, or the individual American
:, me wear 2022 will be as spineiess as an
.-sI.xorm and have about as much lniti-
-. and resourcefulness as the slow
scias turtle
oar bsrdy forefathers came TO America
s,-rh of liberty and they had 1t more
s,Iv than any set Of peoples on TINS
.,,.ot has poss ssed IL since, even
.s-,-.s they had to fight for it, and per-
-. brcause they had to nsht Tor IL
-. v.s the era of individual liberty
- :, persisted until the time OF the
Civil war, after which government oy
Commission began gradually to suppiant
~ brpsdly tolerant form upon which the
nation had been built
Tbe last twenty years especially has
sasn = rise of psternalism 10 our govern
r,cut during which the individual Is being
I.ft iess and less upon his own resources
what ever may be the matter with nlm,
phvsically, economically or socially, there
i sure TO be some board or bureau or
commission whose duty 1t IS to take nis
traubIes off his shoulders. relieve him oil
his worries and benehcently to adopt and
coddle him.
In the old DAYS if be got into trouble ne
had 10 fight his way out save Tor such
b.lo as few nei ghbors and friends might
ave him; be had no strong arm Oh gov
srruent TO fall back upon supineiy.
And IL was IN the hard hsht against
bar4-r circumstances that the Americans
Wsxed sturdy and oaken in NINA anu
hofv T. xssa mans duty TO battle his
uav through the world and not, on en-
con,terina adversely, to fall into swoon
M allow the government stretcaer-
bearers to come along and PICK aim Up.
Il was considered the duty OF the strong
a. individuals, in those far gone days, to
n-atect the weak and they did II, hshtns
fer them if need be, but It was not con
sidered the duty of bureau TO do So
II nav De said that life IS more COM
pick IN these modern times thah ever
5efor. Surely 50 But what mas made
!, thus7 Our getting away from the
vahaax Of the Individual at ms worth
and fnventing machinery and devices 10
make ain believe be and all tnlGss
aroaad hin are complex ant he himself
inca pa5le of solving hfe's problems win
cut the aid OF institutions and bureaus
and COMMISSIONS and whatnot-
Ant every petty State lesisialafe,
every Congress, every town councH
even, goes on putting new laws on the
books without so much as eFsslns the
thousands that are obsolete and uaoo-
served-and undesirable. Each law Is
designed to limit the privileges or the
Individual, to make him victim otteo OF
petty tyranny and take away from alm
some OF his God-g right 20 act Tor
himself and il accordance with his con-
science and beliefs
Laws are necessary, lad IN the N uiIl-
tute Of laws there IS confusion, and ~aea
maayof these are desig ned solely TO ptace
IA the hands Of public and private BODIES
Of men the right to administer the an ATS
Of the individual who should De u ads 70
look out for himself, then their eject
only can be to weak the race ana "a
time bring bout such a restraint OF ihot-
vitas liberties as vii cali for n uprising
70 put IN end 70 much Of It and aiio" tn-
return Of the days Of competition ~Rea
brains and Drawn counted most ana Nngu
Undue regulation was called oy Us llsHe
IA 1e-neddlesomeness