The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1925-04-14
A Lawless Country of Laws.
From the Baltimore Sun.


If good conduct could be promoted by leg
islation the United States should contain a
population Of some ITO million citizens only
little lower than the angels. Since its first
session in 1889 congress has passed 5OUoO
laws and resolutions of which 3O,3l0 were
private measures and 1880 were public acts
and resolutions. This total does not include
riders" on various subjects attached to ap-
preparation bills; nor does it take any &C
count of the tremendous additions made to
the great aggregation by state legislatures,
every one of which has sought to rival the
congressional output
Although the Fifty-ninth congress still
holds the championship belt for wholesale
legislation the SiXty-eighth, which recently
expired without a word of regret from any
body, holds second place in this field OF per
nicious activity" So that by 1880 if no way
is found of checking this lawmaking mania
we shall probably have to erect special stor-
age warehouses in Washington to hold the
statutes passed supposedly for the national
welfare.
In the last year or two LaFollette and Sen
ator Borah have been considerably perturbed
by the supreme courts invalidaton of some
of this congressional work. In view of the
alarm they have manifested at the alleged
notification propensites of the supreme court
it is interesting to note that the court in 1876
years has killed only forty seven OF these
$4,000 expressions OF congressional wisdom.
If it could have killed 10000 of them the
country would be far better off today.
Ignorance of the law excuses nobody, ac-
cording to the legal maxim; but in the face
OF these legislative Andes knowledge OF the
law would be miracle. A man would have
to live as long as Methuseah and study as
hard as Lord Bacon to affirm with absolute
certainty that he knew all the mazes of these
vast legal accumulations; that he could say
precisely what is prohibited and what is per-
mitted. The most innocent and upright Of
men may be a law-breaker two-thrdS OF ev-
cry day, for anything he knows.
This plague of legislation carries its own
antidotes, to a certain extent, because it part
ly smothers itself by its own voluminousness.
Nevertheless, it contains an element OF con-
slant peril, because no one can tell what dead
ly thing may get by in these great legislative
floods, and because it indicates political and
mental tendency to rely on Legislative cures
for all evils under the sun. No country in
the world probably has so many laws as we
have, not even the oldest of nations like Chi
ma; and no country equals us in criminality
and lawlessness.
The children of Israel proved themselves a
pretty bad lot when they were making their
famous desert journey; and if American up
filters had been on hand they would doubt
less have considered at least ten hundred
laws necessary to bring them back and keep
them in the paths of righteousness. The great
Legislator OF the Universe however consid-
cred only ten necessary, and if His brief code
were conscientiously observed very little 9TH
er legislation would be required. Compare
our $4,000 laws with the Ten Commandments
Wonder il the human race will ever learn
any sense?