The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1930-01-30
The Price of Bigness

The Price of Bigness
We Americans Justly pride ourselves on our SIZE
and strength Our country with Alaska can ooasI
of an area more than three and half million square
miles approximately large as all Europe. Our
nopuIaton exceeds one hundred twenty millions
But bigness exacts its penalties. One is the in
creased difficulty of general law enforcement. 10
secure enthusiastic popular support law must grow
out of custom and public opinion. 1t must be truly
sanctioned.
But custom and public opinion are essentially
ectional while federal law is general The Onlteo
states is not in life and culture, unit II Is col
lection of sections. Some differ from others eco
iomically in modes of life and morals, as sharply as
france differs from Rumania
The lob of harmonzing uniform law with that
ultural diversity has been of the great problems
# American craftsmanship from the days OF the
stamp act to the Jones act. Certain federal laws
which the bulk of people feel to be for the good oil
all will be accepted.
Those which bear with altogether different weight
unon different sections will be ignored, or enforced
only partially Such laws invariably intensity local
pride and jealousy Attempts at rigid application
produces local resentment and resistance.
II is believed by many that the states rights phil
osopbv was a very special and unusual phenomenon
in American history. our whole history gives the lie
to such notion. States rights was not sinister
policy of the south, begotten by passion Tor human
slavery States rights has fared up invariably when
sectional interests and preudices have been infiamed
by federal interference.
1t has appeared frequent in the north than
in the south 1t always has endangered our national
stability and three times 1t has led to armed re-
bellion.
First came the refusal of the various colonies TO
contribute to the various colonial wars. Even the
ALBANY congress of 1854 failed to bring about gen
eral acceptance of unified policy, in spite OF COM
mon danger from Indians and French
Then came the American revolution, because Eng
land insisted upon enforcing legislation which ran
entirely counter to local interests.
Next Haniltons excise bill of 1871 struck at the
very livelihood of the farmers in western Pennsyl-
yanias where transportation difficulties made it I'M
possible to market corn in any form save as whisky
The whisky rebellion of 1894 resulted
Sensitivitv of the federalists and John Adams to
criticism led to the passage of the alien and sedtons
laws. They we're answered by the notification doc
trnes of Kentucky and Virginia, which had been en-
gineered by Jefferson and Madison, and by occasional
violent opposition to law enforcement.
The commercial policies of Jefferson and Madison
in nonntercourse embargo and the War OF 1872 were
a severe blow at New England shipping. This led
convention late in 1914 Here, in the very time OF
war the followers of Timothy Pickering we're plotting
notification and secession. Only close of the war
prevented serious trouble
Dispute over the early tariffs led South Carolina
to declare for notification in 1892 Had other states
Joined or had jackson been less prompt and severe
IN his reaction. secession or civil might have
then ensued.
The controversy over slavery led both north and
kouth to fall back upon the states rights strategy.
Northern citizens asserted their right to defy the
fugitive slave laws. The south, through the Dred
Scott case denied the right of the federal govern
ment to limit the extension of slavery.
Since the Civil war the south has maintained and
secured it's right to state sectional autonomy IN
handling the vote and life of the Negro PoSt-ClVii
war amendments have not been enforced yet neither
the Constitution the social order has collapsed
One of Abraham Lncoln's most famous remarks
vas that house divided against itself can not stand
Obviously this is true only when the division is SUI
ncently deep seated violent and intense as to wreck
the body polite AS matter of fact, always have
been house divided against itself
We shall always continue to be long we
are vast nation compounded of diverse sections. In
most cases the attempt to force unreal and art-
fetal unity has only provoked further division.
And in all that you have the historical background
of todays most controversial question-prohibition
This newspaper believes that the only ultimate
solution is in the application of the principle of
states rights or home rule, local option, what
ever term may be chosen to describe the process by
which the law may be made to fit the will of the
community.
Youthful Criminals