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lator. In most states ho Is Bpokon of as a'
representative, and it is an appropriate term,
for ho represents those for whom ho spoaks.
SomotimoB ho is called a delegate, and I am
not sure hut that oven moro accurately describes
his position, for ho is a delegate chosen by
thoso who send him to tho legislature to act
for thorn. If thero can bo a distinction then
tho word delegate would moro clearly than the
word representative imply that tho ono who
spoaks is to say what they want done, to vote
as they would vote if they woro thero instead
of ho. And this is my idea of a representative.
It is not my idea alone, but tho idea entertained
ny tho groat majority of tho peoplo in a freo
government. Thero aro two theories of repre
sentative government ono is an aristocratic
theory, and tho other is a democratic theory
and I am suro that those who call themselves
republican will not for a moment think that
I use the word democrat in a1 partisan sense. I
havo long sinco learned that tho democratic
sontimont Jn this country, is much larger than
tho democratic party, or than any party. (Ap
plause.) It is an overwhelming sentiment In
.this country, and, in fact, it becomes the domi
nant sentiment in every country long before
tho peoplo havo a chance to express them
eolves. Tho aristocratic idea is that tho repre
sentative is selected to think for tho peoplo and
that ho has a right to think for them, whether
he thinks as they think or thinks what they
want him to think. That is the aristocratic
idea of a representative.
Tho democratic idoa Is that tho peoplo think
for thorasolves and elect representatives to act
for thorn and to put their thought into execu
tion. I think this distinction between tho aris
tocratic idea and tho democratic idea runs
through the world. And, after all, the only
permanent distinction between men is a distinc
tion between an aristocrat and a democrat.
Jefferson, the most wise of all our statesmen,
tho ono who stands in a' class by himself be
cause no one before or since has been able
to approximate him in tho matter of construc
tive statesmanship Jefferson said, that in all
countries there were naturally two parties, and
that wherever speech was free thoBo two parties
would manifest themselves. And these two
natural and universal parties he described as
tho aristocratic party and the democratic party.
Ho said tho aristocratic paTty would naturally
draw to itself thoso who did not believe in the
people and did not trust them, and that the
democratic party would naturally draw to itself
thoso who did believe in the people and did
trust them. And this distinction, drawn by
Jofforson more than a century ago, was true
then, it is true now; it is true here, it is true
everywhere. You may go whero you will and
you will And this distinction clearly drawn,
and you will And that one party of some name
1b trusting tho people more than the other
party; is more anxiouB than the other to do
, what tho people want, while the other party is
obstructing every step toward popular govern
ment. ELSEWHERE ALSO
And this distinction not only runs through
matters of government, it runs through society
as well. Thero is tho aristocratic view of society
just as there is aristocratic view of government,
and thero is the democratic view of society,
just as there is a democratic view of govern
ment. Tho democrat believes that society rests
on the masses, the aristocrat believes that so
ciety is constructed from the top. The demo
crat believes that the effort should be to help
all of tho people and he believes that when
good comes to the masses it finds its way up
through all of the classes that rests upon tho
masses. The aristocrat says provide for tho
wealthy and let their property leak through on
those below. That Is the fundamental distinc
tion in society, and I can tell you in just a few
minutes' conversation with a man -whether ho
takes the democratic view or the aristocratic
view. If there 1b anjr man whose position I am'
in doubt about I engage him in conversation,
and 1 gradually tell him that story of Lazarus
and Dives, how Lazarus ate the crumbs that
fell from Dives' table, and if ho takes the demo
cratic view of society ho says that it Is too bad
that wo have to have anybody like Lazarus who
has to live on crumbs and then he goes around
and organizes a movement to increase the num
ber of tables, if possible, so that everybody can
have a table of his own and nobody have to
livo on the crumbs that fall from any one's
table. But if he takes tho aristocratic view of
society, what does ho say? Ho says that a lucky
thing for Lazarus it was that there was a Dives
The Commoner
near. That is the distinction. You will And
tho aristocrat and the democrat, and I have
elaborated this distinction because tho g
thought that I desire to leave with you is Oat
tho democratic idea of representative govern
ment is tho idea held by a vast majority of
tho peoplo of this country and tho idea that is
spreading throughout tho world.
There is such a thing as an embezzlement of
power, and tho representative who misrepre
sents, tho representative who uses the power
for his own private advantage or against the
interests or wishes of those for whom he speaks,
is as much an embezzler, measured by any moral
standard, as tho man who appropriates to his
own use money left in his care, and I hope
the day will como when we shall punish em
bezzlement of power as severely as today we
punish embezzlement of money, for power is
more important than money. Men havo given
their lives, millions of them, that representative
government might be a reality, and all this
blood has been shed in vain, if when the peoplo
elect a man he is not under obligation to do
what they warit done.
MAN'S CONSCIENCE
Do not misunderstand me. I do not mean to
say any representative should go contrary to his
conscience. No one will go beyond me in em
phasizing the duty of a representative to follow
his conscience. I believe that a' representative
is not worthy of respect who does not act
conscientiously, and I will not defend any man
who, as a representative, does what -he believes
to bo wrong, merely because his constituents
want it done. But there is a way in which an
honest representative and a conscientious repre
sentative can yet be a faithful representative. If
his constituents want him to do something that
ho does not want done, let him resign and let
them select somebody to carry out .their will
who can do what they want done. (Applause.)
In other words, while I believe that a represen
tative ought to be conscientious, I do not believe
that his conscience ought to be dormant during
the campaign and come out only after the elec
tion is over, when he wants an excuse to betray
his constituents. (Applause.) He must recog
nize that his constituents have consciences also.,
and that they have as milch right, aye, more
right, than the servant who speaks for them.
They have that conscientious right, and it is a
higher right than the right of the representa
tive, to misrepresent them merely because he
does not agree with them.
Platforms are becoming more and more the
rule. And why ought we to have platforms?
It is that the representative may know what
his people want, or, If the platform is of his
own writing, that the constituents may know
what to expect from him if he is elected. I ,
desire to emphasize this Idea of representative
government because the evil that cries for
remedy today in government is misrepresenta
tion by unfaithful representatives. It is the
embezzlement of power by people who are
trusted by their constituents and who violate
their obligation to the people who elected them.
It is too often the case that the man in the
legislature has an interest to servo that his
constituents do not know of. It is too often
that the man in the legislature sits at one end
of a telegraph wire and some man in the dark
sits at the other end, who, because he helps
to elect him, tells him what to do. I like the
wireless system of telegraphy better, as its
effectiveness rests upon the theory that tho two
instruments aro attuned to each other, so the
representative ought to be attuned to his con
stituency and so in harmony with them that
their will will be communicated to him. Thus
he will be the instrument for carrying it out
This is the fundamental thought that I desiro
to leave with you tho first thought.
GOVERNMENT AN EVOLUTION
And then I want to suggest that governmpnt
is an evolution, that it is a matter of progress-!
a continuous thing. None of us know every
thing and few of us know today as much as we
will know tomorrow. It is unfortunate for a
man when he reaches the position where there
is no further room for growth or information
When a man gets ripe he begins to rot It ?
only when he is green that he crows n-nri ,
a !J Jh civizati- d so it iPKS society
And it is no discredit to a man that he hVm n
idea today that he did not have yesterday ?t
would rather be a discredit to him if he aa
not appropriate every good idea ae i soon L I
found it, no matter where he found i? V h
constantly appropriating ideas "some
VOBUMET'lly. NUMBER If
. f r .
.
seo a. thing a little earlier than others. That
may bo a matter of circumstances. But the im
portant thing is not so much that we shall see
a thing as soon as some one else, hut that we
shall make good use of every good thing wo
see as soon as we see it. And if you will look
Dack over the last fifteen or twenty years you
will Beo a great growth of ideas.
Today I desire if I can make such compensa
tion as possible for your generous invitation, by
pointing out the growth of certain ideas and I
may suggest some others in harmony with that
growth; Ideas that will, some day, in my judg
ment, be universally accepted and universally
applied. But that I may convince you that there
is this growth, let me refer to what has been
done, and then your faith may he strengthened
in my prediction as to what will be.
We havo a very interesting history for the
last twenty years. I know of no similar period
in which the evidences of a forward movement
and all toward more popular government, are
to be found. I know of no period when these
evidences have been more apparent. My own
connection with public affairs dates hack about
twenty years, andI take this period because
the things I spealc of are the things I have
been . able to observe. And what I cay will
simply refresh your memories, because the facts
I shall present are facts', undisputed facts, that
everyone will recognize.
INCOME TAX
Sixteen yeaTs ago we had a contest over the
question of an income tax. I recall that contest
very well. At that time it was my good for
tune to be a member of the ways and means
committee and a member of the sub-committee
that drafted the income tax bill. I remember,
also, that one of the members, I will say the
leading member of that sub-committee was one
of your own citizens, ex-Governor McMillin.
(Applause.) And it was when I was a member
of that committed that I became well acquainted
with him, and it has been a pleasure to renew
that acquaintance from time to time whenever
opportunity offers. I remember what- opposition
there was to the income tax. I remember how
bitterly everybody was abused who believed
in the income tax. I remember how, in one
section of the country, we were assailed as
demagogues and disturbers of the peace. I see
here one who was in congress at that time and
who was with us in all of those fights, Mr. Enloe,
who can testify also that .there was a fight.
((Applause.) We were told by some from the
east how disastrous it would he to the party if
wo dared to frame an income tax bill; a bill
that would make people bear the burdens of
government in proportion to the benefits re
ceived under the government. Well, the in
come tax passed. It went before tho supremo
court. At the first hearing the court was equally
divided, four and four, one member absent.
Upon a rehearing one of the members who had
voted for the Income tax voted against it and it
was declared unconstitutional, declared uncon
stitutional by a majority of one, and that ono
man had changed his opinion between the two
hearings. Thus does the constitutionality of
a question sometimes change in a very short
time. From that time there has been-a struggle
to secure an income tax, an effort to secure an
amendment to the constitution because there
was a possibility that in any form that subject
was presented it might again he declared un
constitutional. And tho demand grew, and
lVt BS than two years aS the president
of the United States asked congress to submit
a constitutional amendment specifically authoriz
ing an income tax and it went through the sen
ate without a dissenting vote. It passed the
nouse with only fourteen votes in the negative
and only three of those were west of the Alle
gheny mountains. And now that amendment
is before the states for ratification, and state
nnfi st?otG has ratIfied it. Has Tennessee
acted yet? .
A Member There Is a hill before the legis
lature now.
t nJIrBryauTTs there any dout of its passage?
nl ?e 17enture a prediction,, If it is not
5i V ?os.e resPnsible for its defeat will not
participate in the next legislature. Those who
w,iS;Q l?e masses of the people bearing a
Sffiw ? unjUBt taxatton, those who are
wining that people of great income shall bear
SL V11, share' that PeoP1 of small in
come shall bear more than their share, will not
nnrnmanyxTassoIates in the expression of that
SSi m ? that wU1 PaBB if not now, it will
rs?',TodS our government is limited when
JLi! ISuWlS Property, hut unlimited when it
deals with the citizen.
Today, and in an hour of danger, the govern
