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The Commoner
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weighty Influonco In congross to turn against
Jaqkson votes of representatives from states
Which had supported JackBon in the popular
election. Adams thus securod the presidency.
But the lssuo thus draw . was finally decided
in favor of democracy, as it has always been
in this country, and Andrew Jackson was elocted
by tho people not for one term but for two, after
Adams's single term. A presidential elector is
now chosen because ho favors a certain candi
date, and ho would not dare to betray his trust
after election by voting for tho opposite candi
date In tho beginning of our ptlitical history the
partios did not adopt platforms, but now for
nearly 100 years each part has committed its
candidate to a declaration of principles, and
those declarations aro. becoming more and more
specific. Tho late Colonel Roosevelt made a tol
ling indictment against what he called "weasel
words" words put into a platform to suck the
moaning out of adjoining words.
A party platform cannot bo justified on the
aristocratic theory of representative govern
ment, bocauso party declarations would sorely
hampor an official who deemed it his duty to
think for his people; they are welcome only to
'o who aro democratic enough to dosiro to
think with tho people.
ANOTHER MILESTONE
3. Tho substitution of popular election of
senators for oloction by legislatures is another
mlloHtono in tho march toward moro democratic
methods. For 103 years after the adoption of
our constitution tho people tolerated tho in
direct method of electing senators without a
protest that roso to the dignity of a congres
sional resolution, but in 1892 tho national
house of representatives cast a two-thirds vote
in favor of tho submission of an amendmont
providing for tho direct oloction of United States
senators.
It took twonty-orio years from that time to
socure tho rofdrm, the amendment being adopted
in 1913. Tho resolution proposing the amend
mont passed in tho bouse six times before it
passed tho senate once, the roason 'being that
tho sonate contained so many members who
know that they could not bo elocted by direct
vote, and wore, therefore, personally opposed to
tho change.
And, is may be added, that those senators
had mado tho senate tho bulwark of prodatory
woalth, and for nearly a generation had ob
structed remedial legislation. Tho popular elec
tion of senators was the gateway to other re
forms, and the sonato, now as democratic as the
house, has, since 1913, mado a wonderful record
as tho champion of reform.
4. Tho substitution of the primary for tho
boss-controllod convention is another step in
advance. Tho voter is mado securo in his right
to control party nominations and to determine
party declarations.
5. Popular government won another victory
when the appointment of the committeos of the
houso of representatives was taken out of tho
hands of tho speaker and deposited with a com
mittee chosen by tho party in congress and re
sponsible to tho party.
6. A still further advance was made when
the senate reformed its rules so as to permit
debate to bo closed by a two-thirds vote. And
it has another advance to make before its rules
will harmonize with our theory of government
namely, tho recognition of tho right of a
majority to forco a vote after a reasonable on
portunity for discussion.
The above are illustrations of the irresistible
trend of public thought toward more and more
popular methods of government, but none of
those compare in importance with the reforms
known as tho initiative and referendum They
aro, in fact, two reforms, but are so often united
in one demand that they aro sometimes treated
as if thoy constituted a single reform. I shall
treat thom as two, because they are entirely
distinct one from the other and ona is much
more important than tho other.
EXPLANATION Or INITIATIVE
The initiative is a term used to describe a
governmental process by means of which a cer
tain percentage of the people can, by signine a
petition, bring a proposition before the voters
of a .given governmental unit and securo a voto
upon it. When tho proposition receives
majority of the votes cast it has tho same legal
force that it would have if enacted by a IqitIr
lative body. The initiative c5 be applied in a
municipality, in a county, in a state or in the
nation, and it can T)o used to securo constitu
tional changes as well as statutes or ordinances.
Tho idea is not a new one. It has long been
employed in such matters as the location of
county seats. It-is the usual method of securing
a voto on a county seat proposition, but its ap
plication to legislation and to constitutions is
modern. Wo borrowed it from Switzerland,
where it has rendered signal service in safe
guarding the principles of popular government.
The referendum is a term which describes tho
process, by which a given percentage of the
voters can, by petition, secure a popular voto on
an ordinan.ee or statute before such measure
goes into effect,, a negative vote nullifying the
proposed ordinance or statute. The referendum
is better understood than the initiative. It has
long been employed in the adoption of consti
tutional amendments.
Our federal constitution provides tint amend,
ments shall be .submitted to the states for rati
fication, and nearly all of our state constitutions
provide that amendments to such constitutions
shall be submitted to the voters for ratification.
For a considerable period it has been customary
to require a referendum on bond issufe, and
moro recently city ordinances have been mado
subject to referendum, and the referendum,
thus used, has often saved the public from in
justice at the hands of city councils corrupted
by franchiso-seeking corporations.
INITIATIVE MORE IMPORTANT
Of tho two, the initiative is the more im
portant, because it, can do all tho referendum
can do and, besides this, can do what the re
ferendum cannot do, namely, initiate legisla
tion. TJie referendum cannot be invoked until
after a legislative body has acted, and therefore
it is powerless to compel reforms. The referen
dum can bo used to protect the public from bad
laws, but it cannot coerce the legislature into
the enactment of good laws.
The initiative, on the other hand, enables tho
people to pass over the heads of legislatures and
securo what they want in spite of legislative
inaction or opposition, and, as it can repeal, as
well as enact, it has all the force and 'effect of
a referendum, but moves more slowly. That is
a referendum can prevent a law going into
effect, while the initiative can repeal it after
it goes into effect.
I have merely stated the principles. If is not
worth, while to deal at length with the details
as they can safely bo left to be decided by those"
who believe in the principles. The friends of
these reforms incline to a small percentage re
quirement for tho petitions, while the opponents
a81,aMsiblee:'r t0 makG UlG percentaSQ as high
If, for instance, the advocatos of the initiativo
and referendum want these processes invoked
upon the petition of 10 percent of the rea
llnrA 0pponrents are Hly to insist upon
20 or 30 or even 50 per cent. The final decision
will be determined by the value wl eh Uie de
ciding body places upon tho reform and its con
gee in the Intelligence and patriotism of the
ONE DETAIL OF IMPORTANCE
There is one detail that' is of very creaf im
proposition. The opponents of these reform al
SeaoXCrSf
proposition, but of all the votes cast at i,.i
turn. The reason for this aemaS Is oby"ous "
A great many voters fall to vote on 7,1
Bitions submitted or even all JS,F,ropo"-
ull lS te8PeC,a"y true S ttetaltoFtot
more ZvSVU'i6 T "" or
ticket, and even a larger ner rllf thVVI'
not cast on the proposition fit f votGS
tionKoo; iVSt0"' at -Ie-altogether
receiyS 190,00 and uLfll may
thp'bottom of the tlrirV. , ??f , - candidates at
10.000 Say vol on a ConHf ff,170;000' and
went or z luJmU w,f in8tItutIonal amend-
be 76,080 t&r &aiAu2n , aendmont may
only a MTJjiV'n requlres
Uk, Jtti$& i on th0 prP
if, fcvw, m m wim a maiorIty of
-3jVM
all the votes cast at the olecM u
would fall 24,000 votes short of thVmrmati
majority, of all votes cast the neceEsarJ
The importance of this differ
trated last year in Minnesota wW as Na
tion, amendment secured a large mnLlprohlb1'
votes cast on the proposition SumA of the
hundred of receiving a majority of Xk a fe
cast at the election, and illustration i, La70le3
more appropriate 1 y the fact that aW f the
years ago the liquor-interests secure,! Wenty
ment to the constitution of MiSSi l?,
a majority of all the votes cast at th e?u,r,n5
and thus secured for fcomselves v?t,el?on'
people knowing the purpose 'e n S1
this0big advantage- over the opft
majority of those, who vote on the p oS
andot a majority of 4gg;
PLUTOCRACY
Tho initiative and the , referendum are In
harmony with the principles of popular gom
ment. They do not overthrow represent v
government; they, on the contrary, perfect rn
resentative.govornment. They really SirartS
representative government by pureims it if ,
defect -the greatest defecf it Sf lave
namely, misrepresentation.
The right of the people to act directly cannot
be questiom.1. If they can delegate power to
representatives they can reserve the power for
their own use- and they s!.-uld reserve enough
power to compel their representatives to actually
represent them. '
The initiative and referendum do not rest on
the theory that the people will make no mis
takes, but' upon the democratic doctrine that
they have a rjght to make their own mistakes
that no select few have a God-given right to
make mistakes for all the rest of the people.
Mistakes vr'l be m: "e under all forms of gov
ernment, but as the people must suffer for the
mistakes r ey m-ko, they are not as apt to make
mistakes as those who find it profitable to make
mistakes at the expense of others.
'The initiative and the referendum have a far
reaching effect in preventing corruption, because
they take away the incentive to corruption by
making corruption valueless. Tl.e lobbyist will
cease to bribe when he can no longer accomplish
hi3 purpose, and the Joisl or will be strengthened-
to resist tho persuasion of the lobbyist
when he kno-s that his constituents can nullify
what he does by a referendum a;.d, through tljo
initiati- , securo legislation which ho tries to
deny them.
Wo cent to have initiativo and referendum
in every municipality, in every state, and in the
nation ; and it is the only absol .ie safeguard for
the rule of the pe pie. If it is . bjected that it
might be used to deny to the states equality of
reprqsentation in the senate, this objectir- can
bo met by a lJiwisio- requiring a majority vote
in a majority of the states as well as a majority
of the popular vote.
The initiative and referendum are of special
importance just now. The ideals of democracy
are spreading throughout the world and it is not
surprising that peoples freed from tyranny and
the limitations placed upon them by arbitrary
power are in some instances resorting to
violence.
" pendu:- i swings from despotism on the
one hand to license on the other. It is important
that '"lis, the greatoU of republics, shall set an
example and poi-1 the way to safety. By making
evolution easy and Latural we can make revolu
tion impossible and indefensible.
If any attempt violence it may become neces
sary to -:-.it upon them the extreme penalty if
the law as if is sometimes necessary to am
r. itato a limb to savo the body, but it is easier
and cheaper to begin earlier and remove the
P ison from the blood of the body politic.
There is cily one ay, and that is to let tno
people hay- what they want in governni.ni.
When they can secure at the polls whatever a
majority of the people want, there is no excuse
for "mob law" and with the initiative ana re
ferendum in operation there will be no resort w
"mob law" among intelligent people.
In this dountry we have no hereditary mw
arch to fear; we have no official who can wrc
his will upon the people: but in some cases w
o
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