:^^M J t , ■^^•i\ \mL ^lM. M :- ) » ** t^ ^m^' ^ki:Sf a 75 EDUCATION IN AMEEICANISM address delivered by Martin T. Wade Judge of the United States District Court Southern District of Iowa at the annual meeting OF THB IOWA STATE BAR ASSOCIATION COUNCIL BLUFFS, IOWA -JU'NE 28, 1917 Cornell University Library The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924024521233 EDUCATION IN AMEEICANISM ADDRESS DELIVERED BY Martin J. Wade jl7d3e of the united states district court Southern District of Iowa at the annual meeting OF THE IOWA STATE BAR ASSOCIATION COUNCIL BLUFFS, IOWA JUNE 28, 1917 A^ J^-'^B^ EDUCATION IN AMERICANISM Shail we teach law in the primary schools? Now do not smile. I am intensely in earnest. A few months ago, I was riding in a car in a neighboring city. Two men, evidently from the middle walk of life, were sitting behind me, and I could not help hearing the following conversa- tion: "Well, I see they arrested Bill for stealing a couple of hams;" to which his companion responded: "Yes, and I suppose he will go to prison; if he was a rich guy, there wouldn't be any danger, but a poor devil don't stand no show in the Courts." The other agreed with him, and they proceeded to discuss the subject and to "cuss" the Courts. I wanted to turn around and tell thein they were gravely mistaken; I wanted to explain to them that the statement we often hear quoted, "If a man steals a loaf, he goes to prison, and if he steals a railroad he goes to the United States Senate," is a gross exaggeration, — ^nay, a posi- tive libel upon our institutions. I wanted to say to them, "Go down to the police court of your own city, and you will find that the arrests for minor offenses for the past year have averaged some forty-five each day; and then go to the records, and find that in ninety per cent of the cases, the Courts and the law, have permitted the unfortunates to keep out of prison by the imposition of a nominal fine, or the favor of a suspended sentence. I wanted to tell them that as a matter of fact out of the thousands of cases tried every day in this country, that only in a very small per cent (I would say less than one per cent) substantial justice is not administered. I wanted to cry out in protest against the source from which the mis-information comes, which is conveying these dangerous ideas to the American people — the yellow newspapers and maga- zines, and other purveyors of falsehood and scandal. I recognized in the expressions of the men on the car, a deep seated and dangerous condition of the public mind. Gloss it 4 EDUCATION IN AMERICANISM over as we will, we know that a large and growing percentage of our people have no confidence in the law or in the Courts; and they are not limited to what we call, our uneducated classes either. It is nothing unusual to hear men prominent in business, give utterance to expressions, which indicate at least a doubt, lingering somewhere back in the mind, as to whether or not the • Courts are on the square. We are living in an age, and in a land, where knowledge is free. The doors of schools and colleges and universities swing open'toredeive the sons and daughters of American homes. We study all of the "ologies," and the "osophies," and as the doors of the school room close we think we are fitted for life. There is nothing in our earthly career with which we come so closely in contact as the law. We hear a man say: "I never had any- thing to do with the law — I don't want anything to do with the law, or the lawyers, or the Courts; I never had a lawsuit in' my life." But he is mistaken in assuming that he never had any- thing to do with the law, because he has lived under its i protection from infancy; it has been by his side from the cradle, either-ap- proving his conduct and protecting him therein, or disapproving, and furnishing penalties — depending upon the nature of his act. And yet there is no subject in the whole range of human know- ledge as to which there is such profound ignoranee-^nay, as to which there exists such grave misapprehension — ^yea, such a feel- ing of contempt, as the law. The idea prevails that a lawsuit is merely a contest of wits between lawyers, and that the Judge is a sort of umpire, whose principal duty is to stand between the lawyers and assault and battery. Nay, more — ^many assume that justice is bought and sold. Few, very few, indeed, realize,' that each lawsuit is nothing more nor less than a proceeding governed by certain rules which experience has developed, in which there is conducted an ear- nest, determined search for the truth : a search for the truth — that is about all there is in the average lawsuit. And if there is any grave and dangerous conception, it is, that any recognition is given in the Courts to a distinction between the rich and the poor, the high and the low. The wealthy may EDUCATION IN AMERICANISM have the advantage of being able to employ more eminent law- yers, better able to present a ease to a Court or jury, but this is an advantage which exists entirely outside the law, and over which the law and the Courts have no control. The law is looked upon as something mysterious, when in truth, a law is nothing more nor less than a rule of human conduct, either enacted by the legislative department of government, or recognized by the gov- ernment as binding upon the people. Every day it is becoming more apparent, that if this Republic is to endure, something must be done to inspire a higher regard for law, and for lawful authority. Thinking men and women realize that liberty depends upon law, and that without law, and respect for the law, there can be no liberty. "We make our ap- peals for respect for the law, but it is difficult to talk to people about a subject they do not understand, and I have reached the conclusion, that we are unfair and unjust to the people of the Nation, and to the generations which will be here in the years to come, in permitting our citizenship to remain in ig- norance of this all important subject; and I insist that the sole remedy lies in the education of our children in this field, in order that they may be qualified for citizenship when they must assume the responsibilities of life. Is it too much to ask that American citizens, when they reach the estate of manhood and womanhood, shall have at least a gen- eral knowledge of the details of the government of their coun- try; that they should understand that this "is a government of laws, and not of men;" that in this Nation we have no such thing as government except as it exists in the law of the land; that they should know something of this law, not that they be lawyers but that they should know sufficient of the law to inspire a re- spect for the law, to guard them against the danger of unwit- tingly violating the law, and to enable them to discern the danger point in business transactions where they should hesitate to depend upon their own judgment, and seek competent legal ad- vice? Should they not know something of the Constitution of the United States and its source of power, and its binding nature, and its supreme place as the fundamental law of the land ? 6 EDUCATION IN AMEEICANISlSj: But above all, and most important of all, should they not know, — ^not only know, but feel the source of the law — the neces- sity for law — the power of the law — the justice of the law — ^the mercy of the law; yea, the kindness of the law in dealing with the frailties of humanity ; and should they not, as they start out on life's highway, clothed with the responsibility of citizen- ship, know — nay, feel — that there is not a law in force in a State or in the Nation which the people cannot change within constitutional limitations; and also that there is not a constitu- tional limitation which cannot be modified by the people if they so desire. Should they not feel that the laws are the people's laws, — ^not the lawyer's laws, nor the Court's laws; that they are intended for the guidance and protection of the people, and npt as tools for knaves ? Should they not realize fully that if there is an unjust law in force in State or Nation, that the sin is upon their own heads, and that they cannot shift the responsibility to others. They should not only feel that the laws are the laws of the people, but they should also know that the enforcement of these laws, rest with the people themselves. They should keenly realize the force of the fact, that this is ^ representative govemmenit, and that there is not today, a man in a place of power in the United States, who is not there by virtue of the wish of the Amer- ican people, expressed directly by their written ballot, or in- directly through selection by some one who was himself selected by the people, by their express wish, as shown by their written ballot. And they should know that this plan of representation in gov- ernment does not apply alone to the legislative department, or to the executive, but that it is peculiai^ly exemplified in the judicial department of government. The Judge holds his place on^y through a commission issued by the people directly, or by their representative. But more directly representative of the people in the field of law enforcement are the juries, grand and petit, co^nposed of citizens selected by the people right from their own ranks; and the members of the grand jury and the pptit jury are just as much part of the judicial department of the govern- EDUCATION IN AMERICANISM: 7 ment as is the Judge upon the bench. Each is possessed of cer- tain powers, and must perform certain duties, and each is abso- lute in his own domain. And right here is something that every citizen should know and feel — that the jury system, instead of being the subject of quips and jokes, is a very important, if not essential feature of our free government. This is "a Government of the people, by the people and for the people;" and one of the things that stirs me to the appeal here presented, is, that you cannot repeat this expression used by Lincoln upon the field of Gettysburg, before an average popular audience, that it does not cause a cyni- cal smile to flit across the faces of a number — a growing number of men and women, because, every observing man knows that there are those in the ranks who have lost their faith, who are in their hearts malcontents, cynics, yea, rebels against this govern- ment under which they live. But this is a Government of the people; and the keen solicitude of the Fathers of the Republic that it should continue to be a government of the people, is mani- fest in the provision for preserving as part of the judicial ma- chinery of the government, the grand and petit juries. But men and women should know, what few realize, that the jury is not a mere tribunal to hear evidence and decide questions of fact, but that it stands as a bulwark of the liberties of the people against possible encroachment of conscienceless power. Judges are sometimes looked upon as persons of great power; and they have great power. But does the average man, or aver- age woman realize that there is no Judge, and no Court in the United States big enough, or powerful enough, to find a man guilty of any offense which would deprive him of his life or liber- ty. So sacred is life, so cherished is liberty, that in this country, no Court can deprive a man of either, until twelve of his neigh- bors, by their unanimous verdict, authorize it to be done. In fact in only a few States in the Union, where they have mistak- enly abolished the grand jury, can a Court put a man on trial for any offense endangering life or liberty, until a body of men from the ordinary walks of life, have by their written authority .io form of an indictment, told the Court that it may proceed. 8 EDUCATION IN AMERICANISM How often as Judge, I have felt the majesty and the power of the people, as I have awaited, (impatiently at times,) the report of the grand jury, speaking in the name of the people, which would grant me the authority, or withhold from me the authority, to call a man to the bar to be put upon trial. The feeling that in the hands of the people themselves rests the power to punish crime, should be a source of confidence in the government, and especially should it be a source of inspira- tion in the lofty duty of enforcing law, and by so doing, guard- ing liberty. Am I demanding too much for citizenship ? Every one must concede that the future of this Nation is to be just exactly what the people shall prescribe. We like to talk of the glory and the power, and the grandeur of our country; but all its glory, all its power, and all its grandeur, now or hereafter, sink into insignificance in comparison with the high and holy obligation of bringing to the lives of the people — the common people — ^the sordid lives — the hidden colorless lives of the millions of humble, and, perhaps, obscure men and women and children who live beneath the flag, as much of happiness and peace and contentment and comfort as possible. Herein lies the real glory of the Nation. And all these millions must live under rules of conduct, eaUed laws ; must be guided by them, restrained by them, protected by them. They are the simple rules of the road as we travel through life side by side with our fellow-men. "We cannot sep- arate ourselves from them; they surround us as does the at- mosphere we breathe. During every moment of life, from the cradle to the grave, our every act proceeds under the law — ^the law which protects us in doing the act, or the law which con- demns the act, perhaps, punishes the act. Am I demanding too much? Should the average man and woman not know something of the protection which the law gives to the poorest of God's creatures by penalties imposed upon the wrongdoer for the violation of the criminal laws ; how earnestly the home is protected ; how eflEectually the hand of the murderer is stayed; how carefully the rights of property are guarded against the criminal or the trespasser. Should they EDTJCATION IN AMEBICANI8M 9 not feel what a dignity is conferred upon the humblest, whose cottage is his castle, sacred under constitutional guarantees from invasion, even from unwarranted search or seizure. Should they not realize (what is too little realized) in what a splendid spirit of sympathy with the misfortunes and weaknesses of men, even though they be self-invited, the law deals with their trans- gressions. How the law as a rule exempts the homestead from seizure for debt, and even preserves to the family its household goods, wearing apparel, and reasonable food and immediate earnings, and the usual tools with which the head of the family earns his living, all guarded against attachments or execution at the hands of creditors. Is it not well, especially for those inclined to criticise our civilization and our government, that they be reminded that the debtor's jail is closed, and that misfortune and poverty is no longer a crime. What a pity it is that "Wilkins Mieawber could not have lived in this age and in this Nation where he could let his creditors walk the floor while he enjoyed life with Mrs. Mieaw- ber and the twins peacefully waiting for something to "turn up." Should not every one who assumes the responsibility of life, know something of the foundation of property rights, the sour- ces and muniments of title, what constitutes trespass upon prop- erty rights, and the fundamentals of bargain and sale. Here again I emphasize that I do not speak of complete lawyer's knowledge, but such as may be a business guide, and such as will sound a warning of danger in dealing in transactions which should never be concluded without competent legal advice. We hear much about preventive medicine, and the prevention of diseases, and we observe with satisfaction the modem advance in sanitary methods which is reducing the death rate; but we hear nothing of preventive law, or preventive methods to avoid legal complications, controversies between men, and waste of money in unnecessary litigation. Of the hundreds of thousands of cases tried in the courts of the United States every year, and all the hundreds of millions of dollars spent in litigation each year, I am satisfied that one-half to two-thirds of the litigation could be avoided, and that three-fourths of the money spent could 10 EDUCATION IN AMERICANISM be saved by the exercise of common sense, and enlightened caution. How can a man or woman be said to be equipped for life who knows nothing about the elements of contracts which are involved in at least three-fourths of the activities of life ? How can they act intelligently without some knowledge of the essen- tial forms required, or at least that certain forms are required for certain purposes, and that lack of form may in some cases render an honest contract void and unenforceable ? I would not expect them to know fully what contracts may be oral and what contracts must be in writing ; what contracts must be express, and when contracts may be implied; but I would have them know that contracts may be written or oral, express or implied, and that in a limited number of eases, they must be in writing; and that in certain cases they will not be implied; and most important in this relation, I would have them under- stand that there is in common sense, in justice, and in public policy, a substantial reason for the rules governing the form and execution of contracts, the details of which may not be by them fully understood. They should know something of the nature of loans and secur- ities, mortgages, bonds, investments, and the dangers incident to all these important matters. They should know something of the distinction between a corporation and a partnership, and the respective liabilities of persons associated therein. How many a fortune has been wrecked ; how many a family has been dragged down to poverty because the father or the mother was never warned to avoid the purchase of stock in a corporation until they knew at least something of the relation which the capital stock bore to the assets, and whether its assets were en- cumbered, and whether the stock issued and to be issued, was for money at par value, or for a vast expanse of clear blue sky, the supply of which one would assume would soon be exhausted. And how many have suffered financial reverses because they were ignorant of the simple rule, that if they purchase its stock from a corporation at ten cents on the dollar of its par value, under ordinary circumstances, when insolvency comes (and in- EDUCATION IN AMERICANISM ll solvency for a corporation is something like whooping coiigh in children — they nearly all have it), the creditors can compel the payment of the other ninety cents on the dollar in order to satisfy the debts of the corporation. How few stop to think that a corporation cannot, legally, or morally, give away its stock, or any part of the par value thereof, to the detriment of persons, who in good faith, extend credit to the corporation upon the faith of its capital stock, which it has a right to assume has been sold at its full value. And how many even of our active business men know. When they buy a share of stock in a bank, and pay full par value, that in case a wreck comes, they can, as a rule, be assessed the full face value of their stock, for which they have already paid, to make up the de- ficiency, or give the bank stability. I have seen in several in- stances, this knowledge first come to the widow and children of large purchasers of bank stock which was left as a valuable in- heritance, but which made them paupers. And insurance, now covering such a vast field of investment ; how little is known about this most important subject. I had this called to my attention a few days ago, while riding upon a train. Two men were discussing the death of a friend, caused, as explained, by a rupture of an artery from over-exertion in cranking his motor car. It was disclosed that he had an accident policy which provided for payment of five thousand dollars, in case of accidental death, and it appeared that the company re- fused to pay, because, as it was stated by one of the men, it was claimed that this did not constitute an accident ; and one of them in the discussion said, "Well, the Courts have so held." The other responded, ' ' Oh, d the Courts, they are crooked. Any- body knows it was an accident." Had this gentleman who was denouncing the Courts as "crooked," learned the simple truth, he would have known that every insurance policy of every kind and character, is nothing more nor less than a contract or agreement between the parties, and that the liability depends solely upon the terms of the con- tract or agreement; and had he been observant of the decisions of the Courts, he would know that these contracts are construed 12 EDUCATION IN AMEKICANI8M most strictly against the insurance companies, some Courts go- ing almost to the extent of making new contracts for the parties in order to enforce the payment of the insurance; he would have known that an insurance company has little opportunity of de- feating the collection of an insurance policy in any of the Courts of the country, State or National. Had this gentleman known that it was purely a matter of contract right and had he turned to the accident policy of his friend, he would probably have found, what is in practically every accident policy, a specific provision that the company would not be required to pay for a death caused by any accident which did not leave upon the surface of the body somewhere, some visible mark ; and he would have known that when the com- pany refused to pay in the case under discussion that they were simply relying upon this valid provision of the contract'between the parties. And if he were thoughtful, he would realize that such a provision is necessary for accident insurance companies to protect them against fraudulent claims for deaths claimed to be accidental but actually resulting from so-called natural causes. If this gentleman had the training which I think essential to the average man, his mind, instead of finding solution for the problem in the crookedness of the Courts, would have instinct- ively turned to the question. "Well, what are the terms of the contract?" And having ascertained the terms of the contract, he would have said, "Well, the Courts are right," instead of uttering his denunciation. I would not expect the average man or woman to understand all the laws governing insurance. It is a big field and sometimes complex and difficult, but I would have them understand that when they obtain a policy of fire, or life, or accident, or health insurance, they are getting nothing except what is expressed in the contract, and the law under which it is issued, and that the policy is nothing more nor less than a contract between two par- ties. And this knowledge would, I am sure, inspire persons who procure policies to make an examination thereof at the time they are obtained, instead of an examination, generally deferred until after the loss. EDUCATION IN AMERICANISM 13 And, Oh! how I wish that there was a general knowledge of the simple principles underlying legal liability for injuries or death caused by negligence. How I wish that it were under- stood that, as a general rule, no damages can be recovered for injuries produced by negligence if the injured person has been himself negligent, which negligence contributed to his injury. These principles and this rule is not modern, but has come down to us from England with the great volume of Common Law which has been the accepted law of most of the States of the Union from the beginning. How often in actions for damages for injuries or death, in which the uncontradicted evidence showed that both parties by their negligence, contributed to the misfortune, I have been compelled to direct a jury to return a verdict for the defendant ; and how often have I observed the interested parties, frequently a widow and her children, express upon their faces the sur- prise which they felt, and sometimes I have been sure that in their hearts there was a feeling of protest, which, if uttered, would be an expression to the effect that there was no chance to get justice in the Courts. And as they passed out of the court room, I have often said to myself, "the seed of doubt, discontent and rebellion, has been planted in the hearts of those people because they do not understand." If it be wise, if it be expedient, nay, if it be necessary that men and women shall have knowledge of the law, how shall they acquire this knowledge, and where, and when? Perhaps you will say that they will get some of this, much of this, in present courses in Political Science — sociology, history, and govern- ment, as presented in these latter days in the universities. As to this, I make two observations. First, that it is not sufficient that those who are enabled to take a course in a university, shall have this knowledge. The great majority never enter a uni- versity. General Booth used to speak of the Salvation Army as intended for the "submerged tenth." I appeal for an oppor- tunity for knowledge of the law, for the submerged nine-tenths, the majority of whom never get through the high school. • It is in the ranks of the poorly educated, and uneducated, the 14 EDTJCATION I5f AMEJEICANISM raiiks of those who struggle for a livelihood, that discoiitent and doubt, and the spirit of rebellion is developed. Here is the fer- tile field for the agitator, the radical socialist — the I. W. W., and other teachers of anarchy, who cry out "Down with the law;" "The Courts are corrupt;" "The Courts are owned by the rich;" "The poor are slaves;" "The rich are our masters;" ' ' The government is owned by the plutocrats, ' ' etc. So that even if those who graduate in universities had this training, which I insist is necessary, it would not suffice. Second: The courses in the universities necessarily deal with general principles, and the courses are largely and properly, comparative studies of governments, peoples, and laws, and human movements and tendencies. Not the study alone of the laws, of the government, and the people, and the human move- ments of this Nation, but of other nations as well. The thing aimed at in these courses is largely knowledge, and means of knowledge and the purpose and value of knowledge. It is large- ly an effort to train the human intellect, and to develop the powers of discrimination, and study and understanding. But do not assume that the course of education in law, which I here suggest is alone that the people may know, that the in- tellect alone may be better trained. My aim is rather a develop- ment of the feeling, of the! spirit. President Wilson in talking recently to an audience composed of newly naturalized eitzens, said: The strength of a Nation, my fellow citizens, does not rest so much in its thinking as in its feeling. The heart of a Nation is just as pure, just as genuine as the hearts of its citizens, and outside of the heart there is no life. The course I have in view would aim to train the intellect, but it would be principally psychological, philosophical, and, if I am permitted to use the termjwith reference to a course of training in our schools, patriotic^' I would have no discussion of the comparative in governments, except in so far as a comparison might be made to the absolute advantage of our own form of gov- ernment. I would not have discussed the extent of the liberty of any other people on earth, except as such study would prove EDUCATION IN AMERICANISM 15 that ours is the land of the free, and except in so far as such study would inspire to higher effort to preserve and extend our liberties. I would not have pictured the blessings of other lands, except as by comparison the blessings of this land might be exalted. I would not draw the mantle over the weak spots in our govern- ment and its administration, but I would expose them only to impress the opportunity, and the privilege, and the high duty, of finding and applying plans to eliminate our weaknesses, to increase our power and to develop our capacity for more com- plete and exact justice. I would not permit an expression which indicated doubt or despair. I would no more have planted in the mind of youth the seed of doubt or distrust in our form of government than I would allow the anchorage of the soul to be loosened by the teaching of anything which would unsettle its faith in God. I would proceed upon my absolute belief, that the most de- structive destroyer of human happiness is he who ruthlessly tears away the comfort and support which even a blind faith gives to the human soul, and who fails to replace it with some- thing which gives greater comfort or consolation. I have no patience with the iconoclast who takes delight in tearing down temples, and who seems to smile as he watches the despair of the victims who are crushed beneath the falling walls. I tell you that this Nation, if it endures, must have more than brilliant intellects — it must have faith, it must have confidence. Better to have even a blind faith, than halting skepticism founded in a little knowledge. The pilgrim who kneels at the holy shrine, may never have heard the words of Paul in his Epistles ; he may not be able to read the Sermon on the Mount ; he may not even be able to give a reason for his faith, and yet his soul is strong, and in the day of martyrdom he will be found going to the stake with a smile upon his lips. I do not use these illustrations to exalt ignorance ; I use them to extol the power of faith. Faith in a Nation is essential to insure loyalty of effort, fidelity, duty, and tenacity of purpose in every day service, in upholding the power of the Nation — the 16 EDUCATION IN AMERICANISM law of the Nation, and the liberty of the Nation, which without law, is impossible. And faith in the Nation is especially neces- sary in order to develop— nay, to mold the spirit of submission, the virtue of humility, which will enable one to bow his head to lawful authority, even though the eye of the mind cannot see the justice of the rule of direction or restraint invoked with reference to his conduct. "We need souls who will cry out even in the hour of personal distress and disappointment, "My Country, may she always be right, but right or wrong, my country!" And we need the spirit which will inspire the expression, "The laws of my coun- try, may they always be just, but just or unjust — the laws of my country!" May these ideals be realized in this practical age? I see no obstacle save lack of purpose and weakness of spirit. The details cannot be here worked out. It would contemplate a course in the primary school for the little child, whose tender mind is open, and whose heart is undefiled. I would no more put off the teach- ing of law, and the necessity for obedience to law, and sub- jection to lawful authority until man's estate is reached, than I would put off until mature years, the teachings of, and the knowledge of God, and the obligations and restrictions of the Ten Commandments. A course for childhood could be developed which would em- phasize the absolute necessity of order and law to peace and hap- piness. The simple elements of property rights could be in- corporated, by which the youthful mind could early grasp the distinction between meum and tuum. I would tea,eh them that the Commandment ' ' Thou shalt not steal, ' ' which has never been amended or repealed, was not only handed down to Moses midst the darkness, and the thunders and the lightnings of Sinai, but that it also by legislative enactment in many forms, is part of the law of the land. I would have them know that if this law were universally obeyed, that half our penitentiaries would be uninhabited. We hear too much these days about honesty being the best policy, and not enough about honesty being the only policy, so EDUCATION IN AMERICANISM 17 decreed by the law of God, and the law of man. I would teach them the Golden Rule, but I would also teach them that the great body of the law of the States and the Nation, is an effort of our people, feeble perhaps, but earnest, to apply the Golden Rule. "Do unto others as you would be done by" lies at the foundation of every just law, and is but another expression of the great American principle that men are equal before the law. And in reviewing this subject I would emphasize the fact that the modern version of the Golden Rule, "Do others, before they do you," has no foundation in the principles of our law or our govern- ment. I would teach the origin of property rights, the sacredness of the principle of private ownership. I would try to dispel the notion which creeps early into life, that only the sharper who is allowed to evade the law can -succeed in life's battle. I would show what a high place labor holds under the law by pointing out the many provisions for protecting the laborer, by liens for his wages, and by preference of claims for wages, and by exemption of his earnings from attachment or execution. I would try to have the child learn the simplicity and univer- sality of contractual relations, and the duty under the law of faithfully living up to every obligation. I would emphasize the fact that the obligation of obedience to parents, teacher, guar- dian, city, State and Nation, is, not only a moral, but also a legal duty. I would teach the fundamentals of priminal law, showing how every offense invites a penalty, and how closely, the law pro- hibiting crimes and offenses, conforms to the moral rules which men should obey without fear of punishment. And then I would have them understand how, in social organi- zations, we must all yield something of what is termed our natur- al freedom of action, for the general good, and for the promotion of harmony in community life. I would have them understand how far humanity has traveled from the days when under the Mosaic Law, recognition was given to the principle of private vengeance, when an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a life for a life, were given legal sanc- tion. 18 EDUCATION IN AMERICANI8JSI I would have theiji realize what they owe to a civilization which has advanced in the settlement of controversies between men, from the wager of battle, the ordeal of fire and water, and hot iron, to the calm, peaceful proceeding^ before a court of justice which makes no show of power, but which finds its bulwark in the eternal principles of justice and righteousness. I would have them learn to look at the law from the standpoint of its protection and security, rather than from the standpoint of its restraints and its penalties. But beyond all this, and above all this, I would make dominant the necessity for faith and con- fidence in the law, and in those who occupy places of respon- sibility in the making of the law, and in the enforcement of law. I would try to develop a spirit of submission to law, a spirit ■which even when the reasons for the law were not understood, would yield willing obedience, because it was the law. I would also try to develop a spirit of submission to all lawful authority — ^the highest form of patriotism. I would try to strip the mystery from the law and impress the fact of its inherent justice, and through it all I would make a strong appeal to love of country and the duty of loyalty to country, to confi- dence in its righteousness, and its intense regard for human liberty, and I would invest the whole course of instruction with the great truth, that we have the greatest, most powerful — ^the freest, the gentlest, and the most humane nation in the world. I would have the whole course of instruction shot through with the glpry of a sublime optimism which would never yield to melancholy or despair. But you may say that I have outlined a course most difl&cult for the immature mind of the child. Of course I do not contem- plate that all this shall be presented in the early years of child- hood. I would have different courses adjusted to their capacity, so that much would be covered in the grade work, and in the high school courses the subject would be carried into the field of judicial machinery, trials and the enforcement of judg- ments and decrees. Not of course in that detail which is pre- sented to the student in preparation for the legfll profession, but in general outline and in fundamental principle, conveying EDUCATION IN AMERICANISM 19 a knowledge of individual rights so that knowing their rights they would understand the rights of their neighbors; so that they would grasp the great principle that none are favorites, hut all are equal before the law. And is it so difficult ? We start early in life teaching our chil- dren the laws of plant life. We teach them in physiology the laws of the human body ; in geology they seek to read the story of the earth upon the hidden pages of the rocks. They learn the laws of electricity; they study astronomy, morphology, physics. Why not each them something of the laws governing, direct- ing and restraining man in organized society? Would this be more difficult for them to understand ? But you say that the hours in school are now aU crowded. If so, then it becomes a question of selecting the most important. Long hours are spent in the laboratory studying the mysteries of nature under the microscope. Twenty years from now which will be of the greater importance to your child, his knowledge of the anatomy of the hind leg of a frog, or a knowledge of the great principles which underlie organized society and guide individuals in their daily intercourse with their fellow men, not occasionally, but every hour of life. I am not belittling any field of knowledge but I am insisting that when men and women enter upon the sometimes rough road of life, they shall not travel blindly, and grope helplessly, but that they shall have some light to guide their feet. A child may learn all about electricity, marvelous, wonderful, and in part incomprehensible! but in later life, he may never come nearer to applying this knowledge than in the simple oper- ation of pushing a button which says "let there be light;" but no matter what occupation or position life may bring to him, he; cannot separate himself from the law which directs his course of conduct in life, and to which he may often have to look for protection against unrestrained cunning, viciousness, or brutal- ity; and no matter what position or place may come to him, upon him will rest a high and holy duty, to render a service to his country, which, in my judgment, cannot be fully and in- telligently performed without some knowledge of the laws of his country. 20 EDUCATION IN AMERICANISM If one does not get this knowledge in school, where will he get it, and when will he get it ? What are the sources of knowledge for the average man or woman who has bid goodbye to the school- room, and started out to meet life's problems? The newspapers, the magazines, the popular novel, the theater, the church. As to the newspapers and the magazines, what ideas of the law and the Courts do these convey to the average mind? "What do we see discussed, — nay, we see but little of discussion — but what do we see chronicled? A gross scandal; an occasional possible miscarriage of justice which in the nature of things is inevitable; an exaggerated caricature of actual Court proceed- ings; a gross misrepresentation of the attitude of the whole in- stitution and its proceedings. In truth, we scarcely ever see, even in the most conservative and reliable newspapers, anything as to proceedings in Court unless it smacks of the absurd or the sensational. As to the novel, have you ever seen a lawyer pictured except as a wag, a fool, or a knave? And what impression is given of the Courts ? I suppose our first conception of a court came to us, as we in childhood (curled up in a comer), read that master- piece of Dickens, "Bleak House," in which we found this de- scription : This is the Court of Chancery; which has its decaying houses, and its blighted lands in every shire; which has its wornout lunatics in every madhouse, and its dead in every churchyard; which has its ruined suitor with slipshod heels, and threadbare dress, borrowing and begging the rounds of every man's acquaintance; which gives to moneyed might the means abundantly of wearing out the right; which so exhausts finances, patience, courage, hope; so overthrows the brain, and breaks the heart; that there is not an honorable man among its practitioners who does not often give the warning — ' ' Suffer any wrong that can be done you rather than come here." As to the theater, the lawyer is represented as a poltroon or a knave, and as a rule the Court is pictured as a seat of trickery and perjury. Can we not see that unless we educate our childen that they will not only remain in ignorance, but that their minds will be poisoned, and their souls darkened with doubt, and that it will EDUCATION IN AMERICANISM 21 naturally follow that in the time of stress, instead of men and women strong in the faith, we will have doubters, if not rebels at heart. Is it fair to our children, is it just to our country, that we should continue this system? Will the American people shut their eyes to the danger which confronts them? Or will they arouse from their dream of fancied security, and in the power of wholesome knowledge, give security to the Nation and to the Na- tion's Flag? J-^N mi -: f *r: ►<* ' l^>^ ^'^7'^. t.^ '»^-*^' 1^ --' r*4 ^ Sf^TT^^' ■3^"^