Page:Portland, Oregon, its History and Builders volume 1.djvu/909

Rh time—colleges or no colleges. The election just passed shows that there are many thousands of men and women willing to battle for truth, purity, morality and justice. It is a long and serious contest—line upon line, and precept upon precept—to make and preserve a national character. Our old pioneers had a comparatively easy job in their time; for there were not many of them, and very few temptations compared with this day. While the moral status of a city is not necessarily the life of all its people, yet it has a powerful influence on every individual life. That influence is exerted upon the young and inexperienced, when too young or lacking in experience to discern the influence of conduct or associations. That there is a standard of morals or ethics which rules a city or state in its organized civic life, and which carries its people upward or downward in the eventful wind up of society, there can be no doubt. And recognizing this principle, as derived from all history, we have the lines:

But over against that is the life of the individual soul, or family, determined to not fail. Society and all its privileges, functions, advantages or drawbacks may have done its best, or its worst, yet anchored to the immutable principles of truth, justice and morality it rises above the base, the brute, the weakness of human na-ture, and mounts to the summit by slow and painful steps.

From the individual we turn to the state, from the unorganized mass to the concrete civic organization; and find under the new system of law making a reversal of the practice and experience of all American states since the formation of the federal union. Under the new system of law making provided by amendments to the state constitution, there are for the city of Portland, five separate, distinct and diverse law making powers.


 * First: primarily, the electors of the city.
 * Second: the common council of the city.
 * Third: the port of Portland commission.
 * Fourth: the legislature of the state.
 * Fifth: the electors of the state.

All of these authorities have the power to levy taxes; one of the most important of sovereign powers. And each have also many other powers, and may have the power to extend their own authority. This is not settled, and the supreme court has apparently avoided an opinion on the point in cases which have come before it. A revision of the state constitution seems to be demanded to segregate and limit these authorities, and to harmonize and unify the local and municipal authorities with that of the state. And to the force or weakness of the above enactments is added the power of the electors to "recall" and remove from office any public official, or administrator of the law, no matter at what stage of his service, or in what measure he is endeavoring to carry out measures affecting the public welfare. How far such a "club" prevents the people from getting the services of the most capable and conscientious men, is an important question.

But it is not upon the technical statement of this new system or its administration, that we will dwell; but on its influence and possible results. It was the criticism of the historian Macaulay, that the Americans had set up a government that was all sail, and no ballast. And that as long as we had plenty of free land