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EDITORIAL PAGE THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN Published Every Afternoon Except Sunday By THE GEORGIAN COMPANY At 20 East Alabama St.. Atlanta. Ga. Entered as second-class matter at postoffice at Atlanta, under act of March 3, 1873. “The Initiative” Means— rhe Beginning. “The Referendum” Means- Letting the People Decide. “The Recall” Means—Per mitting Voters to Dis charge Unfaithful Serv ants. r r r A Good Many Citizens Haven't Taken the Trouble to Get Those Simple Words Clear in Their Minds—and More's the Pity. Every surveyor knows what you mean when you speak of a theodolite. Every engineer knows what you mean by the piston-rod. Every chauffeur knows what you mean by transmission anti ignition. Every farmer knows what you mean by ensilage Every tailor knows what a goose is, and that it is not alive. We all of us know the words, the terms and the peculiar mean ings referring to the particular thing which interests us. It is true ami disgraceful I hat a great many American citizens do not understand the terms, simple and plain, referring to public affairs FOR THE REASON THAT TOO MANY CITIZENS \RE NOT REALLY INTERESTED IN PUBLIC AFFAIRS. The distinguished Peter Dunne tells of a genial old Irishman who was quite content to spend fifty years “voting for things that he did not understand." But he was absolutely determined not Io vote for t hings that he could not PR< »N< >l' Nt 'E. He referred to the initiative, the referendum, et eetcra. Every American ought to understand thoroughly the words which express determination of the people to rule in a country which IS SUPPOSED to he ruled by the people. Therefore, byway of beginning another series on the initiative, the referendum and the recall, we publish, and we ask you Io im press upon those of vour acquaintance that are ignorant or indiffer ent. VERY SIMPLE DEFINITION’S OF THESE WORDS •• Doti nissions nos termes." as a great man said. The people of the country want. THEY NEED, and they will have the INITIATIVE. THE REFERENDUM AND THE REC ALL. It is perhaps unfortunate that the two first words were chosen by men using the written language rather than the spoken language of t he count ry. It is sad. but it is a fact that such simple words as “initiative and referendum’ appall and displease the minds of certain citizens. However, the words are HERE, they are going to stay. AND WHAT IS MORE. THEY ARE GOING TO BECOME REALITIES. Therefore, it is the duty of you who understand thoroughly the principle, the idea. THE PUBLIC RIGHT AND JUSTICE back of the three words, “initiative, referendum and recall." to make those words plain to all near you. What about the “initiative?" This word comes from the Latin, initio, which means “to go into, to begin, to start." Somebody has to start new law-making. Somebody must go into the field where new laws are required, and begin, or initiate the new laws. Hitherto we have had our corporations, our big and selfish men, and our corrupt politicians enjoving a monopoly of THE I NITI A TIME, or BEGINNING of law’s.' It is time for the people TO INITIATE some of the law-mak ing. It is time for the people to say “we want certain laws, we are taking THE INITIATIVE in putting those laws on the statute books and we propose to have them there." The initiative means that the people shall be permitted them selves to START the making of laws, to initiate or begin new thoughts in legislation The initiative means that the people shall have the power of framing, voting for and establishing laws, in stead of leaving this important task I<> the gentlemen so often elected by the people, oulv TO REPRESENT THE CORPORA TIONS The ’referendum is a word simple enough to the man who has read about the referee in a prize fight, or the umpire in a base ball game Referendum comes from the Latin, refero. which means. “I carry hack " With the referendum in existence, the gentlemen in the legis latures making laws <>r proposing laws would be compelled to refer them. OR ( \RRY THEM BACK TO THE PEOPLE ’ I nder the referendum, the people could keep to themselves. X as they should do, the tight to pass upon laws started in legisla tures or in congress \nd the laws referred" or “carried back" so the people would he passed upon In the people, \ND THEY WOULD NOT BECOME M Tl \| LAWS ON THE ST\TI TE BOOKS UNTIL THE PEOPLE UNDER THE REFERENDUM HAD GIVEN THEIR APPROY \|. In other words, with the referendum the people SUPPOSED to govern, to own the nation and the government, would do for .themselves exactly what the owner ot a lug factory would do for himself. A man owns a factory ami has a lot of men hired to work for him. I hese men ha e various ideas, plans, suggestions, notions, rules and so forth. They work out th-ir plan, write it out clearly, explain it thor oughly. and then the owner of the factory savs “REFER THAT TO ME. AND I'LL PASS ON IT. ’ I ntil it Jias been reterred to the head oi the firm, until it has been passed on by the head of tie- firm, it isn’t a law in the factory. The United States is a big laetorv. AND THE PEOPI F ARE OR SHOULD BE THE HEAD OF THE FIRM I he people, the owner ol this national factory, einplov mattv men in congress, in the white house, in the various legislatures and hoards of aldermen. And these hirelings of the people are pul there to make suggestions, to think up good new laws, or abolish bad old laws, to invent new ideas, and w ork them out carefully and present them plainly TO THE HEAD OF THE FIRM WHICH IS THE PEOPLE. If you owned a factory, you wouldn’t permit anybody under von to make rules governing that factorv I NTIL YOT H YD \P PROVED Continued in Last Column. The Atlanta Georgian What Is Life? By Garrett P. Serviss PROF. STEPHANE LEDUC HAS MADE THIS QUESTION MORE PUZZLING THAN EVER BY PRODUCING IMITA TION LIVING BEINGS ? ' wB * r * '**•*“" 4'l W Si O‘?'l; F' • Wv 2 JMfe i#WSM& AsAU-r : v V- ‘ ' ' »* wWir > F v •’- x *’« fN» ,<<?> i 5 1W < Wkjt *ttL^lliM~ii_Jni i imwfciiiß -. Some take the form of branch ing corals. WHAT do you think of the photographs reproduced on thia page .’ No doubt, if you simply trust vour eyes, you will tak* them for pictures of real plants, animals, shells and corals. In fact, they are PHOTOGRAPHS OF PHANTASMS. A phantasm is something lino appears Io the eye and the imagination Io be what it is not. ' Phantasms of the Living," an English s< i< ntifie writer has called them. But the strangest thing about them is that they wore not made by hand, or drawn by pen or pen ell, bul THEY GREW into tin forms which you see. Nature made them, as she makes actual animals and plants. Rut she did not do it in her regular wav. Man inter fered with the cunning devices of chemistry, and caused nature lo be come AN IMITATOR OF HER OW N WORKS. These marvelous ercnfTlros for creatures they ate, whether they really have any kind of life or not imitate living things not only in form, but also in growth, in de veloping according to organic law. in absorbing nourishment, in move ment, and in •‘irritability," which, in a scientific sense, means re sponding to excitement, or provo cation, like a caterpillar which rolls itself into a ball when it is touched. Some imitate mushrooms, others worms. Some grow tall and put out leaves like grasses or (lowering plants. Some take the form of branching corals, or of sea shells. Some crawl over solid objects like spreading moulds. Vet none of them were born from seed, or from roots, or from eggs. All, as far as \V(‘ cun see, ai’p composed of inani mate. or non-living, substance. Proses-or Stephane Ledue produced most of them by simply putting fragment!? of calcium chloride i a well knowtvchemieal. a kind of salt, w hich is often used for drying pur poses! into a solution of water sat urated with carbonate, or phos phate of potash, and bringing the dissolved '-übstame into contact with a membrane composed of parchment. or sorm similar mate rial. through which it parses by means of "osmosis." which is the scientific name lor the strange property, or temleiu v, of fluids of different kinds and sel’silics to be come diffused through a membrane Ihe Pose of Helplessness SUFS j den’ sweet, innocent girl- but hrlpUsc . nh. VC!"- help!. .- ntterlv ig.i'i. am of tb- ". a? - •>f the ... :l h.-oltltf !\ unable to take care of li- rsetf. She has . f rien.i-- surb ( good, devoted, iitiselttsli frietrl - -not a thing x. "tit; with him- on l ' h> married And he i’a- written to tn> *!l about it. H rt >s va't of what th. ,men -avs in his h ttej' ■f ti’ar for her inh- - ’ nt near n.s-, m lot u si> the inahllii to t.ik. ear- ol herself She "an n.t st .nd alone I think it . t element of dependence that .ttra.t ed my interest in the first p!:i< and al " my world , know •••!<• >f tlie men whom we both f.r.o-e. Please don’t imagine I .in- '.'.bins' a ’halo’ position. 1 am trying to be strii tly In"" -t. I nev< r h signs on tin girl, evt n if tie had evidenced «i.-i>J’or anything o'n cr than what we were. whi< ti he did not. I may have 'thought things but thete was no eiiemit ageinent I km.n she is .is trui a i»irl : - one . oi l til; ! R. X. L." Tut. tut, my dear str. is it possi ble that you can so deceive your self. and really make yourself think that the tiling v "li want to do is the right tiling no mailer if Ito is hurt, or forsaken when you.do it ? It. pie-.', indeed: I’ve seen lots ol tb.n sort . f “helpless" girls, and many, man? of the same sort of "It. inless' |'"|i-grown women. Tbe> ;o ;.■?<..ii "helpless" that tin t can’t aleh their "helpless" lands mt" liie . oat of some good, tbit- b"di> L d man and make him be- MONDAY, MAY 20. 1912. z i\ i nZxO i ‘ Jm/ / *b <»: NJ r\‘y .•t i K \\ < a ! 114/ ><'/ Siiin.e grow tall and put out leaves like grasses or flowering plants. separating them. He calls them "eamotic growth," but neither he nor anybody else knows exactly how or why lite thing occurs. To see' these apparently living forms grow and develoit out of a chemical solution must be one of the most amazing' and startling sights that could be imagined. If Professor l.educ had lived a few hundred years ago and done that he would either have been burned at the stake as a wizard of wor shiped :is a god. But science is not sitp. ist il imis. When it sees some thing unknown bel’dr.' it. it ex plains it if it < an. ai'l if it can not, ii waits for the explanation, and in the nvanllnte tries experi ments. At present most men of science di' rv Pi nfessoi' I cduc’s com lusion that THERE IS A LOW FORM OF lieve that it t- his duty in the sight of Heaven tn take care of them— until they’find another man w ith more tnonev or t greater knack of spending if. z Heines, ‘" A girl like that HEI PLESP. innocent, true Hart v m peor good sir. There never \>-t lived a woman, old or young, '■ b > didn’t ba - . ’ o-n- enough tn know just one thing, no matter how helpless and innocent she may b. or bi ph a • i to -cent to be. And that th’ng is that she has no < taim, and can have no claim 0.0 ot ' ev on any other w omc.n s !>-,0-.e the faithful woman who ii i-ne you i hildten and mat t y ' ■it' ■ tinging Innocent" it you data - and t- i ti v .Hi h bet being "help hen you see another "help-’* bj -r- •" who appeals to your ■n < o*' chivalry. B’ lul' S. ' ' She will soon show ■ o and tb" other woman, too, how w <,ik mH |'l> Ifr-eiesi. sh- was when It < >ntt t" a on ■■monos her own cotnfor: and pleasure. Ii • i in, .--.ot t of eirt who w ill -teti on •■ver the preeipici because you. a married man show her that •you are too busy at home to con- ■ rt: yourself with her absurd lit- I tie affairs, do you imagine for one mo'i.tm. that a plain, evety-day ma.i like you <an keel her in the straight ami narrow patli? Why? 1 tow ? Si e shows i " such great prim i I i t- where you are concerned: why slmuld you think she would t>e h.it' different y tinder any ot’" r iTreumstances? Tnt not a bit sorry for the ’ helpless ’ girl, nor 1 for you, either. LIF’E about these things. Still, they can not explain them, beyond saying that they are "curious re sults of chemical action." Their d-iscoverer, however, is bolder. De claring that these “phantasms" ex hibit tlie power of nutrition, of as similation (the utilizing of imbibed substance), of elimination (the re jection of useless substance), and of irritability, he goes on to specu late on the possibility that they are related, in some way. to actual life. If only lie could make his myste rious creations REPRODUCK THEMSELVES, lie would probably establish his contention, for then tie would have, in addition to the other characteristics of living- be ings, which he urofesses to have found in them, the one missing es sential needed to make them really I -alive. You are nld enough to have some nlain. pvery-da' common ou must be. or you couldn't have grown children You've earned your own v. ay in the world for years; wh\ <i ’O 1 n-e -omc of the practical principle that have taufchr ybu su r ce'r- in business, lighi here in thi absurd case of yours'?’ • of 'ou'-e. i <ierk might take nvnc\ t. >■" tin *t \-.-ur f’icrds • shop ’ "J ■'! " • o’ he- » mode! of h-*r • /»nd trustworthiness for but a hat a»» th» chances in the Tin < ■’ -•-Itvh, cab ulating \ciip !>• i '>'!-» ha- found your 'Ac* pent an ov<” weaning be lief -n youi strength or influence on oth*-’ —and -h» - making a rlait'. » v d-n goosf of you. that’- Loo! at her as she i? f or once. Xrd sci ■.)->dne'“ s H mv friend, look ?»t 'ourself a- ■ou are. You i'<. no romantic high souled Lancf ’ot. wiUJng to die for an irt®af; you jo- just a rmjn who's being used by a designing giii on ar? in 1<»\» with her. that’ <HI. Fap ' tit of love ,< fi v t a you can T.’m horn# and a k tb.it good win ot voijt »■- foivi-.M ynu, aixl be a man and not • »-ir hypoci •• to You h* ft tii- ou.'’* ag«‘ and you bound to full in love niff) --.Dm*' '‘in Moll. V'-i/ve done u g‘ l d'»m ith it anri be That ■ ho -<t!i\ . t- -hi « arth you < tn > .' i -»«• I 'l’i-v. and " th” only AH' a <ju 'an ever make tin \\<«inan who h ; • ft*- down in - th*- va!b > of (h* had<- • of d* Ith for your tk- ! “‘the t and that - real ly worth v. I n t it? THE HOME PAPER < The Bottle By WILLIAM F. KIRK. ’ • HT TE seen some pizen critters,’’ said my Arizona friend. 1 ‘‘l watched a pal near Tombstone till I knowed it was th» end. A scorpion bit him on the thumb while he was clawing sand Looking for water, maybe, in a maybe-water land. I handed him my liquor and he drank about a third—- You should have heard that little flask, the way it purred and purred Yes, and it kept on purring till my old pal’s soul was free— A bottle always seems to purr," said Fhoenix Phil to me. “Another time,” said Phoenix Phil, -“I mind when Jim was drunk,. * And got his elbow nibbled by a hydrophobia skunk. The skunk was like the scorpion—he didn't want to fight. All pizen things give warning just before they sting or bite. I handed Jim my liquor, too—the poor hoy drank it all. • Tt tastes good. Phil,' he mutters as he flops agin the wall. It sounded good, it murmured, like a kitten full of glee. A bottle always seems to purr," said Phoenix Bill to me. "That's why I'm scared of liquor," said my Arizona friend, “There's something in the red stuff that a guy can't comprehend. H don’t fight fair and fearless like the other pizen things That crawl around this ball of mud with all their fangs and stings. A rattler sounds rattles when he hears a fellow's feet. H's easy dodging reptiles if you're only .half discreet. . A bottk. though, is different, and that's why I let it be— A bottle always seems to purr,” said Phoenix Phil to me. ’ “The Initiative” Means—The Be- ginning. “The Referendum” Means—Letting the People Decide. “ The Recall” Means—Permitting Vot ers to Discharge Unfaithful Serv ants. Continued From First Column. You that do the voting OWN the United States, you hire all the employees of the country from the president down to the dog catcher. Why not make those employees in the national factorv refer their ideas for approval to the owner of the factorv, the voters, the people? I hat is all there is to the referendum—very simple. As for the recall, that is so simple that it is hardly worth while to talk about it. . x A firm sends a young drummer traveling on the road to sell goods. It has hired the drummer and fixed his salary, thinking that he would work. The firm discovers that the young drummer is flaying poker and drinking cocktails instead of selling goods THEN THE FIRM RECALLS THE YOUNG GENTLEMAN AND PUTS SOMEBODY ELSE IN HIS PLAUE. That is al) there is to the recall. The public hires a man. puts him on the bench to act as judge, puts him in the governor's chair, puts him in the white house, or puts him in charge of the public pound where they take the stray mules and pigs. This judge, president, governor or pound keeper is hired by that big firm, THE PEOPLE, to do certain work. As things are now. when the public official hired is unworthy, dishonest, useless, drunken, corporation-owned? or otherwise unfit THE PEOPLE CAN DO NOTHING UNLESS THEY CAN PROVE FACTS IN A COURT OF LAW. But we all know haw hard it is to prove in a court of law that a judge has done something that he ought not to do. Judges hang together, as doctors hang together, and as others do. I he idea ol the RECALL is that the people who hire a judge' should have the right to recall him. just as the man who hires a chauffeur or a drummer or a gardener has the right TO RECALL such an employee m hen he doesn't do his work properly. Do you say that the judges are above the people, and that the people are not FIT to recall a judge .’ Then, you also say that-the people are not fit to govern. The child is until to discharge an engineer or an architect— RUT A CHILD IS NOT ALLOWED TO HIRE AN ENGINEER OR AN ARCHITECT. A baby in arms is unfit to discharge its nurse—hut the baby doesn't hire the nurse. It the people of this country are babies, if the public as a whole is an infant unfit to discharge a faithless employee, then the publie also is unfit to HIRE an employee. II is preposterous to suggest that the people have sufficient in telligence and honesty to put a man ON the bench, and that they have NOT intelligence and honesty enough to take a man OFF the bench when they find him unfit. \t this moment we S pp in the case of Judge Archbald, of the court of commerce, a gentleman who put men in jail when they were poor, and let them off when they were rich—that was in the smuggling case. A.nd he dismissed with trivia] fines big rich men convicted in a trust case. t And nov . because he happened to be extremely foolish and fur nished the information to convict himself, he is being kicked out of office in a slow and deliberate way because while he was passing on matters affecting the Erie railroad, his partner was buying prop erty from th< Erie railroad for a tenth of its value—AND DIVID ING WITH the judge We can't always wait until a judge goes as far as this distin guished Judge Archbald. And we ■ an't always wait for other public officials to make it absolutely plain that they are rascals before getting rid of them. The people must have the recall, so that when they find that th°y have mad l a mistake m electing a man to office they mav have the power to put him OUT of office. That is all there ’s to the re call ' ' ‘ Th< TNITI \T!A E. which permits the voters to start legislation; Tim REFERENDUM, which compels the hirelings of the peo ple to < arrv back or refer important legislation tn the people ; 'nd th. REC ALL, which gives the. people the right to dis charge those that they have hired when they find the hirelings un worthy. I very sane man in th.p country who understands these three simple terms, who really believes in democratic government who demands no special priml ge for himself and who wants honest government, MI ST BE IX FAVOR OF THE UNIT] \TTVF tuv REFERENDUM \>'D THE RECAI I ’ * ‘ * Impress that on your friends, please.