Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1867-02-13
u'romthe Cincinnati Comnsrcid, Feb. lal
ANN Cr.atlnasn ssogtce Army.

\
ing In the Legislature to establish the me-
tropolltan police SYSTEM In Ohio. It's pur-
pose, however, isto create a smfll ttanding
army In the Statr, equipped wish billies
and revoivors, to be distributed and 10 pa
! troll the districts into which the State is to
| be divided. This constabu,ary force, once
| organized, will enable us to dispense with
militia organizations. Having its, Head
Center at Columbus, in the shape of O Po-
lice Board, the Governor, inscase there is 9
serious disturbance in any quarter, can call
upon the Board, and they upon the district
officer, to concentrate force sufiicient TO
repress Il and restore order and domestic
| tranquility. h.1 tiA.
The only hitch inthe progress0f this bill
has been the opposition made tOiit by the
Hamilton county delegation, who seem to
| be of the opinion that our people arc capa-
4 BILE of managing their own municipal at
| fairs without an humble dependence upon
! the wisdom concentrated IN the Capitol.
! Unlike the gentlemen who wish to engraiC
upon Republican Government this ie9;
| ture Of French absolutism, they do not tear
| the people. They repose great confidence,
on the contrary, in the discretion and iudg-
| peDt of their constituents, and do not be-
| ,lieve that a better government is an inYa-
riable result of the withdrawal of power
| from the people and its concentration in
! the bands Of the few. They believe IN mu-
lteipal freedom, and see no reason why II
] shotldi be cifcumsciibed just now. We
are doing very we'll in Hamilton county.
/ We hold our Mayor responsible for the
lIcharacter and efficiency of the force ap"
| pointed, detailed to patrol our streets, ar
| rest offenders, apprehend Migrants, and
\ suppress riOtous demonstrations and UNI
! seemly brawls. We are by no means GER
/ tain that the transfer of the appointing
/ power, and the consequent remOval OF re-
| sponsibility beyond the control of those
| Immediately Interested, will work any
beneficial changes. The people OF Cincin-
natl prefer that their freedom in municipal
matters shall remain unabridged, and their
Representatives only reflect the general
| feeling when they decline to be tnstrumen
tai in fastening the metropolitan. monster
upOu them. t.. HF11e. i7w t-I
1T is curious to Observe how solicitous
our wise and sedate lawmakers are for the
well-being of the people. They allow no
lopportunity to pass that affords them a
lehabce to express their gravest doubts Of
1.-THE competency Of the people to take care
of themselves. 1t Is their opinion, evident
Ily, that were it not for annual sittingS OF
| the Legislature, and cOpiOus effluX of
law, the most of it intended not for an age,
but for all time and all circumstances and
| conditions, society would disbspd and the
| people relapse into a state of barbarism.
where each man would be a law unto him
| self. The drift of their legislation Is calcu-
lated to concentrate power at the Capital rs
the focal and radiating point. Our munici-
pal officers are to be retained Tor ornament
rather than use, while we humbly turn our
| faces to Columbus, as the suntlOwer to the
sun, for municipal light, life and law.
| 1t is an opinion we hear frequently ex-
pressed, that the bill for the establishment
| in and over the State OF the bone-breakibg
police army, has its origin in desire to
keep control of the political power of the
| State, and compel the citizens Of two con-
siderable towns to taste the blessings of
Republican government. Toledo and CO.
lumbus obstinately persist in electing DEM
ocratic rulers--a perVersity that must be
corrected. II they are blissfully ignorant
| OF their actual condition, they must be edu-
Gated to a better knowledge. They are as
stupid as the seal-eatiDg Esquimaux, who
| laugh incredulOusly when told there is a
pleasanter climate and more fruitful Lard
TO the south. They are not to be permitted
to sit in Democratic darkness any longer,
with the full blaze and glory of Republican
day, at meridian, making every thing re-
spiendent around them. IT, having eyes,
they see not, and ears, bu5 hear not, the
Legislature will provide them with more
sensitive organs of vision and hearing. In
other words, and less figurative, II they
will persist in wanting Democrats to rule
over them, the Legislature, filled with pity
and compassion, will so solegislate for them
as to relieve them OF responsibility, at least
so far as the police are concerned.
tits tOlerably clear that il the scheme TO
establish metropolitan police for the
cities and State at large succeeds, TWILL be
used for political purposes. The Central
Board or Bureau being Republican, the
snbordinates from district commissioner to
night watchman will also be Republican.
IL will be nice little arrangement for the
party in power to perpetuate It's dominion,
and will correspOndingly diminish the
chances OF the opposing party ever 10 sit in
the high seats of the sanctuary. In
France, from which the system Is mainly
derived, the control Of the politics of the
State i'm the interest of the Government has
reached a perfection that the Columbus
imitators must despair Of Affirming. There
Is no uncertainty how an election will turn
in France when the police are thrown into
the scale. 10 those Republican gentlemen
whose faces are wrinkled prematurely be-
CdubC VI muCn diAtoLy lcob IilC pcOllo nave
more power than they can jUdleiously
handle, the French system of government
is a model as perfect as that wrought out in
the study OF Jeremy Bentham. Given the
virtual control of the police of Ohio, they
will be able to base their political
calculations on Gn agreeable certainty
And this is all proper enough If we take
the view of cetemporfry, who has fallen
very much in love with the metropolis
tan police system, that the vicious, the ig-
norant and the ejncompetent take TO Denloc-
racy 9s NATURAL y as aduck to water, while
sll the virtue, intelligence and ability of
the State runs in the other direction. 1t is 4
certainly a very complacent way of nc
counting for one's RepVblicanism, but it is
not at all complimentary to the people ut
large to say that there is suth Imminent
tlaiigeF of this party of vice and ignOran &C
obtaining the upperLand that it's necessary
rs far ss possible to circnDlser;be their |
rights an9 imnunlties, and hand them over,
to trustees at the State capital. 1t is su1l /
cient TO say that this argument carried TO /
its logical end jnstiies obsolutisIn, and the |
6iviue right OF one man to ride booted anil
spnrred over his fellows, 1t is anti-Den-
ocratic and anti Republican doctrine, az
weak as ii is pernici0us, sv
The Legislature viii DO wisely to consIgn
The Metropolitan Police bill to the Paradise
OF Fools. If the people of any particula,
city ortown feel themselves incompetent to /
conduct their municipal affairs, and, de-
string to be governed at Columbus, petition
far s law tp that effect, we shall certainly
trterpose no objection. IG will be amatter
of their owl election. But we do protest
against forcing upon the people So stem OF
police that they do not want, and at the