The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-07-08
PARTY GOVERNMENT.

PARTY government, as we see it in the United
States and England, is the natural outgrowth
of modern free ideas Indeed, political par
tisanship is a practical impossibility in any
country that has not at least semblance of
free institutions and it consequently has
reached it's fullest development among the
people that have approached most nearly to
the ideal of perfect liberty. Modern parties,
however, are very different things from the
factions of olden times, that represented the
interests of particular leaders rather than
political ideas and whatever may be the
weaknesses of our own system, it only needs
an appeal to the record of history to prove
its superiority to anything that has gone before.
A recent article in the London Quarterly Re
0teao makes party government responsible
for most of the greatest difficulties of Eng
lish politics, and figures it up as the most
costly system that could be adopted. The
efforts Of the ins to keep in, and the outs to
get in necessitate abuses that would not be
endured were the best men in the nation
united to carry out measures intended only
for the public benefit and not for political
aggrandizement. The Re0jeaO thinks that
party government brings into power orators
engendered; whereas what is needed at the
present juncture is a ministry strong and
secure in its position; for no man can do first
rate work who lives from hand to mouth, and
who is always fighting for his life. Men in
power under party government are obliged
to keep an eye to the movements of their
opponents, and to adopt line of policy
that will appeal rather to the popular
ideas of the moment than to alb
stract justice; great ideas and great ques-
tions that ought to receive the earnest atten-
ton of statesmen are given the go-by, and
minor questions, which happen to be upper
most in the public mind for the moment, are
pressed with undue vehemence, merely to
gain popular favor. Party government, too,
is expensive, for it induces men to seek Office
solely for the sake of it's emoluments, and the
liability of being ousted at any time makes
them more anxious to improve their oppor-
tunities
There is certain amount of truth in all Of
these objections, but the question is how are
we to obtain anything better? Perhaps the
ideal republic of Plato, if it were possible to
put it into practice, would be the best gov
ernment that could be devised But Plato
acknowledges himself that the thing is i'm
practicable; it does not take into considera-
ton human nature as it really is. philo-
sopher may construct such commonwealth
on paper, but the practical statesman has to
adapt himself to the exigencies of his times,
the peculiarities of his country and its peoples
and his problem is reduced down to getting
the best thing that is to be had, and his
ha ri oh in ha ioht
of the law, and the greatest good for the
greatest number
A despotic government-for such only could
fulfil the conditions that the Quarterly ReOie,O
puts forth as preferable to the superfciality,
the scrambling for Office, and all the other
weaknesses of political parties-has been suf-
ficiently proved by experience to be nc
cheaper and no stronger in practical states
manship than those where the largest liberty
is allowed On the contrary, the direct oppo-
site is the case and it is probably safe to say
that there is more peculation by ofice-holders
in Russia, Austria, and France than there is
in the United States, extensive as are the per-
formances of some of our officials in that
line.
The fact is that political parties are necessi
Ties IN Tree COunCry' Iuey counlotDeii1Oe
each other, and prevent any one man or set Of
men from obtaining undue influence ol
power 1t is the people, after all, who carry OF
such a government as that of the United
States; andhowever outrageous maybe the con
duct of the professional politicians who man
age to get into Office, the remedy for the ILL
: they perpetrate is always in the hands of the
, people, if they choose to apply it. Indeed
3 the people themselves are to blame for thu
evil deeds of partisan managers; and sucl
+ performances as those of our late State Legis
r lature, for instance, are the result of a crimi
nal indifference on the part of those who pu
such men in positions of trust and response
u blllty. While under all free governments tn
o people will be divided on most question
Q between the two great parties, there an
: always a number Of conservatives, who main
+ tain balance of power, who think for them
Q selves, who refuse to be bound by party rules
y and who do not hesitate to scratch ticket
S it is Objectionable. 1t is this class--consel
4 vative in the only true sense of the word
that practically decides the elections, and it