The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1872-12-26
Why Investigations Fail.

heading. 1t says
The moral effect of Mr.. Blaine's sagacious
| movement on the very first day of the session
| is to be impaired, if not lost, by the action OF
| the special committee appointed to investigate
the Credit Mohilier frauds in setting W it'll closed
doors. Mr. Blaine and the gentlemen named
| with him in connection with the frauds are
| likely to free themselves entirely from suspl-
| cion, as they unquestionaby are entitled to do.
| by the frankness and courage with which they
| have met the charges. But the sitting with
closed doors $40 matter how little real sieniti-
| canoe that fact may have, will ALWAYS be re-
! garded by the public rs an evidence that it was
| ''another WhiteWashing affair" and that all the
| damaging testimony was 'stted." Already Il
| strong impression has gained a foothold that
somebody has sinned, and though suspicion has
| been completely averted from the gentlemen
who We're first accused, curiosity mingled
| with indignation has acquired two-fold violence
| against the unknown maetactOrS. If the re-
| port Of the committee should eXculpate every
body, as most reports of investigating commit
| tees do, public apprehension would he very
! little queted.
| The chief obstacle in the way of the discovery
| and publication of truth by investigating com
| mitteeS is the participation of both political
| parties in the fraud. If one party had clean
| hands it would push the guilty. persons unrcent-
| nglv to the wall, and peculation and fraud
would be conclnslvely proved and promptly
| punished. But when an inye .tigaion is once
-
| side that acts as accuser that some of his own
| household are involved. Thence arises desire
| to proceed tenderly, and surprising harmony
| of opinion among the members of the two po-
| ltica parties on the Committee Both wink
| very hard and proclaim in one breath that there
| Is nothing in it," The four vestigationS Of
| the paper credit frauds in this State costing
about six thousand dollars in the aggregate,
were rendered mainly futile by this unfortu-
nate circumstance. If Republicans had tortu-
natp1V mOOODO1pI the w rpn nj
have monopolized the punishment also. But
there were so many Democrats mixed up in
business that the opposition party was always
| much more solcitouS about clearing its own
record than fastening reproach on its opponents
| as it might easily have done. So it is when any
charge of irregularity is brought against any
member Of Congress. We remember in partc-
ular one occasion where Il prominent Republic
| can Senator was charged with taking an cnorm-
Gus fee for professional services before COM
mittee. The Democrats began a furious on
Slaught upon the lee-taking Republican, when
up rose ReVerty Johnson and others of the
most dignitied and reputable Democratic Sena-
tors, declaring that the practice OF which the
Republican had been guilty was perfectly hon
orable and regular, and thai they had frequently
INDUCED in it themselves.
The office of watching, crticsing and re-
straining the government in ali its branches is
the peculiar function OF minority party. TN
able to carry out its own policy and unembar
rassed by responsibility, it is in position to
cure approximate honesty and efficiency in the
public service, by its patriotic watchtulness and
its natural partizan severity in denouncing
wrong. The Democratic party Is IN this situa-
ton. If its leaders Were generally sincere and
disintereSted men they might do the country
much more important service than II they We're
lntru~ted with the management of its affairs.
They could richly afford to keep themselves I'M
spotted from the world, and to let the Republic
who. - the rpOOSitOripS of
subject to all the real temptations and butfetmgs
OF Satan, take all the plumber. If such course
did not restore them to power it would at least
compel their opponents to put only their best
men on guard. TIL y would share in the general
good thus promoted by their action. And if 10y
their protracted aud consistent public morality
they convinced the people that they were more
honorable and NrtuouS men than their antag-
onsts, they might then indulge rational hope
of restoration to their Old governing position.
But now, when they claim fifty per cent of the
"swag" in every public robbery, and when they
are eager to participate in every raid on the
public treasury. they present the singular spec
tacle OF A party with the vices peculiar to both
minority and majority parties, with the proper
virtues of neither
We think the mistake Of the whole bust
ness-and the article from the Press
shows it, although not directly therein eX-
pressed-is that men are too much con-
sidered in political classicatlons, and not
sufficiently as individuals. 1t is we'll
enough to thus weigh men when purely
political affairs are considered but when
trust is being investigated, the aspect
changes II a member of Congress sells
his vote for bride, he does it as an indi-
vidual, and not as a partizan. 1t j. an
act of dishonor, condemned by all parties,
and to be visited by certain and severe
punishment TO be sure partlzan adyan
tage would be expected TO accrue from an
exposure of crime on the part OF oppon
ents, and therefore the anxiety to suppress
exposure on either side. But 1t is doubt
full if the risks would be so great-cer
tainly not to the adninistratiOn-in at
tempted suppression rs in prompt &C
acknowledgement OF the offence, and de
nunciation of the offender as IN unworthy
member of the party and Of the legisla-
tive body A very few instances Of the
kind would give officials to understand
that the shield OF party interest would not
be thrown over their dishonest acts, and
that whatever bribery they partook of as
officials they must meet the consequences
of as individuals. As q result the standard
of official honesty would 90 up immeasur-
ably. When the constitution was formed
with the provision that each house of
Congress should be Judge OF the qualiti-
cations Of its own members, and their
rights to seats, it was expected thai the
high sense of honor and elevated moral
standard of members generally would be
sufficient to preserve the purity of the re-
spective bodies II the time has come
when this hope is so perverted that men,
bers lean upon each in a mutual support
of rascality, it is also time that some
other tribunal had power to sit in .judg
ment upon erring members. The maxim
of SCOTS free booter that hawks shouldn't
pick out other hawks eyes" is better fitted
for mountain passes than for the Ameri-
can Congress.
The assertion of the Press that the
Democratic minority was so much mixed
up III the paper credit fraud in this state
that no proper investigation could be had,
has not much force While the admins
tration officials, from highest to lowest,
We're accused of misdemeanor we heard
but one democrat accused of participation,
and he hung upon the verge of the party
by an attachment so loose that it was and
is difficult to locate him there by any well
defined party act. This paper and others
that asked for punishment of the scamps.
were especially DESTROYS that any demo-
Gratis caught in the net should be made
conspicuous examples of. They deserved
punishment above any of their radical
o-thieves.
We are reminded of another matter