The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1878-10-19
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Hon. w. =. Brooks, the Democratic candi
date for Congress, was In town on Tuesday
and by his intelligence and digniied, manly
bearing, won the heart and confidence Of al
with whom he came in contact. Mr.. Brooks
Is man who shows sound, solid practics
common sense in every gesture and lneament
and, as his whole Legislative and business rec
ord demonstrates is not only man full of hard
work, but knows how 10 put in his work where
it tells. One such man in Congress Is worth
to his constituency regiment of dreamers like
Alex. Campbell or political popinjays like p
c. Hayes,
1t is time for the voters TO begin the exercise
of common sense in their choice Of representa-.
tlves in congress The talk is so common that
one hears it every day that since we were rep
resented at Washington by John Wentworth
and Burton G. Cook, this district has been
without II representative IN congress. Our
members have been either sheer political ma.
chimes or hobby riders, and as to the great
material interests of the county, of the west, Of
the state or even their own districts, Is incap-
able of promoting or comprehending them as
a wooden image would have been in their
seats. Now there is no sense in difficult times
like these, that call pre-eminently for practical
wisdom to fool with such timber. Would a
railroad company that wanted to span a river
with bridge hire fiddler to superintend Its
erection; or would farmer who wanted a ten
thousand dollar barn built employ cooper to
do the work? So if we want men in Congress
to legislatc in reference to the great business
and monetary interests Of the country we must
send men who, like Mr.. Brooks, have been at
the Joliet Rolling Mills, or engaged, like him,
in vast trading operations, so as to realize in
their daily experience the exact monetary needs
of the country, and be able to know, from every
days practice, as well as from the constant ex.
ercisc of thought and forecast which their &C,
cupation and position force upon them, just
what legislative aid congress can extend to re,
lieve the distress under which the business of
the country Is groaning What can Alexander
Campbell know about the wants of the labor
ing classes, who himself has never employed al
dozen of laborers in his life or even been al
town road master; or p. c. Hayes, whose life,
before his election to congress had been devot
ed to getting living by a precarious law prac.
tice or the still more prccarious business oil
printing patent inside newspapers
Nothing is more common than TO sneer at
the utter poverty of craftsmanship or practical
business sense In our modern congresses. But
do the voters consider that they are mainly
themselves responsible for such q deplorabaeI
state of thlngs9 If they made it a practice, for
a few successive elections, to vote for the best
man regardless of political stamp or label, how
many more such men Us p C. Hayes think
you, would be nominated in district like
ours, that has in it forty men in every way
more able and competent? Or what convention
would gravely present for congress sheer i'm
practicable dreamer and theorizer like A. Camp.
bell There are times, it may be, when little
harm results from sending 'prentices to con-
gress, but times like these demand old heads,
ripe experience and mastership in knowledge
and skill