The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1880-03-18
WHAT Is DEMOCRACY?

MIR. Schmidt has rather singular Ideas
| of what constitutes the democratic party
and what should protect officers from
unfavorable criticism of official acts of
questionable propriety. Because he is
democrat THE PILOT is guilty of treach-
cry to the party when it criticises his
| acts as justice of the peace. In other
words the democratic party must counts-
nance every act done by an official,
member of that party, no matter how
outrageous, no matter how contrary to
public policy, no matter how detrimen-
tai to the public good. A democratic
paper must, according to the tenets set
forth by this political casuist, not be the
organ of the party, but of that portion of
it which hold the Offices. 1t must stultify
itself because the individual interests of
one man or at most, few, demand this
| course. According to this doctrine, the
republicans of Manitowoc county are
false to their party if they do not insist
| in the face of the most damning testimo-
| ny to the contrary, that P. P. Fuessnich
is an angel of light, and very much
| abused man, although his dishonesty
has cost the county $4,000. "THE
PILOT attacks the democratic judge,
| Campbell Mclean, and the democratic
justice, q. Fl. Schmidt complains the
Nord- Weston, and the adjective descrip-
tive of the politics of the persons attack
ed. is made the ground for denouncing
the attack as heinous crime. In GER
tain town in this county the people re-
fused to re-elect young man of moor
ruptible honesty and we'll known ability,
to the Office of clerk, because during his
continuance in Office he had unearthed
frauds committed by his immediate pre-
decessor while in office. Is it such a
policy as this the Nord- Weston would
advocate?
When Mr.. Schmidt questions the de-
mocracy of THE PILOT because it opens
its columns to criticisms on the county
board and county officers, he forgets that
for pay he inserted an attack rejecting
personally on the democratic candidate for
sheriff, P.J Pierce, written by, orin the in
terests of, the candidate on the other ticket,
and in the last issue of his paper preceding
the election at which sheriff was to be
chosen. He forgets that in the interests
of John Schuette, he 6Oited the demo-
cratic nominee for state senator in the
fall of 1874. Rumor says that this action
of Mr.. Schmidt was not entirely the re-
suit of dissatisfaction with the nominal
ton made. Mr.. Schmidt had better re-
move the beam from his own eye before
he searches for the mote in his neighbours.
AS to criticising Mr.. Schmidt for his
action in the case he must remember
that we spoke mostly in general terms
of constables and justices in stirring up
litigation, and that he was the first to
introduce his own name into the discus
sion. He might have 'let the CALLED jade
vince" But he appears as the champion
of justices and constables and justifes
the expenditure of thousands of dollars
by the county in the many, many courts
with which the county is afflicted. Ac-
cording to Mr.. Schmidt's ideas of the
rules to be observed 10y editors, it is not
democratic" to assail practices which
occasion this vast outlay, because there
are democratic justices who may be hurt.
We have not the slightest interest in
the election of justice of the peace IL
the third ward. As Mr.. Schmidt took
occasion to pay himself a compliment in
his own paper, we can with equal SINGER
ity and with far more propriety do the
same for him. The third ward or any
other ward cannot elect man outside of
the legal profession as justices of the
peace, whose knowledge of the law and
OF the practice pertaining to Justices
courts, is so comprehensive as tilat of
Mr.. Schmidt. He may be right or he
may be wrong in the case which brought
on this controversy, but the fact remains
that the county was put to considerable
expense without verdict of guilty or
acquittal being reached.
We do not write in the interests of any
candidate. The gentleman to whom Mr..
Schmidt refers has never spoken one
word to US on this subject, nor has any
one coming from him. SO far as our
action is concerned he is entirely inno-
cent.