Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1881-05-26
Ideal Politics.

the combination of .simple-mindednes
and conceit which the provincial jour
nalist who imagines himself so superior
person that he cannot agree with any
body, brings to the consideration of po-
litical topics. He has the vanity to sup
pose that his judgment not only in all
questions of National politics, but even
in the local affairs of distant cities, and
as to men of whom he. has only the
knowledge gained from floating para
graphs, is better than that of men who
are in the current of events and in i'm
mediate contact with the objects of his
criticism. He sets himself up to be wi
ser, keener, honester than they, and to
have much broader and more philo-
sophie view; while the calmness with
which he assumes to be the only person
in the world qualified by freedom from
bras and prejudice to exercise judicial
functions is wonderful to see. And he
is simple-minded enough to be quite sim
cere in his belief that absolutely pure
politics and unselish politicians are
possible if only everybody will think
as he does about it. We sometimes
think he actually believes he is exhibit
ing more genius in kicking at all sur
roundings than he would be in adapting
himself to his limitations and cultiva-
ting philosophy. For he eternally finds
fault with everything. In the rare in
stances when man, policy or cause
wt<av- II. atxyr ho htrr~r 1nC
qualify his approval with the invariable
"but"-the sign by which he reveals
himself if he does not conquer.
What disturbs him more, probably,
than any other one thing is the dreadful
condition of the public service every
where. He unites with the various fac
tions of Democracy in viewing it with
alarm. 1t is his constant lament that
politics are managed by politicians. In
the last Presidential campaign he was
grieved beyond measure to hear that of.
fice-holders under the General Govern
ment were actively promoting the elec-
tion of Garfield. 1t looked so much like
selfishness, and what our idealist- wants
above all'things is to divorce politics
from selfshness. He would have had
all Government officials sit perfectly
still and do nothing during the CAM
paign to prevent the election of an ad-
ministratiOn that would have turned ev-
cry mothers son of them out of employ
ment as soon as it reached power. This
because activity on their part would
seem to proceed from selfish motives,
and have tendency to degrade political
contests to mere struggles for spoils.
Nothing could be more beautiful than
such sublime disregard for the first law
of nature, but the trouble is that outside
a few newspaper offices in the interior,
human nature has not yet been suffi-
GENTLY purged of selfshness to make the
proposition practical. The idealist is
disgnsted, too, because the men engaged
in active politics, National, State and
Municipal, are to large extent office
holders. 1t is easy to grumble at this,
but what would he have? If the citi-
zens who are not office-holders take hold
and manage politics, they must do one
of two things-either keep the old set in
office, which would be of no advantage;
or take the offices themselves, which
would simply continue the curse of po-
litical management by office. holders with
a change of persons.
Just at present the special worry Of
the idealist Is that President Garfield in
expressing the hope that Gen. Brady and
others would render such assistance to
the Republican cause as they could in
the last election, exhibited too much
anxiety for his own election; and that
after his Inauguration he showed q dis
position to recognize in his appoint
ments those who had made his nomina-
tion and election possible. To each of
these proceedings there was single al
tentative. With regard to his own cleo
ton he might have feigned an idiffer-
ence he could not feel. The success of
the Republican party, which he profess.
ed to believe essential to the prosperity
and welfare of the country, was so
bound up in his own election that the
assumption of indifference to his indi-
vidual success would have belied his
professions in that regard. In the other
matter he might have stood so straight
"as to lean backwardjT he might have
Disseminated against his friends in