West Virginia Democrat. [volume] (Charles Town, W. Va.) 1885-1890, 1888-06-29
The more we see of machine meth
DDS the less we like them.


DDS the less we like them.
We seem to have reached an age
when the rank and file have surren-
dered the administration of public
affairs to set of men who have no
thought except to keep themselves
in office so that they can live on
salaries paid by taxpayers. Our
successful politicians appear to be
men shrcwd enough to win the con-
fidence Of the people while they are
careful never to antagOnize any
scheme which rObs them. When
we look at the group always put for
ward to shape political events, we
find men who invariably stand silent
while their neighbOrs are being
plundered; they seem to think 1t is
none of their business to make a
fight unless they individually re-
ceive some personal benefit. 1t is
strange, though none the less true,
that the persons who do the least
for the general public are the ones
most popular with the rank and file
of voters. In some countries there
is privileged class who own the
right to make laws; they own this
right as they own land; the son in
herits this right from his father.
Under our system it is expensive to
get office, and hence we pay high
salaries; Congressman gets 1000.
1t is expensive to fool voters, and
Congressman requires many strik'
ers. Hence, under our system a
Congressman is allowed to appoint
his strikers to places under the Fed
eral Government They work for
the Government when not occupied
in managing nominations, As all
this money comes out Of the people,
it might be cheaper to dispense alto
gether with elections and not trOu-
bic the rank and file to attend the
polls; then all the voting would be
done by about twenty men in each
county, who under our present
system dictate who shall be dele
gates to a nominating convention.
The influence Of a man depends
upon what is said of him almost as
much as it depends upon his own
conduct. The shrewd and unscru-
pulOus schemers who plot against
the unorganized masses understand
this thoroughly; hence, if the man
of brains refuses to wear the collar,
neis bounded and thousand foolish
tongues repeat the falsehoOd set
ahoat by those who milk the ignOr-
ant masses.
1t will be an i'll day for this cOun-
try when the people lose confidence
in the independence and integrity of
the courts of justice. Those who
stop to reflect feel very anxious for
the near future when they see schem.
ing politicians plotting and cOnspir-
ing to defeat judges who have proved
themselves competent, faithful, up
right and sufficiently courageous to
perform their official duty although
threatened with the opposition of
influences which usually intimidate
8 candidate for public office. Let it
be understood, once for sll, that if
our State convention nominate a
railroad attorney for the Supreme
Court be will be defeated. We have
a court the railroad managers have
been unable to bulhlOze; let US keep
it. We caution the people to see to
it that the coming Convention at
Huntington is not controlled by rail
road attorneys. Our present judges
have proved themselves faithful to
duty; why change them?
We have no faith in the RepuhH,
can party or in its leadership or ten
denotes, and we have only abhor
renee for the mOnstrOus policy Of
cOnfseating the gains of labor and
the profits of trade by extortionate
protective taxes which has become
its only vitalizing principle. The
maintenance Of needless taxes for
projections sake is not and never
was principle of true Republican
ism.
The NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC Con-
MITTEE met in Washington on Tues