St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-03-28
THE VOTE BUYER.

Speaker COLE, the presiding officer of
the lower branch of the New York legis-
lature, having been accused by some of
his neighbors of buying votes in the last
election, took the floor the other day to
make personal explanation, and con-
feSSed that lot of money had been sent
to him by the Republican campaign COM
mittee- to influence questionable votes,
and that he had used it for that pur-
pose. The confession was a humiliat-
ing one, not so much to Mr.. CoLE-for
man who will corrupt the ballot is
presumably devoid of moral sense-as
it is to great body of the people who
are thus furnished with the proof posi-
tive that the last election in New York
state was carried by the corrupt use of
money.
The New York World publishes list
OF interviews with the governors of vari-
Gus states in regard to the COLE episode,
and ELECTS from them an expression as
to the danger which menaces the ma
ton from the use of money in politics.
There is a general concurrence of gu
bernatOrial opinion that the danger is
imminent and alarming, and that, un-
less immediate steps are taken to re-
move the evil. the future of the re-
public is problematical. But just here
the question arises, how is the cure to
be effected? 1t is useless to appeal to
congress for a national law as long as
that body is made up of members a
majority of whom owe their election 10
precisely the same methods by W hich
Speaker COLE secured his seat in the
New York legislature. When we GO to
the state legislature for a remedy we
too often find the same conditions ex-
listing there. 1t is easy enough to make
out a prescription for the disease, but
the difficulty is in getting the prescrip-
ton filled.
In his interview with the world, Gov.
HUMPHREYS, of Kansas, suggests prac-
teal remedy, and one that would prob
ably prove efficacious if it could only be
applied. 1t is that any person who
purchases votes, either directly or in
directly, shall be rendered ineligible to
hold office, and that the man who sells
his vote shall be disfranchised. 1t
would uIquestionably be in the interest
of public morals and public decency to
have such law on the statute books
of every state. While we realize the
almost impracticability of it, we would
go farther, and suggest that the law
should forbid the use of campaign
funds for any purpose whatever. There
is no reason why money should be used
in elections at all, not even for the en-
ployment of campaign speakers or the
diffusion of campaign literature. This
is nation of intelligent people-a
people who read and keep posted on
matters of current interest, including
the political questions of the day. The
money spent in a campaign for So
called legitimate purposes is lust
that much money thrown away. We
venture the statement that with
all the campaign oratory that was
heard ringing throughout this state
during the last campaign, not dozen
voters were Swayed from their original
belief and opinion; and yet the amount
expended for paying stump speakers
ran away up into the tens of thousands
The only money that counts for any,
thing in a political campaign is that
which is used corruptly. There is in
every community class of ssauestion-
able voters" as Speaker COLE denom-
mates them, who stand waiting for the
tapping of the campaign barrel. and
generally they are the voters who de.
eide the contest. Thus the country has
r cached the stage of dependence on ac-