Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-04-28
COMPETITIVE sooTINEsS

The political debate in the House last
week was decided illustration of the char
acteristic vice of current politics. That is
the fact that nearly all political argument
which takes any definite shape at present,
can be summed up by the claim of each
party that the other one is worse than it is.
The debate in question was little more than
a mutual enlargement by each party on the
corruption of the other, and neither side
appeared able to appreciate the fact that the
result of the competitive accusations was to
lower both in the estimation of sensible and
thinking people.
The respective blackness of the pot and
kettle may be proper subject for discus
sion by an impartial and unbesmirched out
slider, but when each of the sooty utensils
gives itself over to enlarging on the dirtiness
OF the other, both expose themselves to ridi-
cule and contempt. An example of this dis
tinction is shown in society play now on
the stage. The low-comedy hero and hero
inc, by an indiscreet combination of the dal-
lance of love-making with the smoked glass
intended to view an eclipse, get the smirch
from the glass first on the face of one,
whence it is transferred to the other. When
the other characters come in and inspect the
tell-taIe evidence on their faces, they have
the right to view the blackened faces with
superior ridicule; but when each of the
blackened characters discovers only the SCOT
on the face of the other and begins to laugh
at it, both are seen to be only bringing ridi-
cule on themselves. That is exactly what
our political lights are doing when the Re
publicans enlarge on the corruption OF Tam
many and the Democrats retort with the
charges on Quay and the carpet-baggers.
Our eminent Legislators are simply repeat
ing the act of the young couple in the play,
by each making great fuss over the smirch
on the other, in ridiculous and somewhat
contemplate oblivion of the equal smirch
on itself
Yet it is strange that men who aspire to
reputation in craftsmanship cannot see how
degrading the pot and kettle argument is,
not only to themselves, but to the whole
subject of politics. 1t ought to be plain to
them, that a party's claim to public sup
port must rest on measures for the public
good, or by reforms of well-known abuses.
When instead of basing reputation on abso-
lutte administrative cleanness and economy,
the best that each side can do is to loudly
claim that the other is the worst of the two,
the conclusion is somewhat strongly indi-
cidedly low.
The evil of that sort of politics is also
seen in its more direct degrading effect.
W hen the best that either party can do is to
claim that the other is little worse, each is
likely to entertain secret idea that
it can afford to rival the other in
dishonest or unwarrantable acts. The
wrong committed by one set of
partisans is copied by another. One party
gerrymanders for its own advantage while
raising the hue and cry about the gerry
manders of the other. The Democratic
Speaker of one legislative body forces parti-
san measures because the Republican
Speaker of another body has done the same
thing. As each party denounces the acts of
the other as criminal, by doing the same
acts themselves, they furnish the practical
proof that this class of politics has reduced
them to the level where they are ready to
commit political crimes because the other
party does.
1t is to be hoped that sometime we shall
obtain an elevation OF our politics, and our
politicians shall see that the true rivalry of
parties must be as to which is most enlight-
ened, honest and careful of the public
rights, instead of which is the most dishon-
est, reckless and ready to disregard princi-
Piles for the sake of party