Los Angeles herald., 1891-06-28
A FRUITFUL THEME.
The Evils of Private and
Special Legislation.
The Subject Discussed at a
Commercial Banquet.
Ex-President Cleveland the Prin-
cipal Speaker.
Reputable Business Men Hauled Over
the Goals for Not Taking More In
terest In Politics-Log-Roll-
ing Denounced.
Associated Press Dispatches.

PROVIDENCE, r. l., June 27.-The din
ner OF the Commercial club this evening
was the last of the season and distin-
guished assemblage was at its board.
Private and special legislation was the
theme OF the evening. Ex-Chief JUS
tice Durfee was the first speaker. He
lamented the corruptness of the lobby
ane emphasized the Importance of citi-
zens and business men taking more
active interest in politics.
Ex- President Cleveland spoke at
length in the same strain. He said this
unfortunate neglect of matters of politics
and legislation has actually reached
such pass that business men think and
speak of politics as something outside of
their interests and as a duty, which
if not actually disreputable, may well
be left to those who have taste for it.
The ex-president sought to remind his
hearers of the interest which all of us
have as members of our American body
polite in wholesome general laws and
their honest administration. In order
that the patriotism and intelligence of
the country should prevail in our legs-
lation, the patriotic and intelligent men
of the country must see to it that they
are properly represented in our national
councils.
Mr.. Cleveland said it seems to him
that private and special legislation as it
at present prevails, is an evil chargeable
to great extent to the listlessness and
carelessness of the people. The people
have right to claim from their repre-
sentatives their best care and attention
to the great subjects of legislation in
which the entire country is interested.
This is denied to them, and their repre-
sentatives take their seats burdened
with private bills in which their imme-
date neighbors are exclusively inter-
ested, and which they feel they must be
diligent in advancing if they would
secure their continuance in public life.
They are led by the exigencies OF
their situation, as they view it, not only
to the support of private bills Of ques-
tionable propriety, but to the neglect of
important questions involved in general
legislation. Furthermore, the impor-
tance OF the successful championship of
of these private bills, seems so vital to
them that they are easily led to barter
their votes for measures as bad or worse
than theirs, and thus is inaugurated the
system called log-rolling, which comes
frightfully near actual corruption, and
the people at large lose not only atten-
ton to their affairs, but are often no
better than robbed of the money in the
public treasury.
Continuing, Mr.. Cleveland said: "An-
other and more pernicious aspect of
special and private legislation 1t en-
genders among our people the habit of
looking toward the government for aid
in the accomplishment of special ane in
dividual schemes, and the expectations
which it creates, that legislation may be
invoked for securing of individual adj
vantages and unearned benefits. No
thoughtful American should shut his
eyes to the truth that when our people
regard the government as the source of
individual benefit and favoritism,
our popular government is IN dan
gerou hands, and its entire per-
perversion is not alone charge
able to confessedly private and
special legislation. Measures of gem
eral character, apparently proposed for
the public good, frequently originate in
selfish circulation, and neither the cry
of protection to American interests nor
pretended solicitude for the public good,
ought to succeed in concealing the
scheme to favor the few at the expense
of the many. Nor should the import
ance to the country of legislative action
upon any subject divert us from an in
.quiry concerning the selfish motives
and purposes which may be hidden be-
hind the proposal OF such legislation.
1t is quite time that our business men
and all American citizens who love their
country bestr themselves for battle
against the evil tendency of private and
special legislation, whatever guise it