The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1893-10-26
MIR LOWELL ON CONVENTIONS.

MIR LOWELL on CONVENTIONS.
The New York Herald on Sunday last
printed number Of extracts from letters
of the late Honorable James Russell Low
ell from the advanced sheets Of a two
volume publication Of his letters about 20
be made. The letters are delightful read
ing and show Mr.. Lowell at his best
They are written with a free and easy
pen and are full of the most pointed OBJ
servations on current affairs Writing
from London, in 1884, to f. J. Child, he
says:
"As for the small majority for Cleve-
land, / am more than satisfied with any,
considering the obstacles. That we are
saved from Blaine is enough for the
nonce. There are four more years TO
work in before the new election. The
great vice is in the system Of conventions,
as l learned in Cincinnati in 1876"
Mr.. Lowell never made a more just or
true remark than when he said that the
vice in our political system is in our Gus
tom Of making party nominations in con-
ventlons. If we are ever to lose our lib
critics, If the government ever becomes
the seat and high place of the rottenness
and corruption threatened by the spectacle
which the nation presented in the ten or
fifteen years Immediately following the
war, we will owe the catastrophe to cur
system of making party nominations In
conventions. The members Of the party
are. Of course. bound by the action Of
their convention and must accept as their
candidate the person named for them.
Conventions are formed by the court
house cliques and rings. and these are
composed Of the idlers and trifiers who
hang around public men hoping TO pick
up a sop in the way Of some public en-
pioyment that will give them a salary
without work. AS these creatures are the
dependents Of the public men-the public
men, in efect-then, appoint the conven-
ton from among their own Janissaries
and the convention, therefore, becomes
nothing in the world but a packed body
Of the slaves of a boss. This is insep-
arabic from the convention system. There
must be bosses If there are conventions
and there will certainly be conventions
If there are bosses. The convention, then,
is the curse OF Republican institutions
1t is the parasitic bug that eats the vitals
out Of free government There can never
be good government so long as the can
didates Of political parties are chosen by
conventions, and the problem to which
all men who desire good government
should address themselves is how to end
and get the public nh of conventions.
The way is plain. The law should re-
quire candidates of parties TO be chosen
in primary elections held at public ex-
pense under the sanction and regulations
Of the law. When this is done. the party
candidates will be those whom the ma
jority OF the party want for their cam
didates. and We shall then have elections
really giving expression to the voice Of
the people, instead of. as now. represent
ing the viii OF the political boss.
1t will be remembered that before Mr.
Lowell was our minister TO England he
had been our minister TO Spain, and his
residence there gave him ample opoor-
tIuity to study the working OF Spanish
institutions. In another letter TO Mr.
Child written from London. In 1889. he
says:
Il reed not tell you how glad / was
OF the gevulsion in our politics. / think
we shall keep all the ground we have
on, and before long bring the country
fOrward-or back-to better ways. II not,
I see no hope. Spain shows us 10 what
civil service precisely like our own will
bring a country that ought TO he powerful
and prosperous. 1t wasn't the inQlisi-
ton, nor the expulsion OF Jews or Morris
cos. but simply the boss system that has
landed Spain where she is
The boss. system has reduced this proud
and high spirited people who once ruled
almost all the world. to the state and
condition OF moribund collection of
inoapables barely able to secure food and
clothes for their constantly decreasing
population And what the boss system
has done for Spain II will do for the
United States unless we take hold OF
Il and throttle It. The convention is the
nnrss o. the day.