The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1894-02-18


strike twelve. But the law cannot care
for ir'fss. almost every body" needs
thOse resources.
So soon as il appears that everybody,
or almost everybody" needs In the
same way the telegraph and telephone,
railway travel back and forth, education
for trades, tine art, the language or
metaphysics, needs coal at the minimum
price, or bread and butter at tho mini
mum price. the public will undertake. the
necessary enterprises, precisely as itnow
carries the mails. But 30 viii not do
this. while these enterprises only serve
o class in the community.
Tho government Of cities promises 70
be more scientific than IL now Is, az nifty
years go by. This means that the pub
dc, which does not mean 70 De fooled
and which il not fooled much in the
long run, will insist on having teachers
who can teach, PAYERS who can pave
lighters who can light, and policemen
who can police. II is the habit OF pes
simists 70 say that an city government
under democracics is bad. This lie not
true. The fire service OF American
cities is generally good. The water ser
vice is generally good, The public
schools are generally on asiandard quite
as high as the private schools. Here
are three departments Of service which
cover nine-tenths OF the expenditure
made by cities. Ia my own home, Bos-
ton, The service OF the overseers OF the
poor is better carried on than that OF
most large business establishments
by which / mean that there are
few large establishments in which
every person employed has such
conscientious and intelligent interest in
the object in hand, and gives his time
so Loyalty TO that object As more at
tention is bestowed 70 the subject, IT
will be harder and harder for men to
go into politics" for what they oan
steal
The object TO be sought is that Tor d.
rectors Of departments in city admins
trations, chiefs should be sought, as we
now appoint heads OF departments in
manufacture or education. II you want
a chief engineer for your fire depart
ment, you viii find where there is such
a man and induce him 70 come TO you
as you now do when you want bank
cashier, clergyman OF an architect |
You will not think It necessary that he
should now live in the city where he is
to work. You will make IL worth bis
while 70 come and live there. You will
appoint h.m for good behavior. You
will not turn him out at the end Of the
year, any more than you would your
doctor
Fortunately for us, our country is di-
reoted by the public opinion OF the large
towns and small cities. The editors Of
the large journals, published in the
large cities, suppose or affect TO sup
pose, that the public opinion Of those
cities governs the country. But those
who suppose this are wrong. tits 10 be
observed, indeed, that these journ ais
themselves do not always-do not often
create the public opinion Of the cities in
which they are printed. Their power,
which is great, is exerted far away.
The traveller from the planet Mars
who wishes to see how America is now
governed, will do we'll to 60 to some
large town, generally town with city
charter, Of population not more than one
hundred thousand, perhaps not less
than ten thousand. lie will find here
that the directors Of thought, Of inven-
tion, Of art and industry, are apt also to
choose to direct drainage, water supply.
education and police. That is TO say,
the directors Of one-half the affairs Of
the town choose to direct the other
half In conversation with such leaders
Of opinion be will find that they are also
leaders Of action and OF government.
They do not yet choose TO leave govern
ment 10 inferior hands. When the town
grows larger they are apt 70 do so.
In such conversation the stranger
from the planet Mars hears such oiti-
zens say, we are going to do this OF
that" OF I've tried this and II did not
work. We shall now try that, which
succeeded IN New Utopa OF in Little
Crastis, and We think IL win do better"
That is 20 say, he viii find that the
leaders lead such community
1t seems 20 DO 10y accident, which
one can hope may be corrected in
half century, that such leaders DO not
now lead IN larger cities. When they
do not 1t is simply that they do not
want 10.
Whoever asks Il the political future is
20 be better OF worse, really asks IL men
and woiAen are 90 be better or worse.
The fountain rises as high as its source.
but il rises no higher Whether men
aau women are improving is an open
question TN statistics cannot be re-
lied upon any more than in other ques-
tion5, for there are questions Of the
spirit involved, which no statistics can
measure. But 10 can be- proved.
!. That the bodies n men aud women
are, on the whole. more nt for the work
required of them than they we're Fifty
years since. They are better clothed.
better warmed. better housed. better
FED Ia consequence tho death rate is
less. They can run faster, can lift more
than they could, on the average. They
can draw and write and sing better on
the average. So much has been gained
ON tho rFvefon1 side