The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1894-02-01
WHICH is BETTER.
HOW LONG SHOULD A MAN BE
KEPT IN CONGRESS-?
That Depends Upon Circumstan-
ces Of Course, but as a General
Thing the Interests Of the South
ern People Are not Promoted by
Giving Long Terms---That Is
the Opinion Of q Very Able Paper
at Any Rate.
(Atlanta constitutional

at Any Kate.
TAtlanta Constitution.
1t is a debatable question whether it
is good policy to keep a man in Con-
gress for long number of years. So
far as the South is concerned, it must
be admitted that it has accomplished
very little on that line.
The rule seems to be now that the
longer man remains in Congress the
further he gets from the real and vital
interests of the people whom he is
supposed to represent. 1t is true he
grows familiar with the environments
OF his position. He learns the ins and
outs of the departments, and finds out
how to engineer claims, petitions and
applications through the circumlocu-
tion factories. But his surroundings
at Washington, his associations and
his experiences are not such as will
inspire the average Congressman to do
much for his constituents.
He gets we'll acquainted with the
fellows who have axes to grind at the
expense OF the people. Occasionally
he becomes entirely too familiar with
the methods and ways of those fellows,
and this familiarity invariably operates
to make the interests of the people of
secondary consideration. If Congress
assembled at Moscow, the influence Of
the people would hardly be more
remote and feeble than it is at present
in Washington. 1t is hardly percepti-
bic in the capitol.
Accasionally, some Congressman,
fresh from his constituents, and un-
familiar with his surroundings, rises
and speaks in behalf of the people,
but he soon discovers in one way and
another that he has not made very
good impression on his colleagues. The
old members either treat him with
contempt or laugh in his face, and he
is made uncomfortable in hundred
different ways. He is made to feel
that only greenhorns in public life
make any pretense of representing the
interests of the people.
The Republicans, it is true, make it
a rule to keep their representatives in
Congress for years at a time. But
Republican legislation is class legisla-
tion, and that party has never made
any pretense of passing laws in the
interest of the people. The Republi-
can party is sectional party, and it
devotes itselfto subscribing the financial
and economical interests of the East.
Its policy is to build up the East at
the expense of the rest of the country,
and the men who are most eager and
successful in carrying out this policy
are the men who stay in Congress the
longest. Whenever Republican
Congressman fails to make a success
on this line, his party calls loudly for
another horse, and experience has
shown the Republican leaders that
this is altogether the best plan.
Now, why is not this good rule
for the Democrats to follow? Our
party looks alone to the prosperity of
the whole country, and we have never
had better opportunity to make this
test than in the next election. A
Congressman who cannot accomplish
anything, with Democratic President,
Democratic Senate, and Demo
cratic House, all backed up by large
majority of the popular vote, ought
not to desire to return to Washing
ton, unless, indeed, he wants to 60
there on purely personal grounds.
But no man ought to be elected to
Congress merely because he wants
to be Congressman, any more than
man who wants to be an angel
ought to be killed.
The fundamental reason why the
people send representatives to Con-
gress is to have their will carried out
in the law as far as possible. A
Congressman is merely delegate
sent to Washington to express the will
and maintain the views of the people
whom he represents. This fact has
been largely lost sight of during the
last few years. Congressman have
magnihed their Office and their au
thority, and some of them have even
gone so far as to misrepresent their
constituents on the most vital ques-
tions.
But a Congressman's whole i'm
portance resides in the aptness and
enthsiansin with which he represents
the will of a majority of the people
of his district. He is sent to Wash
ington because it is not convenient
for a majority Of the voters in a
district to go to Congress and speak
for themselves. They therefore select
representative and clothe him with
the authority to represent their views.
When Congressman misrepresents
the views of the people who elected
him he ceases to be representative.
He may hold the Office and draw the
salary, but he is no longer represent
ative in the true meaning OF that word.
In the old days, Congressman who
found that he could not reconcile his
conscience with his duty to his con-
stituents, made it a point to surrender
his commission, but in these times,
when Washington affords such fine
field for personal advancement, a
Congressman regards it as something
of feather in his cap to vote contrary
to the views Of those who selected him
to represent them.
Suppose the people of a congres-
| sional district were to select and send
a man on some particular and special