The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1895-01-12

don-as we'll as in multitude of less
important places, there have been eras
of venality. and it has been only by the
heroic effort of few 'purists" or ''phar-
isees." that the habit of official corrup-
tion has been broken up. Official degen-
eracy is as common and universal as any
other sort of human infirmity.
The same student is greatly encour-
aged, also. by what his eyes behold. For
he knows that it is history that the hab-
it can be broken up. A Parliamentary
committee inquiring into the police sys'
tenn of London in 1916, unearthed a
shocking state of affairs that extended
throughout the kingdom, 1t was the
custom of the magistrates ito issue out
warrants and take up all the poor devils
in tbs streets" for the purpose of pocket
ing the 2 8. d. of bail money. Girls
we're arrested by the hundreds for the
same purpose. A gang of ruffiaDs called
'informers' made fat living by trump
ing up charges against innocent persons,
and obtaining the reward. There were
the basket Justices" whose decisions
followed the amount of the gifts brought
to them in baskets by suitors. Ducks,
puppies, fruit figured in the investiga-
tion as the "swag' offered to the magis-
trates. In Wilberforce's day his election
for Hull cost him G9,0O0,much Of it spent
outright for the purchase of votes and
much of it also spent for meals and
drinks for his constituents at the public
houses. England has almost entirely
abolished those forms of infamy. DR..
Dixon, Bro. Platt and the Sun may not
believe that we can do the same. But
we can,
All forms of wrong-doing tend to set
tie into custom. And when the custom
is established it is remarkable how we
all treat it as either inevitable or provi-
dential 1t is the office of the prophets
among us to see things both as they are
and as they should be, and by holding
up evil custom against the light of Di-
vine Order, to make an impression on
the public reason and conscience in be-
half of righteousness. Sometimes the
prophet is a preacher like DIR. Parkhurst
or journalist like Horace Greeley, or a
critic like E. L. Godkin, or profession.
al reformer like Wendell Phillips. Such
men blunder sometimes like the rest OF
us; but they save human society from
moral stagnation and putrescence.
"A severer criticism on the character
Of our country journalism could not be
passed than that contained in the fact
that the editors of the party newspapers
Throughout. the State of New York 30
promptly took up the cue furnished
them by private communication from
Boss Platt, and proceeded to spread
themselves in their columns at full
length in the very posture marked
out by his dictatorial finger.
II the things he asked them to do and
say had not been SO opposed to fact and
truth as they were. one would expect
men of brains and character possessed
of even modicum of self-respect, to re-
sent the impertinence vigorously. In
place of that, whole platoons of them
including at least one Professor of
journalism" whirled into line and began
the Platt maneuvre. These are our or
acles! We should be proud of them and
have a medal struck for them, with a
suitable figure and the Scriptural leg
end. the ass knoweth his masters squib.