The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1895-09-21

The recent address Of Theodore
Roosevelt before the Liberal club of
Buffalo embodied a significant and
forcible enunciatiOn Of the policy Of
honesty and common sense In munich
pal government. and is of national In
terest. Below are some Of the striking
portions Of It:
1.-The solution OF the municipal problem
lies In the application to it OF the COM
mon virtues" 1t Is perfectly simple
common honesty, common sense and that
reasonable amount Of courage. OF will
ingness to accept responsibility and to
stand punishment from a nOt-always-ap-
preclative press. which ought to be a quail
ity Of every American citizen.
The surest way In which you can make
a movement to better our politics fail Ii
to have movement troubled with pro-
scriptiOn for religious reasons. The two
evils, / am almost inclined to say the two
worst evils. OF which know in municipal
politics, and In some other politics as well.
are. on the one hand, to discriminate
against faithful and efficient public SER
want because of his creed, and. on the
other, to pardon and support an unfaith-
full and inefficient public servant because
Of his creed.
In solving the municipal problem have
grown more and more to believe that nor
questions OF national politics. II one of
your houses is entered tonight by burg
lar. what do you care whether that burg
lar believes In loose or a strict construc-
tion Of the constitution? And Il a police
man runs him down, what particular in
terest have you as to whether he Is a
high-tariff or low-tarlff policeman?
Does 1t not seem little absurd to have to
ask that question? Yet think of the fact
that practically that type OF question has
been precisely the one that we have all
been expected to ask In municipal politics.
The problem we In New York have had
to face has been enforcement of the law.
That Is not question at issue nationally.
The problem Of getting honest elections.
the problem Of seeing that the police
didn't take bribes and commit blackmail
that Is not party issue. ON every Issue
that has come up we can proceed by an
inversion Of the reasoning OF a once noted
politician who. six or seven years ago, at
a time when he was president Of the
United States senate, said that the Deca-
1Ogue and the Golden Rule had no pla1 re
In politics and that the publication OF pol
ltics was an ir.descent dream. We have
been proceeding upon the assumption that
the Decalogue and the Golden Rule are pc
cullarly applicable to political life, and.
also. that II a public official was worth his
salt he was bound to try to show that
the publication Of politics was not an
irdescent dream.
In the abstract nobody will deny that a
the concrete 1t Is lamentable to see how
we pardon II. What you want In your
municipal authorities Is. first and fore
most, absolute honesty. Their views upon
any conceivable question Of public policy
come second to that. You must have in
an executive officer willingness to be
| faithful to his oath of office; willingness.
| again, to show the common virtues; Will
| ingness to behave with that measure OF
prob.ty which you exact from every sue
cessful business man, from every reput-
| able lawyer.
Another quality on which to insist .s
| courage. Be man ever SO honest. II he
| be cursed with a sufficient quantity OF
| timid.ty he Is mere nuisance In any
| emergency think am more apt to lose
| my temper with the timid good man than
In am with the sharp. resolute, clever
scoundrel whom am going to fight any
way.
II it comes to putting down riot. make
| up your mind that the person with whom
| to feel sympathy Is the law-ab.ding' cit;-
| zen, not the lawless. When people put
put them down with healthy desire to
see that they get put down quick, and II
any damage comes. let 1t come on them
and not on the men who have refrained
| from violating the law. II you think II
right--and II you are honest you must
| think II r.ght-to enforce a given law, al.
though there may be doubt whether
| local sentiment IL or is not In favor OF
ment is against you, your duty. is plain.
You recognise public sentiment as en-
bodied In law. The remedy Of the public
| II they do not Ike your acton Is to turn
you out at the end of your term. And
don't be afraid Of that either. There are
prices too dear to pay for success or to
nay for retention In once, and one Of
| those IL the loss Of self-respect,
I believe In all proper humility: be-
lieve in cultivat!ng q spirit Of impartial
| ity; but have never gotten to that po!nt
| OF impaftiaiity where I could regard the
law breaker and the man who kept the
| law "a equally good. and I never have got
ten ITO that point In city government
where would say that the opponent who
ficiaIe was - good ~ the man who be-
| i.evd n honesty.