The record-union., 1896-06-14

l
that is gored just now. How it could
square with his conscience to furnish
the data for a nominal private assess
ment can probably be explained only
on the theory that public conscience
is quite another thing. The curiosity
Of the situation is that one charged
with a delinquency inconsistent with
civic virtue is required to sit in the
case of another public servant charged
with another, but almost similar de-
|linquency This judicial strabismus is
interesting and instructive just now.
HUMAN BEASTS.
Bakersfield Californian: A couple Of
human beasts at present in San Fran
cisco have agreed to hammer each other
for coin in public, to see which has the
most muscle, or which is the better
faker, and the "big" city papers are Civ
ing pages of the most ineffable rot to
the affair 1t is safe to say not one
tenth of the readers care one iota about
such matters, yet the pictures of the
brutes are constantly intruded upon
them, with letter press that is Infinitely
more disgusting than the physiogno-
mics Of the participants. Faugh!
SENSIBLE WOMEN.
San Bernardino Sun: That was a
very sensible crowd Of women who held
a convention in Louisville. One of the
burning questions that came up for dis
cussion was the wearing of high hats
in places of amusement, and the ladies
resolved that the people who paid for
seats in such places were entitled to an
uncbstructed view of the stage. This
action ought to justify the Ohio legisla-
tors-who recently dealt by statute with
the high hat evil-in the minds of their
feminine constituents. When the
women themselves conclude that the
high hat is nuisance it is time for it
to go.
WORK THEM.
Sutter County Farmer: In Santa Bar
bara County the county prisoners are
compelled to work on the roads and the
highways are being largely improved.
Convict labor is as rule held in con-
tempt but work is so much needed on
roads that no other labor is displaced
or could be in this State for many years
to come. The working of prisoners.
where tried, has also had very good
effect on trampS and vagrants, who
are troublesome everywhere and per-
sist in doing nothing and living off the
community where they camp. By put
ting them to work they would thus
be compelled to earn their own living
and be of some benefit to the country.
TRY IT ON THE WOMEN.
| Stockton Mail: The Womens Fed
Grafton of San Francisco has again
started out on a crusade to purify the
press Of that city. There is just one
way for the women to accomplish any
thing, and that is for them to induce
their men folk to refuse to subscribe for
| the papers that are sensational. OF
| course, the men must take some paper
SO it will be best for the women to
prevail on them to subscribe for the
cleanest If they can do this, we be-
| lieve they will win their fight, but it's
a huge undertaking. The trouble is
| that so many women are themselves
fond of being thrilled or shocked. Sup
pose the Federation give its attention
to these women first and then march on
the men?
PRACTICAL RELIGION.
Livermore Herald: It isn't the amount
| Of religion a man has that makes him
| good and fits him for heaven; it is
| the amount he uses. Long prayers and
| loud professions do not count; but the
| man who loves his fellow men and
| Ifellow-women; who ministers to the af-
h.cted and wears a smile for all, in
| cluding his wife and children; who
smiles on Sunday and never kicks the
dog when he ought to kick himself who
speaks well of people when their backs
are turned, and under all circumstances
| keeps an even mind-that man doesn't
have to die to go to heaven He gets
to feeling happy all the time as a mat
ter of habit, and he takes all the dis
pensatiOns of life with PHILOSOPHICAL
satisfaction.
| LEGISLATIVE LOG-ROLLING.
Ell Dorado County Republican: The
| 'Record-Union" recently contained
| some good articles on legisla-
tive methods in Congress and in the
State Legislatures, showing how public
money is wasted and misappropriated
because the representatives of the peo-
| pie endeavor constantly to secure ap-
| preparations of public money for the
| districts they represent regardless of
the real needs of the State or Nation in
| the proposed expenditure. Thus in this
State, for instance, if Rancheria wants
| monument to Joaquin Murietta, Mil
pitas must have little school for i'd
| -ots. Neither is really needed, but
some other public improvement is a ne
cessity and the representatives of Mil
| pitas and Rancheria refuse to support
| 1T unless they can get their own appro-
priations. The result is a compromise
and a combination by which all three
| appropriations are made and thus in
crease the tax rate unless the Governor
| has pluck enough to veto the useless
appropriations.
1t is the experience of every legislator
that he is compelled to vote for a lot of
measures that are really undesirable to
| the people generally because he must
trade votes in this way to accomplish
any Of his own legislation Under the
| log-rolling system every representative
| practically bribes every other represen-
| tative and is himself bribed. but infiu-
| cnce changes hands instead of money.
! We have long noted this condition. but
| we don't particularly blame the repre-
sentatives, for the people are them
selves at fault. When they elect a
| representative, the latter is tacitly in
| structed to make pull for the dis
| trict he represents. He is supposed to
ge all the offices and appropriations he
| can for his constituents, and they never
| inquire whether he has studied the real
| interests of the great social body of
which his district is only small part.
| The result of this condition is that local
| plunder comes first and general well
fare and economy after everything else.
When the legislative body closes, there
| is q lot of useless officials and unneces-
sary appropriations to be paid for. The