Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-11-17


CHURCH LAST NIGHT = THE
SPEAKER SCORED OFFICIALS
FOR NEGLECT OF DUTY, AND
SUGGESTED PLANS FOR BRING
ING ABOUT A RETIREMENT OF
CONDITIONS.
The third Of the series OF mass meet
| ings in the good citizenship movement
was held last night in the United Pres
byterian church, and the fourth Will
! be held this evening in the English
| Lutheran church ON Sixteenth street.
| The speaker last evening was the Rev.
| W. I. Wishart, of Allegheny, Pa,
| prominent clergyman, who has taken
| an active part in REFORM movements
/, in his home city.
| In his opening remarks he said he
agreed with Mr.. James Bryce. the Eng
| lish author, that the government OF
| cities is the one conspicuous failure OF
| the United States The national gov
| ernment has maintained a fairly
creditable record, and has made the
stars and stripes the most honored and
| respected flag that floats The speaker
| found much to condemn in the "unmit-
! igated political corruption" existing in
several State governments, and par
ticularly in his own State, which he
| said was ruled by a boss" Such Is
| the force of cur delusion," he said,
chat we lay the chances of our slavery
! to the boss as If it were pleasure to
| serve them, and refuse to liberate our
| selves when the opportunity pre-
| sents ITSELF but when he cracks his
whip we meekly march to the polls and
| vote his ticket to the debauchery OF
| cur political manhood, and the ever
lasting disgrace of our State"
Mr. Wishart dwelt upon the tendency
| Of population to assemble in cities,
and said the problem of good citizen
ship had resolved itself into the ques-
| ton What can we do for the aboli-
| ton of municipal misrule and for the
| publication of the city," There are
| congregated in cities the most difficult
elements to govern.
The city is the home of the saloon.
| Abolish it, and the problem would lose
| more than half of it's difficulty.
1t is the home of the gambler, the
| thief, and the 1ibertine. The modern
! city is a great magazine of danger,
needing only spark to set 1T in explo-
sion.
We have made failure of city gov
eminent, not only because of the diff
Guilty of governing lawless classes, but
because we have given the government
to the ignorant and vicious. They are
bad citizens who will not take time
from their selfish concerns to go to the
caucuses or to hold Office in the city's
government. Men Of integrity and
business knowledge refuse to bother
themselves with the city government,
the ignorant and unworthy are elected,
and we sit down and sigh and cry over
municipal misrule If better condi-
tons are to obtain, clean men must be
city. They must attend the caucuses,
and be at the polls instead Of remain
| ing at home and grumbling about polit
ical corruption. We can talk about
good citizenship until we get tired, but
there will not be much improvement
| until good honest men are willing to
work for good government as earnestly
as they work for good dollars.
Another thing that has helped on
failure in municipal government, is the
miserable practice of introducing State
and national politics into city elections.
of good citizens, makes the city the
closer field of the political boss"
! There the machine gets in its deadly
work, and political corruption feeds
| and fattens on the spoils of municipal
office
The good citizenship of these days
means effort to counteract these evils,
| to cleanse the city of the vices that
are sapping the life blood of it's best
| manhood, to rescue the city from the
| grasp of the spokesman. 1t must de-
mand the revision of charters, better
| fundamental law for cities, and the
enactment of good laws. Some city
statute books need fumigation. Laws
| are framed in the direct interest of
| vice.
Good citizenship means the enforce
ment of righteous laws. 1t demands
| good men for offices. The chief con-
Germ in municipal elections must be the
| character of the men chosen. Three or
four things are needed to promote the
| good citizenship movement.
First, agitation. Facts are the fuel
| of enthusiasm. The facts must be
| brought to the attention of the people,
1 x.,;II ~ 4 {,