The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1900-05-05
SOME GLITTERING GENERALITIEs

1uo 'crulct mas never prOfesSed
desperate attachment for Ex-Governor
Altgeld. There is much about him to
dislike. BY the same token! there is
wisdom and an intense. wide honesty
about him. The Verdict cares nothing
for Algeld. 1t does, however, care
vastly for the truth. And there be
rich store Of the latter, scarce com.
modify In some recent Altgeld utter
ances. 1t was the other day when
Altgeld bent himself to inform covey
OF callow students about to fly into life
from that nest Of learning, the Illin ois
University, and spake veraciously as
follows:
Being an oflice-holder myself. 1 may be
pardoned for saying that most of the men
who are holding the Offices and welding
authority will be forgotten before the grass
has had time to grow over them; for they
| are not the great captains; they are not the
leader of our progress and Of our civilization.
Their vision is limited to the weather-vane
on public buildings. They never give the
order for advance on any great questions:
they wait to be commanded to move, and
then hesitate until assured that it is the
voice of the majority calling to them. They
wait until the leader of thought have
captured the stronghold of wrong, and
then they try to plant their flag over the
ramparts that were stormed by others. As
rule, they are moral towards, following
the music wagon of their time and holding
the penny ofimmediate advantage SO close
to their eyes as to shut out the sunlight of
eternal principles"
There Altged gives one true
etching Of the average office-holder-a
man selfish as an oyster, hungry as a
shark, and rs sublimely egotistical as
either. He holds Office not for it's
duties, but its perquisites; and all else
may go to corrupt moth and rust SO
that Office be preserved to his lips, and
his pap-sucking permitted to proceed.
Like the gambler of the story, your
office-holder ''cares not what happens
so 1t doesn't happen to him." The
Verdict is glad that Altgeld puts the
case with that brutal plainness. Should
he keep on talking in that strain he
will tell much truth, and may even
work some good. With all that Altgeld
has in the past proposed, The Verdict
doessnot go. 1t does not follow him
when he begins to build government.
But as critic, Altgeld is peerless;
The Verdict endorses him. When he
discusses what is, Altgeld hews very
near the line. And what then? In
this day, when we have plenty-and
misuse it-when it is an era of abuse
rather than of want, your critic should
be more thought of than your protector.
Tis fat hour, rife of good things,
opulent of the possible, and with con-
ditions of knee-deep richness an
Altgeld to point "a wrong, to indict an
evil, and pillory injustice, in short, to
kick and carp and WELD lash of biting
criticism, is of excellent Importance.
We don't need Cesar to found an
empire, for we have an empire; our
time calls for no Charlemage to extend
an empire; for we have enough; even a
Washington is no longer indispensable
in our destinies, for our Revolution is
won. What we could use is brigade
of Altgelds to act as whippers-in and
keep our hounds of Office to their duty
and see to it that the honest, proper
hunt of government sweep ever on
The New York Verdict.