New-York tribune., 1900-04-02
LESSONS IN LEGISLATION.
WHAT MEMBER OF THE ASSEMBLY
LEARNED ABOUT THE LOBBY, THE
ORGANIZATION AND THE
SPEAKERS POWER.

Der whose legislative troubles Of day were
published in The Tribune on March 8 met his
country friend. and they sat for a long time at
the hotel. After dinner the latter smoked his
pipe meditat.veiy, with one leg over the arm or
his chair, and the former related to him various
experiences he had had since their last talk
The elder Assemblyman from up the State
after a while began to talk, and many new
thing did the other member learn. Thus he
found that 1t was exceedingly inadvisable to
express his opinion before vote on a bill IN
which the lobby was interested. Lobby, said
the member why, 1 have not seen lobbyist
since 1 have been here"
True" said the up-country member, but
they have seen you. They sized you UP the first
fortnight of the session. and decided that they
couldn't do anything with you. and that they
had better leave you alone. But if you an
nounce your opinion on a bill in which or
against which you not especially interested,
YOU are delivered for against the bill.
the case may be. That is, your vote has got to
be counterbalanced If you against the
lobby
The member did some thinking, and decided
that the school of cynicism the one with
which he ought to be classed. not that he be-
lieved the lobby one which welded funds.
That exists only in books said his country,
friend 'or In Kentucky" But the idea that ne,
be dealt with, if he expressed his views before
hand like a checker a board! This shocked
his sense of propriety well his dignity.
The member began to understand the cause of
the remark made of another body by distin-
guished statesman Thank God this is not
deliberative body!"
BOTHERED THE ORGANIZATION.
Besides" said his friend. with drawl, the
organization is not at all pleased with your
position on things-you bother them"
How many times the member had puzzled his
brain as TO what the organization really
Who represents It? Who speaks for it? Who
thinks for it? Surely not the chairman Of his
County Committee, for that gentleman had
repeatedly expressed a very high opinion Of
the member. Surely not the leader of his party
in the Assembly. for he left the member TO his
own devices. and certainly never complained
of him. Nor could it be the Speaker-he
too busy with his many duties.
But there was-and he felt it all the time-a
mysterious power, which held back measures of
certain kinds and pushed forward measures Of
another kind; power that. like electricity
magnetism was felt but never seen; a power
which had it's voice in a quiet, pleasant man
nered man, before whom, as man. the mem
Der did not stand in especial awe but whose
wonderful capacity for political management
the mysterious term organization.
After some thought the member worked out
this explanation Of this great power: If there
is bill, good, practical BILL involving politics
it is true, but justiiable on the ground that it
would purify some department some board
of the State county government, then the
Organization is the irresistible power of his
party, directed toward good ends and support
ed by the good Will and moral assistance of all
honest citizens Of his political faith. And if
there was another kind of bill-but the mem
Der here decided that he would leave his analy-
sis OF the organization on this subject to
some future day. He felt he had got deeply
enough into cynicism for one day. and decided
10 go the question with his friend the
Senator before putting his views paper.
GOOD NATURE DESIRABLE
"Cynicism7" said his up-country friend why,
you are good natured man, and far too new
at the legislative business to be a. cynic." The
member. however began to recognize the fact
that his round pegs of perhaps somewhat too
theoretical views Of legislation would not fit
into the square holes of the actual facts, and
he two things distinctly. The first was that
good nature carries man long way ahead in
the Legislature-further, often, than shrewd-
ness-and the other was that the remark about
successful legislation being the result of COM
promises was an actual fact. 1t is fact that
a bad tempered man cannot succeed in Albany,
but it is equally fact that many a good meas
ure has been lost because the hackers of the
measure would have 1t in one way, and only
By declining to yield on some not essential
point, or by declining to take the legislation in
instalments. as 1t were. the theoretical hackers
of many a good scheme have come completely
TO grief.
Now, the member knew that his lawyer had
lost a case for him once by insisting, at the
members own request. upon every possible tech
nical point and by making all manner Of techni-
cal objections, the result being that the Judge
and jury Were against hirl-for such is human
nature-and when the member lost his case he
became disguised with things in general and
compromised with his opponent.
But the member learned lesson, and this les
son he applied TO his course in the AS
sembly.
Many poor bill he let pass rather than lose
his strength by constant objections He found
that If he made objection 1t was at all events
listened TO. even If not followed. and not infre-
quently his objections were followed. He knew
that dozen other men thought as he did, and
as he voted with them against poor measures so
they quite as often were prepared to vote with
him. 1t is true, he seemed to be going against
the leader, but it was not often that the leader
complained Of this rebellion-for to some dyed
in the wool machine men Il. e., men who always
let their organization" whether Republican or
Democratic-these men exist on both sdes-do
the thinking for them)-to some men this was
rebellion.
But sometimes the leader and the member
clashed, and then the fur flew. So. too, the
member sometimes encountered the Speaker
whose power in the Assembly is greater than
that OF any other Assembiymau and on moro