Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1900-12-20
MUNICIPAL INTEGRITY

MUNICIPAL INTEGRITY.
Rt. Rev. Bishop Thompson, of Miss
issippi. one of the cIearest thinkers
and most careful observers in his
church, recently spent some time
in New York city as student of ex-
listing municipal conditions, and as
result. upon the question of municipal
integrity, he has this to say:
when we elect a man to an office he
has two things to do: one Is 70 aItenu
to the duties of his office, and the other
Is to look after his reelection, ana ne at
tends to the latter so we'll that ne mas mas
no time to attend to the duties OF ms
office at all. Eternal vigilance Is the
price of liberty, and it is the price OF any
thing else that the public wants that IS
worth having. So, when man IS erected
to an office the people cannot AFFORD 70
go to sleep They must keep awake and
Stand behind him with two sticks, sharp.
ened at the front end. government OF
the people. for the people and by the peo-
pie requires the constant attention OF the
people to see that they get the service
they pay for.
These thoughts receive the endorse
ment of the New Orleans Picayune,
which remarks:
public officials are not bad all at once;
wholly through the neglect and lndlffer-
ence of the people themselves. When the
people who are responsible for having
conferred power and authority on their
public agents or representatives shut their
eyes to their faults and defaults, they
deliberately encourage their officials TO
corruption and crime. .
THE laws can be enforced anywhere II
the people will it. When they are not
enforced, it is the fault OF the people
themselves. One of the most remarkable
to hi 1nati ion is
are opposed to capital punishment by the
processes of law, will. In many cases,
not hesitate to approve violent popular
justice, or even join actively IN a 'lynch-
ing bee They are in favor of laWleSS
violence, but their consciences Will not
permit them to consent to capital punish
ment by judicial processes.
'sFhe fact is, when vice and crime
abound in community, the people them
selves are more to blame than are the
officials who fail to do their duty, for the
officers are tempted by pecuuiary influ-
ences to wink al and encourage violations
of law, while the people, by their silence
and indifference when the facts are made
known actually encourage the corrupt
officials in abetting crime and vice and
in shielding their perpetrators. In gov
eminent by the people, the people them
selves are responsible for any long con-
tinued Official abuse and corruption.
THE laws can be enforced anywhere If
the people want it DONE and that is all
Of the matter
closely home to the people Of Wheel
ing. Of late years our city admins
tration has been considerably remoy-
ed from what it should have been.
The cause was very largely due to
public Indifference. Officials were
elected, took a solemn oath to dis
charge their duties ard enforce the
law, and then proceeded to set up
their own ideas and interpretations,
with the natural consequence that
some laws were only enforced Occa-
sionally, and many others not at all.
Public affairs were mismanaged, a pol
icy of extravaganza consistently ad-
hered to, and frantic and repeated Ell
forts were made to fasten upon the
public debts which could not have
been paid in a generation, and these
last endeavors were only prevented
by a public temporarily aroused from
lethargy and indifference. There is at
present a decided disposition to elm
mate from public life officials who
should never have been chosen to Of
fee. Success along this line will de-
pend upon the people themselves. If
they miss the present opportunity they
may settle down to another two years,
at the very least, of incapacity, indif-
ference, and disregard of obligations
:olemnly taken.