The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-07-27
ash over the county offices. -

cast over the county Offices
"Ah but" says the more skillful orac'e
of the false priests of reform. you live
in glass houses, and you shou;dn Z throw
stones
There is no longer a pretense of a
house, glass or otherwise. which m gat he
said to shelter this gang of public
marauders whom the Dispatch now
rushes to the rescue Of after having
maintained an acquiescent tongue in it's
cheek concerning them and their mis-
deeds from the beginning of The prevail
ing exposures. Puzzle indignat on has
torn down about their cars every form of
protection and shel. er.
Neither a smear nor a shuttle viii boot
the poor petty larceny thieves, so many
of whom found their way into office I'M
der the cloak OF reform, AMI before
whose vision the state penitent AIRY is now
looming up. Nor W II any such form Of
public pettifogging save the Republican
machine from taking all the lean conse-
quences of their robbers record.
1t was necessary for the Dispatch 10 go
back twenty years or SO to Auditor
O'Br.en's administration In order to swell
it's meager list Of Democratic misdeeds. 1t
tells of couple of rascally clerks Ct his
who dabbled in tax matters. Our friend:
you are treading on dangerous ground for
your cause. You are liable to wake
sleeping dogs You may land high in the
realm of Republican righteousness if you
don't leave these particular tax shark
transactions in their grave.
Yes but there We're also jury certif-
cate frauds, and there was Jimmy Burns
and one Haroun. Why, OF course. And the
offenders in every case are today either
social outcasts, inmates of state prison
or released felons. And Where and when
and how did the general welfare or the
Official interests financial or otherwise
Of the community suffer by the sporadic
cases Of individual wrongdoing which you
ring in? Can you distinguish between
an official mistake and official corrup-
ton? And if you cannot how can you
blame the Clio b e for it's intimation
that those whose mouthpieoe you are are
suffering from moral color blindness?
Look at the absolute control of your
crowd in county affairs. Outside of
few reputable, consc .entious officials,
what have you to show? Look at the
reputation borne in the community by
your past and present board of county
! commissioners. Lock at your county Jail
transaction. Just run your alleged mind
back only a few years to the Cheap John
reform alderman from the West side
who received his few dollars a month
compensation from the blackmailed
clerks Of a building inspector. and who
was afterwards exalted by a Republican
mayor to the dignity of a school in
spector. Contemplate for a moment the
beauties Of your last building inspector,
of your last abstract clerk-your last
county Surveyor -.~V sa
But of what avail to on with specih-
cations. We are living in an era of
Republican reform, presided over by Nc
Cardy at one end of the court house and
Billy Johnson at the other The moral
beauties of the whole scheme form q
sort of scabby eruption on the skin of
the municipality; and our contempora-
ries, when they dare refer to it at all,
have courage only for the methods of the
common scold by crying aloud: You're
another! - -