The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-10-11
Letters to The Editor.
A Remedy Can Be Found.

A Remedy Can Be Found. Editor The Advertiser:
 propose this to be my last paper upon the gas franchise. l do not think, how ever that I have trespassed upon your time or space l am writing from no personal motive, other than such as should actuate an ordinary citizen In reference to the good government of the city and the subject-matter is of pubic concern.
 MT, Lecky, in the first volume of his Democracy and Liberty, ?. 113 says:
 There is one thing worse than
 corruption. No feature of Ameri-
 can life strikes a stranger so
 powerfully as the extraordinary
 indifference, partly cynicism, partly
 good nature, with which notori-
 ous frauds and notorious corrup-
 ton in the sphere of politics are
 viewed by American public optn-
 ion. There is nothing, 1 think,
 altogether like this to be found in
 any other great country.
 In America notorious profiigacy in
 public life and in the administra-
 ton of public funds seems to ex-
 cite little more than a disdainful
 smile. It is treated as very
 natural.
 In the same work, page 97 quoting from an article by Andrew D. White. he adopts the following:
 I wish, to deliberately state a fact
 easy of verification-the fact that
 whereas, as a rule, in other civil
 lized countries Municipal Govern
 ments have been steadily improv-
 ing until they have been made
 generally honest and serviceable.
 our own ,as a rule. are the worst
 in the world and they are steadily
 growing worse every day.
 There is no question that this city is an example of both these truths. The people manifest the utmost indifference to the manipulation of their city affairs to serve and enrich individuals. And there is little question that the jobbery with us is but miniature of the opera tions of the rings in large cities. I do not pretend to say that the corruption often takes the shape of downright bar gain and sale. It assumes more seduc- tive form. Weak men are selected as candidates and they are placed and kept under personal obligations of various kinds, and when the occasion arises, they return favors by voting away public money, privileges and franchises. The observant people of our city are very we'll satisfied that quite number of the old Council and some of the new are men who have been, and in the future are expected to be manipulated practically at the will of those seeking the grant of franchises from the city.
 This conduct on the part of the City Council member, and of the party fraudulently electing and using him for personal ends, is to every intent and purpose the same as the payment and reception of money directly for votes. In- deed, say it is worse, for it is less likely to meet with rejection by weak stomachs and thus has a wider influence than the grosser form.
 The city has been the victim at the hands of the extinct council of a most unjust bergain. Let us be charitable and say. that there was no corruption-and that all parties can walk up in the congregation and, like the ancient pharisee, say: God, I thank Thee that I am not as other men are," etc.-and let us conclude that the council was in- nocently on their part "bamboozled' into the scheme. It was either that or some thing else which I will not name, The council are at liberty to place themselves in the category which fits them. If they are innocent of intentional wrong, such of them as are in the new council will readily join in all efforts to defeat the ordinance.
 The city is irrevocably bound, or 1t Is not. If it is bound, it cannot repudiate it's contract If 1t is not bound, revoca- ton will save the city and people enough to pay the whole city debt. What motive then. can deter an honest alderman from repeating the ordinance and from taking all other possible steps to supply the city and people with light at cheaper rates? We know of no possible excuse. that can be set up. The cost of the effort will be trife. So far as the lawyers fees are concerned. none need be paid-since the city attorney should be man capa- ble of conducting the litigation. And so far as other costs are concerned, they cannot amount to more than a thousand dollars if the suit was conducted for the whole term of the franchise.
 Let the City Council appoint a suitable committee of men, who are clearly disinterested, to consider and re- port speedily waht action is feasi- ble in the premises, and they will demonstrate that they are not in leading strings. If no action is taken, we will believe that the council is dead to every sense of public duty. Agricola.