The Lexington intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1901-1949, 1904-10-22
CAMPAIGN ABSURDHlES.

his whole attention to the subject o
election laws in the great cities
Mr.. Brown is a kindly, well meaning
man aud his speech was of calm ant
amiable spirit. But it was YER
absurd.
His principal contention was thai
the election laws framed by
democratic legislature for the govern.
ment OF elections in the great cities
we're designed to perpetuate the
democratic party in power and
actually serve to disfranchise repub-
%licans. He said that unless the
people in the country came to the
rescue and defeated the democratic
machine, the cities would continue
powerless in the grasp of appointive
governors ruling them like subjugated
provinces. Now all this is pure
f%oolishnesS. The writer has lived
10 Missouri sixteen years and during
that time st. Louis was under repub-
lican rule twelve years and Kansas
City at least half Of the time. Since
the latest trifing revision Of these
laws st. Louis has changed from
republican to democratic and Kansas
City from democratic to republican
rule. Besides it is not true that the
municipal election laws of Missouri
were framed by a democratic legisla-
ture. The present law, except a tri-
fling modification making no party
difference whatever, was adopted by
the Civic Federation Of St. Louis, a
n%on-partizan organization, was passed
by a republican house Of representa-
tives in 1895, passed by a democratic
senate in the same year, and signed
by a democratic governor. There is
no better election law on the statute
books Of any state in the union. 1t
does not have 10 be defended as a
democratic Measure because it did
not originate from a democratic
source.
What is to be thought Of a mau
or said OF a man who makes a polite
al appeal upon the mere ground that
a law does not accomplish the imposs-
ible? Law has failed to prevent
larceny, forgery, blgamy and the
hundreds of offences it defines. But
the Missouri election law is so framed
as to reduce fraud to the minimum
and to insure that there be no more
of 1t on the part of one party than
the other, unless it happens that
there are more capable rascals in one
party than the other. The reader
has heard score of ad AOminem ap-
peals on this subject, but he has nev-
er heard a man point out a fault in
the Missouri laws election together
with a way Of amending it. The remedy
advised is always the silly remedy of
the other fellow, who, we
are assured, will make it all right.
Mr.. Brown, speaking in broad and
general terms, begged his hearers to
rescue their disfranchised fellow
citizens by voting the republican
thus bringing about "home
rule" in the matter of election COM
n%issioners and police commissioners.
His boldest and most definite intlma-
lion Of principles was found in the
rhetorical interrogaJory, "Why cont
elect our commissioners as we'll as
our city and county oficers?." The
lrst and most obvious answer to this
question is, because a non-partizan
civic federation in one of these
.'satrapies" has drafted an election
aw and caused it to be passed by
! republican house Of representatives
lnd a democratic senate. The second
answer is, tnat 1t has been tried and
been found to be absolutely the
worst way eve tried. Philadelphia,
he political Sodom of the United
still has "homenrule, and the
ing cannot be overthrown. Five
ears ago Wanamaker started a daily
,aper and swore he would "go broke"
n an effort to rout the gang. His
'aper "went broke" and the gang is
loing business at the old stand. In
illinois there is a Slight modification
# the ''home rule'' plan, and the two
Harrisons have been managing
he affairs Of Chicago ''since the
memory Of nan runneth not to the
.ontrary."
This ''home rule" foolishness is
designed wholly for rural consumpt-
E~M