The Democratic advocate., 1905-02-18
What Money Can Do.

tributions to the study Of political condi
tions in our country is his article on Rhode
Island in the February McClures s'Rhode
Island: A State for Sale is the title oi
the article. Its subtitle is equally signi6
cant: 'iWhat Senator Aldrich Represents
"A Business Mems Government Found
ed Upon the Corruption of the People
Themselves. Are these titles sensational?
asks the Baltimore Evening News Do
people when they see them say ''Pshaw,
that is not worth reading, it can be true?''
Quite the contrary. The only thing that
interferes with the interest and reliability
of the article is precisely the opposite feel
ing. I'VE know all that already is the
remark that tens of thousands of persons
make as they turn the pages and go on to
pleasanter reading.
And yet we do not tknow all that al
ready. To get vivid realization of
what the corruption Of State ike Rhode
Island really means, it is necessary to go
into the morass with Mr.. Steffens. and
founder about with him in the awful slime
of corruption with which the whole political
soil of that State is covered Bribery of
voters is the centre of politics in Rhode
Island; money making by those interested
in legislation is its great objective All
this is gone into by Mr.. Steffens in telling
fashion and with abundant illustrative de-
tails. We cannot attempt to quote any
Of these specifically. Some idea of their
character may be gathered from this clos
ing passage in the story of the Providence
street railway grab, conducted by Senator
Aldrieh and other representatives of the
so-called ''better element
The masterpiece of legislative tressou-for
il is no ess-in this act is the rest Of this con-
sent clause; which says that when the COM
pany has agreed, the act 'shall be binding
and in full force between the State and such
asserting company, and shall not be altered
or amended without the consent of both
parties" Governor Garvin characterized
this as an ''irrepealable law" 1t is a con-
tract between United States Senator Aldrich
rs the State aud President Nelson W. Aldrich
Of the Street Railway Company, by which
without the consent of his Company his State
cannot tax his Company or alter or take back
its franchise. 1t passed, and is believed by
the Company to be what Boss Brayton calls
il, perpetual franchise.
With this legislation, these remarkable men
passed for themselves also charter, sort
of omnibus grant to lease, buy, etc., ETC., all
gas. electric light, street railway. etc., ETC.,
corporations in the State. This also was ir-
repealable, unlimited. etc, ETC.; 1t was for a
company to ''hold'' the public utilities il the
State. and the name thereof was, fttngly, the
Rhode Island Company. Even Pennsylvania
capital could ask no more than the Rhode
Island captains Of industry, politics and law
had to offer, and the deal was going through
when a gross error was made.
II is not the loss Of dollars and cents,
not even the submission to material injus-
tiee, that constitutes the sorest grievance
in a condition of things such as Mr. Stef-
fens depicts The rottenness strikes at
the very roots of character If uncheek-
ed, it must eat away the very foundation
of democratic institutions, or make those
institutions a disgusting moekery. Let us
look at one brief passage in Mr.. Steffens'
article that brings this ont in a startling way
Bribery. bribery of the people. is a custom
of the country in Rhode Island; il Is an inst
tuition. and, like the church or property, it is
not safe to attack it. This may sound pre-
poslerous, aud there is public opinion against
the custom, but the country clergy, as Mr..
Lowry showed and as Bishop McVickar of the
Rhode Island Diocese Of the Episcopal
Church confirmed. do not denouRce bribery
from their pulpits; they do not dare. The
Bishop declared that the country clergy could
not speak out without coming TO financial
grief and ruin, and be proposed 'doing
something so that no one will dare threaten
local ministers with the loss oftheir positions.
What does the Bishop mean by such lang
uage? 1T is an outrage on our civilization,
he added, that young men OF the church
with high ideals should be put under the ban
OF the power of political immoralities and
forced to acquiesee in evil for the sake Of their
families.
Yes, but all this is away off in Rhode
Island; is it any special concern of ours
Haven't we affairs of our own to take care
of? Is not the leading concern of Balti-
moreaus now to get the improvements
under way? Why bother about the local
troubles Of peculiar little New England
State? All, there's the rub-Rhode Isl
and is not peculiar, it is typical. Certain
causes have happened to intensity the pos
sibilities of corrupt boSsism there just as
they have in Philadelphia; but We are all
floating in the same waters, and it is only
question of how much we may do to keep
ourselves from being swept down by the
same current And here in Baltimore we
are lust now at the most critical possible
moment in this regard. We propose to
spend twenty or thirty million dollars upon
public improvements. The material bet
ter;nent of our city by that expenditure
may easily be made the occasion for fast
ening upon US political degradation which
every right minded man must declare to be
infinitely too high price to pay for sewers
or streets or schoolhouses or parks. Nor
are we confronted with any such necessity.
We are not required to choose between
honesty and inertia on the one hand and
progress and corruption on the other.
Political conditions with US are not ideal,
but they are wonderfully encouraging.
Public sentiment is in the healthiest pos
sible state. To secure our defense against
the building up of citadel of bossism aud
corruption out of the material furnished by
the improvement projects, nothing is need
ed but reasonable display of vigilance and
public spirit at the start. A strong, hon
est, capable City Council elected this
spring will start us in the path of whole
some and upright administration of the
great public trusts about to be created;
failure to get such Council will give the
sleepless army of grafters, respectable :
and disreputable alike, an opportunity they
will not fail to utilize Never was the
duty of community At once so imperative
and so easily performed, The people who
want honest and capable government, and
want nothing else, must control absolutely
in this spring election. They will be sure
to do it with entire ease if properly organ
lied And we cannot doubt that at some
auspicious moment the necessary organiza-
tion viii be effectively launched by public
spirited citizens.
Dog Def1es Death.