The L'Anse sentinel., 1905-07-29

Quentiy opeiiS NUN " Aoune
Members-Tragic Fate of 70.
Year-oid Novice-Nost Members
| Have Practically No Work to Dc
| -Everything Done by Dominant
Clique-Popular Election Of United
States Seni.tors Far Distant.
BY AN Ex-sPEAKER OF A STATE
LEGISLATURE.
copyright, 1905. BY Joseph b. Bowles)
Young men should be barred from
the legislature. No man under 81
years of age should be eligible to the
Office of state senator or representa-
| tive. would put the minimum age
limit at So years because in my expert
ence of several terms as member
have seen many young men ruined
, physically, morally and financially be-
fore they had rounded up their first
session. More often than l care to
remember precocious lads Of 21 to %
years, gifted with the powers of ora
tory which gave them the local fame
/ which lifted them into the general as
| sembly have come to the state cap
/ ital, high-minded. enthusiastic, cam
| est youngsters. and three short months
/ after have gone back TO their homes
gamblers, rakes or drunkards. ~
II the whole truth we're known the
country would be shocked at the pro-
portions of the young members of gen.
eral assemblies who were ruined by
/ their first taste of public life.
When man has arrived at his thir-
ty-fifth milestone his character is
formed. He has reached certain
stability of good or bad character
which tends to preserve his poise. The
influences for good or evil would not
affect him as they do those of young
er and more plastic years.
Yet age does not always keep man
| from going to the dogs by way of a
state legislature. | have in mind a
! venerable farmer who was sent to the
| legislature from one of the hest coun-
/ try districts in the state. He was
over 20 years old. He belonged to the
class which-is lifted to the pinnacle
4 y
seeks the suffrages of the agricultur-
ists-the sturdy tillers of the soil.
the backbone of the nation"
| This aged legislator had led quiet
satisfied, honest life up to the hour
when the devil put il into some ones
head to nominate him for the legisla-
ture. He easily won the election and
when the general assembly met ap-
peared IN the hall. a true picture of
the typical prosperous farmer.
He was honesty. pressed down and
running over. The most impudent and
lrazen Eoodler SHE'D when he ap-
peared. For q month he went his
peaceful way-a decent. respectable
AID iaw-abiding citizen.
One evening he fell in with a con-
| vivial member from metropolitan
district ani-so it appeared after
tasted whisky cocktail for the first
time in his loEg life. He and the con-
vival city man became chummy and
it soon reached our ears that the old
farmer was playing poker and winning
right along. That session lasted four
and half months. and before 1t ad-
| journed sine die the old man had
| gambled away his last acre. had Ec-
ccme confirmed drunkard ard we
had to make up purse to pay his
beard bill and send him to a son in
| another state.
have cited his because Ii was an
unusual case. But II serves to indicate
in . slight degree the tendency of the
time-burde2ed legislator who finds
the hours, hanging heavy on his hands.
| The real work in legislature IL done
ey few mel--the great majority of
! those elected TO make the laws do lit
tie but attend the daily sessions and
vote. The sessions consume but few
hours each day. The rest of the time
Is leisure for most of the members.
To many this vacation-like expert
ence, for time. Is a pleasant novelty.
But soon the novelty wears of, the
! spare hours became irksome, the days
drag and then the young member be-
gins hunting up card games and other
! amusements. Before the session Is
many days old the members divide
themselves up into groups-birds of
a feather get together and often the
young member gets onto the wrong
| twig
| / am not seeking TO moralize. | am
! simply putting an ordinary fact upon
| paper, fact well known to and the
subject Of frequent comment by men
who have served two or more terms In
legislature. and these old stagers
agree that one of the surest ways of
starting a young man on the toboggan
slide down to physical and moral ruin
~ to send him to the legislature.
Now II Is a curious fact that this
| deplorable condition of affairs Is due
almost altogether to the political
methods which make it possible for a
very few men to run legislature.
These few men have no leisure time
from the moment the session opens
until the adjournment. They do all
INthe work and for their own selfish
purposes want to do all the work.
Thus apparent devotion to the public
aervica Ia mt dfsiute eraafod FOR hv dn.