The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1907-03-31
CHAPTER X.


Citations was now politics: at Wash
ington from December until congress
adjourned. chiefly national politics.
the long and elaborate arrangements
preliminary to the campaign for the
conquest OF the national fields: at
home, chiefly state pohtics-strength-
ening my hold upon the combine.
Strengthening my hold upon the two
political machines. AS the days and
the weeks. the months and the years.
rushed by. as the interval between
breakfast and bedtime. between Sun
day and Sunday, between election day
and election day again. grew shorter
and shorter. l played the game more
and more furiously. What | won,
once 1t was mine. seemed worthless
in itself, and worth while only IL
could gain the next point: and. when
that was gained. the same story was
repeated Whenever / paused to re-
fleet, IL was to throttle reflection half
born and hasten on again.
"A silly business. this living. isn't
it," said Woodruff to me.
"Yes-but-" replied /. You re-
member the hare and the halter in
Alice in Wonderland Why said
the hare Why not?' said the halter.
A sensible man does not fnterrogate
life; he lives it,
Him." retorted Woodruff.
And we went on with the game
stunning, dealing, stalking. But more
and more frequently there came
hours, when, against my will. ! could
drop my cards. watch the others. and
I would wonder at them. and at my
self. the maddest of these madmen-
and the saddest, because / had mo-
ments in which I was conscious OF my
own arrangement.
| have often thought on the cause
of this dissatisfaction which has never
ceased to grid me, and which l have
learned girds all men Of intelligence
who lead an active life. 1 think 1t is
that such men are like a civilized man
who has to live among a savage tribe.
To keep alive, to have influence, he
must pretend to accept the savage
point of view, must pretend to disre-
gard his own knowledge and fntellf-
gent methods. must play the game of
life with the crude, clumsy counters
of caste and custom and creed and
thought which the savages regard as
At and proper. Intelligent men of ac-
ton do see as clearly as the philoso-
piers; but they have to pretend to
adapt their mental vision to that of
the mass Of their fellow men or, like
the philosophers, they would lead
lives of profitless inaction, enunciat-
ing truths which are Of no value to
mankind until it rediscovers them for
itself No man of trained reasoning
power could fail to see that the Gold
en- Rule is not piece OF visionary al
truism. but a sound principle OF prac-
teal self-interest- Or, could anything
be clearer, to one who takes the trou-
BILE really to think about 1t, than that
he who advances himself at the ex.
pense OF his fellow men does not ad-
vance but sinks down into the class
of murderers for gain, thieves. and
all those who seek to advance them
selves by injustice? Yet. SO feeble
is mans reason, SO near TO the brute
is he, so under the rule of brute appe-
titles. that he cannot think beyond the
immediate apparent good, beyond to-
days meal
l once said to Scarborough: Poll.
tics is the science and art OF fooling
the people
That is true, as far as it goes"
he said. "If that were all, justice,
which is only another name for com
mon sense. would soon be established.
But, unfortunately. politics is the art
of playing upon cupidity. the art of
fooling the people into thinking they
~ 81
low and will get a share OF the swag."
And he was right 1t is by subtle
appeals to the secret and shamefaced.
but controlling. appetites of men that
the clever manipulate them. To get
a man to vote for the right you must
show him that he Is voting for the
personally profitable. And very slow
he is to believe that what is right
can be practically profitable. Have
not the preachers been preaching the
reverse all these years; have they not
been insisting that to do right means
treasure in heaven only?
1t was in my second term as sena-
tor. toward the middle Of It. I was
speaking one afternoon, In defense OF
a measure for the big contributors.
which the party was forcing tnrOuSn
the senate in face of fire from the
whole country. Personally. I did not
approve the measure. 1t was front
al attack upon public opinion, and
frontal attacks are as unwise and as
unnecessary in politics as In war Put
the party leaders in the nation in
sisted. and, as the move would weak
en- their hold upon the party and so
improve my own chances. / was not
deeply aggrieved that my advice had
been rejected. Toward the end of
my speech. aroused by applause from
the visitors gallery, / forgot myself
and began to look up there as / talk
ed, instead OF addressing myself to
my fellow senator's The eyes OF
speaker always wander over his au
dience in search Of eyes that respond
My glance wandered. unconsciously.
until II found an answering glance
that fixed IL.
This answering glance was not re
sponsiye, nor even approving. II was
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