The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-09-26
cooD AND BAD POLITICS.

"Politics is a dead letter in this com munity," remarked an observant citizen the other day. If by that expression he means the decadence of the ward heeler. the ballot-box fxer. the dema- gogue and blatherskite who are in poll ties for what they can make out of 1t: if that was what he meant by poli- tics 1t will be a good thing for this or any other community if it is dead and buried. There has been enough and more than enough of that brand of politics, but it is not new. Shakes peare makes one of ihs characters speak of "a scurvey politician" and the breed has remained in evidence ever since. That kind of politics is not to be desired.
 But there Is a higher and much better meaning to the word than any of these In it's proper and better definition pol itics means the science of government, political matters for no personal ob- ject but to subserve the best interests of the State and the community is politician of the higher class. He need not necessarily be statesman, an of flee holder or a man of prominence. IT he Is a private citizen who takes an active interest in getting good men in office. and who puts himself to the trouble to, go out and vote at every election. then he is good citizen and high type of politician. This class of men can be reached by intelligent argument As The Pittsburg Sun says;
 There is some hope of reaching and reforming the man who Is voting, even if he is voting wrong. There is something to work upon in him. But those who are too slothful and negli- gent to get out to qualify to vote are almost beyond hope. They are worse than mere political parasites and de- serve all the hardships they are due to suffer when the machine politicians find they are too timid or lazy to eX- ercise their functions as citizens.
 True, every word of 1t. The men who make 1t a business to stay away from the polls on election day are generally the first to complain at bad Legislation and inefficient officials. They remain quiet and indifferent while bad men are put into office. and then howl at any fault in legislation or executi n of the law. That kind of citizen should be the last to open his mouth when things go wrong.
 The greatest danger to any commit nity lies in the indifference shown by so many otherwise good citizens. Re- gently there was an important election in Chicago. A new charter was to be accepted or rejected. and 1t was a mat ter that concerned all the citizens. yet but small proportion of them went to the polls. and the charter was de- feated. Speaking of 1t the Mayor said: Tt is evident that a majority of the voters either didn't want a charter or were not interested enough to go to the polls and vote"
 That Is the case here in Alabama and in Montgomery. We have in this State 25O,OOO or 3OO,OOO white citizens who are qualified, or who can qualify themselves to exercise this high duty of an American citizen. yet when we have a State primary involving the selection of those who make and exc cute the laws, and possibly involving matters of vital interest to aIl 1t has so far been impossible to get one hum dred thousand voters out Thirty per cent has come to be considered fair estimate of the vote that will be boiled at primary or a general election. Here In Montgomery there are at