The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1908-07-09
so that the ugly word mon

manipulated so that the ugly word mon
ey' can be eliminated in case OF an eX
posure. Cash is hard commodity 10 Jusse'
but shares and stocks can be better explained
to Jury So only the ignorant or most brazen
of the big "grafters" go after the money IN the
form of u. S. bank bills Records are telltales'
and money taken wrongfully and unaccounted lot
often returns to plague the hypothecator with
penitentary sentence
Another thing that seems to be overlooked is
that legislation will not cure grating true
it can and does punish the individual; but moth
ing but an aroused spirit of higher citizenship will
effect general cure of the evil. If you want to
know how many people in your city and county
are out after something for nothing get into
political position which either actually gives you
chances for bestowing favors or apparently oners
the opportunity. Ninety,hve per cent. OF the peo-
pie who call on you come for the purpose OF nav
ing you do them some favor, either for them-
selves or others; and they are not at all partlcu-
lar about how the favor is done, so that II De
done For myself, I know l was bombarded Gay
and night after got into office with requests tnaI
ranged all the way from the impudent to the lS
norant Requests to aid in the way OF eVaolns
or ignoring city ordinances were matters OF daily
occurrence And the charming thing ABOUT IL
was that the parties assumed that this was mat
ter of course in the routine business of the city
hall. It was not merely whats the constitution
between friends?" but whats honesty between
acqUaintances"
Skate" No / would introduce Skate NO. q,
and the latter would unfold scheme to pun
off" something in some other department OF the
city hall which was not only against all canons
of decency as regarded common honesty, but so
ridiculousy apparent that no one but an 1gnoram-
us would concoct such plan Now these Things
happened so often that if you got mad at each
occurrence you would be in state OF seml-apo-
pexy half the time. The only thing to do was to
cut the interview short by saying Il haven't any
thing to do with that department; If you have
any business with that end of the city go there
yourself.
But when you come to pin down any great
amount OF graft" in most CT the city administra-
tions Offices you failed, from the simple reason
that there was comparatively little of it. Was it
because greater publicity and greater vigilance
was being had through a hostile press slG a
watchful opposite party? Or was it because an
Improvement was being made in the character OF
the men elected and appointed? Or was it both!
At any rate there was steady advance for the
better during the cycle Of at least eight years OF
my experience in politics. Given an able and
vigilant man at the head of a citys affairs, ana
graft" will be reduced to minimum during his
term of Office Given any other kind of man,
and once more graft" will lift it's hydra head
1t is curious thing about manifestation, that the
tendency to make "a little on the side" seems to
be apparent in all administrations, but is either
dormant or active as the man at the helm is
either alert or nattentive. Like yellow fever in
Cuba, it is always present, even if only one case
of it.
The cheap CRATER" when found out never had