Los Angeles herald., 1908-05-31

the matter with politics is their Ialiure
to do their duty, and show them that
If they should go to the caucus, the pr1-
mary and the polls on election day and
vote there would be no political boss
or successful corruption of the elective
franchise. Instead of this the energy
of the political orators and the news
papers is devoted to the worse than
useless abuse of the bosses and to driv-
ing more and more good citizens away
from the polls by educating them to be-
lieve that to participate in politics Is
contamination and useless waste OF
time. F
Any effort to influence elections by
corrupting voters or influencing their
votes by reward, or by threats and IN
| timidation, or other means which taxes
from them their franchise as electors,
| Is most dangerous as we'll as most
despicable crime. going to the very
| foundation of our republican form OF
| government 1t is a crime that should
be relentlessly punished. But 1t fs a
crime that has grown and increased
under present political methods. No
case is recalled where any such pun
| ishment has been visited upon any OF
the people who are held up to the pub
| lie gaze as professional criminals of
this kind. Have the good citizens of
the state grown SO Indifferent to the
public good, and the courts of the state
at every election and known to hum
dreds of people. must go unpunished?
Are they likely to give up the gains or
their crimes because of the blatant
charges of the political demagogue or
alleged reformer?
Punishment Was Needed
In the case mentioned in the address
spoken of above, why, instead of elo-
quent or indignant denunciation, were
not the offenders prosecuted and pun
ished, thus demonstrating the fact that
the electors rights are sacred and must
and will be protected, instead of adver-
tising to the public, under the auspices
of the City club, that all this was done
and no effort made to bring the Offend
ers to justice. Unless the laws of the
country are adequate to protect the
elector in his rights, and suppress any
unlawful efforts to prevent their ex-
ercise, the elective franchise Is OF lit
tie worth. If the citizen who witnesses
any unlawful violation of these rights,
which should be held sacred. lacks the
courage and independence to put the
law in motion that the Offenders may
be punished, he is of little worth as a
citizen or an elector.
Reform comes not from abuse and in
dignant protest against the offender.
Purity of elections cannot be secured
by publishing to the world that they
are unspeakably impure. Good citizens
cannot be Induced to go to the polls by
making them believe that the elections
are controlled by corrupt men and un-
lawful methods. The offender against
the purity of elections and the free and
independent exercise of the elective
franchise, should be speedily brought to
Justice and punished. The voters should
be taught to know that the elections
are not so corrupt but that their pres
ence at the polls would purify them,
and that the elections cannot be con-
trolled by corrupt men or unlawrul
methods, if they only do their duty as
electors 1t is a matter of education,
education; education of the good citi-
zens, and not matter of abuse OF the
bad ones.
We have little cause to complain of
an evil that we can overcome at our
pleasure. We have little cause to COM
plain of the political boss who con-
trolls the elections and elects our pub
lie officers, If we enable him to do so
nv neglecting our duties, as good citt-
zens who respect the laws of the coun-
| try. by staying away from the polls.
when will we learn that what is the
matter with politics is that civic du-
ties are no longer disinterestedly per-
formed by our otherwise best citizens
taking an active part In political af,
fairs. but grossly neglected to the ex-
tent of failing even to vote?
Legislation Too Complex
There is another serious menace to
the free and willing exercise of the
elective franchise: that Is. the mon
grel and complicated legislation on the
subject. It is fearfully and wonder
fullv made. Ostensibly and pretended
lv this complicated and ponderous elec-
tion code OF laws is for the purpose
of securing an honest and free elec-
tion. and preventing fraud and coer-
cion of the voter. In fact, 1t seems
that the legislature has exercised its
ingenuity to devise some method Of
preventing the honest, and particularly
the uneducated voter, from casting MS
vote And each legislature. for some