The new era. (Walden, Colo.) 1906-19??, 1908-07-23
H"ENWS 7HE CON57I7Z/zZOW
II RE1kEEW EFZEN0S."
manipulated so that the ugly word mon

ey" can be eliminated in case OF an ex-
posure Cash is a hard commodity to "juggle,
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 TOT
often returns to plague the hypotnecator WIN a
penitentiary sentence
Another thing that seems to be overlooked Is
that legislation will not cure grating" True,
1t can and does punish the individual; but moth
ing but an aroused spirit Of higher citizenship Will
effect general cure OF the evil II 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-fve per cent. OF the peo-
pie who call on you come for the purpose of hav-
ing you do them some favor, either for them
selves or others; and they not at all particu-
lar about how the favor is DONE 80 that 1t be
done. For myself, know l was bombarded day
and night after got into office with requests that
ranged all the way from the impudent to the ig-
norant Requests to aid in the way Of evadng
or ignoring city ordinances were matters of daily
occurrence And the charming thing about 1t
was that the parties assumed that this was a mat
ter of course in the routine business Of the city
hall It was not merely whats the constitution
between frends?" but what's honesty between
acquaintances?
skate" No would introduce Skate No. Q.
and the latter would unfold a scheme to pull
on" something IN some Otner department OF the
city hail. which was not only against all canons
of decency as regarded common honesty. but so
ridiculously apparent that no one but an ignoram-
us would concoct such plan. Now these things
happened SO often that IL you got mad at each
occurrence you would be in state of semtapo-
plexy half the time. The only thing to do was to
crt the interview short by saying Il haven't any
thing to dc. with that department; II 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 of the city administra
tons 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 hostile press and
watchful opposite party? Or was 1t because an
improvement was being made in the character Of
the men elected and appointed? Or was it both?
At any rate, there steady advance for the
better during the cycle of at least eight years Of
my experience In politics. Given able and
vigilant man at the head of city's affairs and
graft" will be reduced to minimum during his
term of office. Given any other kind of man,
and once more graft" will lift its 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 the man at the helm is
either alert or inattentive. Like yellow fever in
Cuba, 1t is always present, even IL only one
Of it.
The cheap CRATER" when found out, never had