Willmar tribune., 1909-07-14

0AAu ACo11ACO VASeAV q 8OV.
by bribery is government
by the wealth of the few and not by
the people. they saw the offense in
all of its enormity and from one
end of the land to the other there
was a civic awakening. The peo-
pie had been oblivious to the SOW
ing of the seeds and the gradual de-
velopment Of corruption. Especial
ly was this true of the rural dis
tricts, for after all it must be ad-
mitted that the germ of bribery
has its beginning in the populous
centers. At length the truth be-
came known, and knowledge spread
that bribery was ruling in many mu-
inequalities. At first it was thought
that this condition was confined to
the cities. Then came another
awakening, and the people learned
that state officials were forgetting
their high commissions and becom-
ing involved in the meshes of
greed.
Then came the knowledge that
officials of the national government
were making of public Office a pri-
vate snap, and that graft was rul-
ing in many of the departments of
the federal government. Then
came stern determination to stamp
out the offense that strikes at the
heart of free government.
The awakening came with the re-
velation as to Official grating,
but as time progressed it was found
that in the growth of our CONNER
cial activities the spirit Iof graft
had entered other departments of
life. The directors of great insur-
ance companies were using the
funds held in trust for their own
profit, and contributing trust funds,
without authority, for political
campaign purposes. They may not
have known this was wrong at first,
just as the official who took money
for his vote did not regard his act
as corrupt, but the people are TAX
ing a different view of the situation
and demand that those entrusted
with funds of that character be
held to the same degree of account
ability before the bar of iusti"e as
a public official who prostitutes his
trust.
Monopolies, even law protected
privilege are gratis, and should be
hateful to every fair-minded citi-
zen. Unless the spirit of civic
Righteousness now abroad in the
land dies out, and there is no like
lihood Of that, We will pass from
the sordid age of pure commercial
ism into the age of high ideals.
Even now wealth is not regarded
with the same awe as it used to be,
and gold is not worshipped with the
same devotion as of old. The idea
everywhere is to get right and stay
right.
The welfare of the city or state
should always be first and highest
consideration. Some of you now
belong to this party, some may be-
long to that party-but all are pa
triots. Be patriots before you are
anything else. The people-the
average voter, you and 1-are re-
sponsible for the future of the gov
ernment. If the American republic
is to survive it must be saved by
the efforts of the patriotic citizens
who want nothing for themselves
but the advantages that will accrue
from the general public we'll. If
the public learns to appreciate this,
learns to know the dangers that
threaten our future, and learns the
strength that rests with the voters,
the future Of this government is
assured.
am not an alarmist, and do
not believe that the United States
of America will cease to exist as a
republic today nor tomorrow. We
have lasted for one hundred and
thirty-three years-a long time
when compared with the average
period of one mans public activity,
but short in the history of nations.
Venice had a republican form of
government for one thousand years;
Carthage endured as republic for
seven hundred years, and Athens
lasted nine hundred years-tho
there were intermissions during
that time. Florence was a republic
for three hundred years, and Rome
for five hundred. These govern
ments were once great factors in
civilization, and their citizens prob
ably thought they would last for.
ever, that nothing could overthrow
them. We are likely to harbol
similar ideas and it is possible that
they will prove to be wrong.
The conditions that caused the
downfall of these old republics
now almost f0rp0tten. were thf