New-York tribune., 1910-04-24

ses-o~ tends 20 dcvelop into one of the least
! attractive types produced by a modern III
drstrisl democracy. So 1t is with inc or
,tor II is highly desirable that leader
M o,ininn I'm A democracy should be able
tn state his views clearly and convinclhBiy.
Hut ali that the oratory can do OF value
to the community is to enable the man
Tins to explain himself: If II enables the
orator to persuade his hearers TO put raise
values en- things it merely makes MN a
nover for mischief. Some excellent puohc
servants have not the gift at all. and must
reIv upon their deeds TO speak for them;
and unless the oratOry does represent gehu-
inc conviction. based ON good common sense
and able TO be translated into efhcleht per
formance. then the better the oratoiy ,he
greater the damage 10 the puohc II de-
ceives Indeed, il is n sign or markeu po-
litical weakness in any commonwealth II
the people tend to be carried away oy mere
orator. If they tend to value words in and
for themselves. as divorced from the deeds
for which they are supposed to stand. The
phrase maker, the phrase monger. tho
ready taIker. however great his power
whose sneecb does not make for courage.
sobrietv and right understanding, is simply
a noxious element i'm the body polite, and
il speaks IN for the public If he has infu-
ence over them To admire the gift OF ora
tory without regard TO the moral quality
behind the gift i sto do wrong TO the re-
public.
The Uses Of the Journalist.
OF course, all that can say OF the ora
tor applies with even greater force to the
orators latter-day and more influential
brother. the journalist. The power of the
journalist is great, but he is entitled mel
ther to respect nor admiration because OF
that power unless it is used Alright He
can do, and nc often does, great good. He
can do, and he often does infinite mischief
All journalists, all writer's, for the very rea-
son that they appreciate the vast possibil-
tiles of their profession, should bear testl-
mony against those who deeply discredit it.
Offences against taste and morals, which
arc bad enough I'm "A private citizen. are in
finitely worse IL made into instruments for
debsuching the community through news
paper. Mendacity, slander. sensationalisIn.
inanity, vapid trivialty, all arc potent fac
tors for the debauchery of the public mind
and conscience. The excuse advanced for
vicious writing. that the public demands it
and that the demand must be supplied. can
no moro be admitted than If it were adj
vanced by the purveyors of food who sell
poisonous adulterations.
Qualities Of Good Citizen.
In short. the good citizen In republic
must realize that he ought TO possess two
sets Of qualities, and that neither avails
without the other. He must have those
qualities which make for efficiency; and he
must also have those qualities which direct
tho efficiency into channels for the public
good He Is useless If he Is inefficient.
There is nothing to he done with that type
of citizen Of whom all that can he said is
that he Is harmless. Virtue which Is de
pendent upon sluggish circulation IS not
impressive There is little place i'm active
life for the timid good man. Tho man who
is saved by weakness from robust wicked
ness is likewise rendered immune from the
robuster virtues. The good citizen in a r.
public must firsc Of all he able to hold his
own. He IS no good citizen unless he has
the ability which will make him work hard
and which at need will make him fight
hard The good citizen Is not A good Citi-
zen unless he is an efficient citizen.
But if mans efficiency is not guided
and regulated b. q moral sense then the
more efficient he is the worse he is. the
more dangerous 10 the BODY polite Cour-
age. intellect. all the masterful qualities
serve but to make a man more evil if they
are used merely FOR that mans own ad-
vaucement. with brutal Indifference 80 the
rights Of others. II speaks III for the com
munity II the community worships these
qualities and treats their possessors as he
roes, regardless of whether the qualities are
used rightly or wrongly. II makes no dis-
ference as to the precise way in which this
sinister efficiency Is shown. It makes no
difference whether such a mans force and
ability betray themselves in the "a reer Of
money maker or politician, soldier or ora
! tor, journalist or popular leader II the
man works for evil, then the more success
ful he is the more he should he despiseJ
and condemned by all upright and far
seeing men. To Judge a man merely b.
success is an abhorrent wrong and If tb,,
people at large habitually so Judge men #
they grow to Condone wickedness because
the wicked man triumphs, they show their
| inability To understand that In the last
analysis free institutions rest upon the
character of citizenship, and that by such
| admiration of evil they prove themselves
unfit for liberty
The Duties to the State.
The homely virtues of the household. the
ordinary workaday virtues which make the
woman good housewife and house mother.
which make the man a hard worker. a good
husband and father. a good soldier at nead
stand at the bottom of character. But NJ
course many others must be added Thereto
u a state is to be not only free, but great.
Good citizenship is not good citizenship If
exhibited only in the home. There remain
the duties of the individual In relation n
the state and these duties are none ton
easy under the conditions which exist where
'he ehort Is made to carry on free govern
ment In complex Industrial civilization
ierhaps the most important thing the or
oihary citizen and. above all. the leader a,
"iuihary cinzens' has 10 remember I'm pn-
il'cai NE IS that he must not be sheer
uoc'i iliHdIrc- Ihe closet philosopher. the
D HnfN