Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1911-03-02

signed to aid Iowa in any material
way, and his promptness in signing
the bill repeating the tax ferret law,
which had been pronounced as vicious
by the commercial organizations of
Iowa and held. to be one Of the laws
detrimental to the best interests Of
the state, shows that the governor is
placing business ahead of politics.
There is need for the legislature to
adopt this same policy. During the
present session where there have been
minutes devoted to consideration of
measures designed to benefit lowa's
commercial and industrial interests.
there have been hours devoted to
planning and plotting measures Of a
purely political nature. While the
legislature has been wrangling over
the election of a. senator and the pri.
mary measures, action has been de-
layed on such important measures as
the question of amending the Peterson
law, the law taxing money and credits,
the good roads legislation and the
proposed state publicity bureau
measure. Legislators, both state and
national have been giving too much
consideration to politics and too little
consideration to business. The peo-
pie, on the other hand, have been
giving their attention to business and
allowing politics to run. wild.
This is not an age of statecraft-not
a time when people devote much ef-
fort to thought about what is best for
the country at large. The Canadian
reciprocity treaty is a matter of the
most vital importance, yet few people
have given it any comprehensive
study. 1t is not likely that per cent
OF the people have given an hours
time to the comparison of distance
the possibilities of water transDorta-
ton and its effect on rail transporta-
ton: the balances of trade, whether
they may be reversed or not, For
each country to have the same duty
on the same article, doesn't mean
that each country is going to buy the
same amount. How many people have
gone over even the few suggestions
mentioned? 1t is safe to say that
very few have paid any attention to
the bill in any way. That is simply
the way of the times.
For the last ten or twelve years the
country at large has devoted Its time
wholly to business. 1t has been a
commercial era The business man has
been intensely in business. He mas
not, except incidentally, paid any At
|tention to matters of government. He
has attended to business and the
politician has worked politics1as hard
as he knew how.
For ten years the professional poll
tician has had the field all to himself.
He has ranted up and down the coun-
try and he has made his living out OF
politics. He has told the dear people
that he is the only honest man IN the
world. and he has told it so much that
everyone who Is not in politics IS
looked upon with suspicion. Formerly
it was the politician who was spoken
lightly about, but now a. successful
business man is regarded as hardly
respectable.
The politician who works at the
game all the time tries to keep the
-atmosphere so full of himself that the
public can not forget him.
For the last ten years, the lnn p
thought of the politician has not been
what will do the country the most
good" but it has been: what Issue
can | spring, or advocate, or CLIMB
onto. or get straddle of, that Will get
me the most votes
The only idea Of these latter day
politicians seems to be to get up some
kind of a voting issue-the direct pri-
mary. the oregon plan, the election OF
senators by direct vote, anything, Q
Lord, anything that will get vote for
me. That seems to be their idea OF
Official duty-to get up some voting
nroposition tat will enable them to
come back"
No thought of business, in the
sense that a hard headed busl-
ness man, who has had to hustle to
meet Saturday night or monthly pay
rolls, would view it. And the reason
for that is that very few of these men
have had any business experience.
Many Of them are doing ali they thlnk
is necessary-in fact, all they know
that there is to do.
The country is going to awake TO the
fact some day that it is necessary TO
have a few successful business men in
some Of the Offices.
The sooner the better. 1t is
getting serious. This condition Is not
confined to one party-both parties are
afflicted with too many Office holders
who have never had any actual busl-
ness experience.
ONE OF IOWA'S CHANCES.
s.Farmers and truck growers In the