The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1913-08-30
CANDIDACY AT PUBLIC COST.

r.~, tbo rsuaIIv conservative state Of Con
,oc,,c,+ we have grave argument. through Cover
rcr BALDWIN. attending the conference of cover
nors at Colorado Springs that the state shou'u
near,the expenses of candidates in primary e'ec-
t;ons The idea is that the poor man should ne
helped and encouraged to engage in politics as
business Real regard for the poor mans inter
ests demands that he be discouraged from beoom'
ing a nolitician. Politics is tho most wastefui,
nerveracktnr. heartstinging. demoralizing and
dfsannointjng Of all avocations, Nine times In
ten probably nineteen in twenty, II leaves the
poor man, even II he has been successful, in
might far worse than he was In at the begin
ming A fortune honestly accumulated by savings
from m official salary Is unknown. competence
80 acquired is rare and must be the result Of
exceptionally favorable conditions and OF the
most rigid care The usual result is that after
four, eight or twelve years in office a man Is
thrown out by some change of popular sentiment
or by the superior strength of a new asprant, and
is left to start all again with the best part
OF his life gone. No other employer is so capri
cious cruel and exactng as the public, Every
town and city of the country has its political
wrecks its poor men who have been in politics.
maybe have gained some distraction or tenn
porary aff1uenco and been left poorer than ever
Washington Is the headquarters of this forlorn
army
If man has shining and conspicuous talent
or ability ar a message of moment to deliver
or represents a real purpose of Importance. he
viii find following and backing to meet his
needs The suggestion is that men who have
reached maturity without acquiring enough sup
mort and confidence or gathering for themselves
the means to finance an election campaign cost
ing few thousand dollars should De financed
nv the nublic That is democracy and equal
rights gone stark, staring mad. 1t would mean
crowding the ballots with the names OF unknown,
mediocre or undeserving men. confusion for the
public making politics a game OF chance 1t
would be an invitation to every loafer failure and
adventurer In State to put HIS name in the pot
on the possibility of drawing prize and know
. ing he had nothing to lose. 1t would be new
and unjust burden the taxpayers and would
dernoralize the public service. We have too many
men In politics and ofhceseekers Certainly we
should not add to them host of the I'M
useful and productive citizens, making good pro-
vision for themselves and their families, IL they
applied to any regular business the energy. vigt
lance, thought and labor they exert trying TO Sc
cure public Job. and who. as it is accomplish
nothing We should not tax tho people TO IN
crease the number. Politics is disease with
too many 1t should not be spread at the cost
of the State.
We are trying to do too much dry nursing OF
the individual citizen. teaching too much of the
pernicious and enervating doctrine and habit OF
depending on the State, Throwing man on his
own resources and requiring him to take care OF
himself attend to his own affairs and push his
own way is the sfurdy American plan on which
a great country has been built and by which q
great people has been developed Governor Bald
wins proposed policy is instance Of the ten
cency to breed race Of weaklings and de-
pendents of which we have far too much al
ready.