Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1913-05-15

doors; they are going to let up blinds
they are going to drag sick things into
the open air and into the light of the
sun They are going to organize a
great hunt, and smoke certain animals
out Of their burrows. They are going
to unearth the beast in the jungle in
which when they hunted they were
caught by the beast instead Of catching
him. They have determined. therefore,
to take an axe and raze the Jungle, and
then see where the beast will find cover.
And /, for my part, bid them Godspeed.
The Jungle breeds nothing but infection
and shelters nothing but the enemies Of
mankind.
And nobody is going 30 get caught in
our hunt except the beasts that prey.
Nothing is going to be cut down or in
jurcd t1at anybody ought to wish pre-
served.
You know the story of the Irishman
who, while digging hole, was asked,
pat, what are you doing, digging a
holef" And he replied mo sir; am
digging the dirt, and LAYING the hole.
1t was probably the same Irishman
who, seen digging around the wall of n
house, was asked, pat, what are You
doingf" And he answered Faith, |
am letting the dark out Of the cellar"
Now, that exactly what we want to
do, let the dark out Of the cellar.
The light must be let in on all pro
cesses Of lawmaking.
The business of many Of those cor
porations which we call public service
corporations, and which are indispen-
sable to our daily lives and serve us
with transportation and light and water
and power, their business, for in
stance, is clearly public business; and,
therefore, we can and must penetrate
their affairs by the light Of examination
and discussion.
In New Jersey the people have real
lied this for long time, and year or
two ago we got our ideas on the subject
enacted into legislation. The corpora
tions involved opposed the legislation
with all their might. They talked
anu ItHlIy DtlIcNt IItY
did think they would be somewhat in
jured. But they have not been. And
hear | cannot tell You how many men
in New Jersey say: Governor, we
were opposed to you; we did not believe
in the things you wanted to do, but
now that You have done them we take
off our hats That was the thing to do,
it did not hurt us IL bit; it just put US
on normal footing; it took away sus-
picion from our business" New Jer-
sey, having taken the cold plunge, cries
out to the rest Of the states, Come on
in The waters tine!'
SO take it to be u necessity of the
hour to open up al! the processes of pol
itics and of public business, open
them wide to public view; to make
them accessible to every force that
moves, every opinion that prevails in
the thought of the people; to give soci
ETY. command Of it's own economic life
again, not by revolutionary measures,
but by a steady application OF the prin
ciple that the people have right to
look into such matters and to control
them; to cut all privileges and patron
age and private advantage and secret
enjoyment out of legislation.
Wherever any public business is
transacted, wherever plans affecting
the public are laid, or enterprises
touching the public welfare comfort,
or convenience go forward, wherever
political programmes are formulated,
or candidates agreed on, that
place voice must speak, with the
divine prerogative of peoples will,
the words: Let there be light I"