Saturday news. (Watertown, S.D.) 19??-19??, 1915-03-04
MOLEHILL AND MOUNTAIN.

Certain members OF the political. press appear TO b greatly
exoreized over the theft Of a thousand dollars from the desk of an
office in the department of the secretary of state at Pierre.
The Saturday News is no. inclined to admire the genius OF the
retiring secretary. 1t has no apology to ofer-rather condemna-
tion-for the slpshod methods which rendered the theft possible
But neither has the Saturday News any patience with the
attempt to make the aforesaid theft a great political issue. There
are more momentous things confronting the people OF the state.
Party fealty, or party loyalty, or by whatsoever name the thing
may be called which prompts men to stand by their party, right or
wrong, or by the faction which gives them political breath, is Just
and proporso long as such fealty Leads in the right direction, but
any sortsof fealty that leads away from right living and right act
ing and right thinking is reprehensible, and deserves condemnation
rather than commentator.
We have been hearing much for the past few years concerning
the right Of the people to rulc-so much so that it has become a
hackneyed phrase. Some people really seem to believe in it-at
least during campaignsl
ST go at that2 Why seek to egade or avoid it by trimming even a
primary law which the people themselves adopted and which they
Again, the people OF this state have several times refused to
increase the salary Of the attorney general, which is but a mere
Hagateles we admit. But every lawyer aspiring to the. office knows
I'll about that before becoming candidate: Why evade or avoid
the constitutional provisions through or under The. guise of an al
lowance1h which increases the salary
We Sconeede that no able lawyer can afford TO discharge the
duties Of the Office for the miserly sum fixed by the constitution
hut he knows all about that before taking the oath Of Office.
Let the lawyers refuse to accept the position if they do not
wish 10 assume the responsibilities for the salary named by the
states supreme instrument. II would not take long, under such
circumstances, to find d remedy without evasion or deception.
The salaries Of the supreme court judges and of the railroad
commissioners are likewise III point An allowance of fifty dol
lars Il month is made in each case for sshouse rent Why not be
honest about lit and admit frankly that this is but a mere evasion
ef the spirit Of the law, regardless Of the letter which the court
may be- called upon to read into il, and which the attorney general
las already read into i'll
Then agaan, why allow the attorney general FIVE cents a mile
FOR railroad fare when. as a matter of fact, it costs him but two or
three The excess is nothiag more nor less than an allowance
above the salary and as an incentive for unnecessary travel hence
IS species dc what ID modern times has come 70 be held ] tpraft ),
Still again, why allow the attorney general and his assistant
10 travel across the continent, at five cents a mile when the fare
costs but two, I'D attend d meeting where the attendance Of INF one
would have subserved every interest of the state, thereby encoar.
aging yet another species of fsgraft''9
These matters, together with numerous cases Of omission or
eornmisapnS affecting the moral and political and financial welfare
of the state, should not be obscured BY the dust thrown into the ali
oyer E little. matter Ct stealing 9 paltry thousand dollars from the
siesk Of d state employee.