The Bozeman courier. (Bozeman, Mont.) 1919-1954, 1921-03-09
CLOSE THE MUELLER ON RECK-
LESS TALK

LESS TALK
1t is becoming quite the fashion, in
these days, for. men and publications
protesting to represent business, to
publicly hold up members OF congress
to contempt. 1t is always easy to get
the applause of the uniformed and
the unthinking by such attacks.
That procedure was easily under
standable, on the part of administra-
ton politicians, during the period
when the movement was on to Obliter-
ate congress from the American
scheme of government and substitute
therefor a personal autocracy. But !
now that this un-American undertake
| ing has been so completely repudiat-
ed at the polls by the people of this
country, it is not clear just what in
telligence is back of this attitude.
1t is to be said of the members of
congress that they ct least hold
commission from the American people
to legislate, whereas few Of their crit
les would be able to rally a consittu-
ency of their own of sufficient mag
nitude to give them direct voice in
conducting the affairs of government.
! The theory that members of congress,
as a class, are beneath the contempt
J of the critics who get a certain kind
and amount of applause by denounc-
ing them in public, expresses a lack Of
faith in and, indeed, deep disrespect
for, our form of government, under
which, by the people, representatives
in congress are chosen.
Leaving all this out Of account,
{ what does the representative of bust
! ness, labor, international finance or
any other interest, think he is going
Z to accomplish for the good of his
: class or the good of the country by
Z violent attacks upon congress as a
, body and members of congress as &
1 class? Such loose, violent talk is de-
? structive in its nature, and has tend
1 ency to undermine the faith of the
2 people of government, but in govern
s ment itself.
Z 1t is rather remarkable fact tina
s the very men who thus violently de
! nounce congress, do so on the grount
J that members of congress, in the dis
{ charge of their duties have criticize'
? agents Of the executive branch of gov
{ eminent specifically accused of NAL
2 feasance. These accusations have bee
4 scmthing more than epithets and bill
Z lingsgate, and the American people
s who pay the bills, some of them with
! out having been inordinately prosper
4 Gus during the past half dozen year:
( are interested in the charges and tn
; motives of those who denounce thei
s publication and investigation. The d
Z rector of a banking institution VIII
s would not ferret out and punish fisur
I of the funds of his institution woul
s be guildty of betrayal of trust tn
! stakeholder who would criticize
) bank official for such activity woul
I be betraying his cwn interests; in tn
? great business institution we call liz
s tional government, congressman al
! the directors and the people are tt
s stockholders and depositors.
: There is feeling among millions
; people in this country that the go
ernmert rae not been just in its a
titude toward business. The la
administration, while friendly enoue
7 to certain elements and interests, hi
{ been hostile to legitimate producti'
z enterprise as a whole. There is a di
5 position to change these tendencies
: government, which have been so harT
- full to the genaral public. This whel
some tendency will not be accelerat
. by a crusade of attack upon congre
Hn by great business interests; in ia
s nothing more certain to react up
z those who engage in it can be imagi
5 ed. This is time for cooperate
2 for moderation in speech and actlt
3 and for pulling together in the int
: ests of the people as a whole. w
3 talk bitter denunciation and reckle
3 attacks engaged in by people W
& ought to feel a sense of responsible
s in an emergency of the present grs
2 ity, can only result in the creation
some such state of mind as that VIII
g has created chaos in Russia and ma
q yet bring it to other countries
3 Europe.