The Washington times., 1921-09-18
NEW YORK CITY's PROBLEM.
BY HIRAM w. JOHNSON.

N IOhtN III Il . TNODLENhs
by HIRAM w. JOHNSON.
A N ancient proverb tells US that
~ Truth could be found only at
the bottom of a we'll, but her
seekers gazing down too often found
Sut their own faces reflected, and
left firmly convinced they had made
the great discovery.
So in political campaigns. not in
frequently. our prejudices, our in
terests, our partisanship, our vanity
sway our judgments, and we fond
ly imagine that in the reflection of
what most concerns ourselves we
have found the righteous side and
are struggling for the triumph Of
truth.
There are, however, elements in
the present New York campaign
quite out of the ordinary, issues di-
vorced from partisanship. which
compel the interest of the thought
full and the activity of the patriotic.
In these issues personalities and
politics may be eliminated. lndepen-
dent citizens, believers in popular
government. the men and women
who constitute the great marticulate
mass, and who desire only their
country's welfare and preservation
of it's cherished institutions, have
real questions now before them.
A combination of circumstances
has made New York the battle.
ground for the fundamental princi-
pies of democracy: and these funda-
mentals must be rightly decided with
out regard to the politics of the
situation or tho personalities in
volved.
"Infamy of Traction Law"
The first Of the issues, Of tran
scendent Importance to the city OF
New York, and of only less impor-
lance to every city and every locality
in the country, Is the new Traction
law. If, with impunity. the greatest
city of the nation can be deprived of
its property and robbed of its inner
ent right to govern itself, prece-
dent will have been set which COM
PLEASANT or corrupt Legislatures will
not be slow to follow.
1t is true that the traction bill
was heralded as Republican policy,
sponsored by a Republican Govern
nor but it was never part Of Re
publican platform, nor otherwise
than by traction companies made
Republican measure. No candidate
in the State campaign, preceding
its introduction in the Legislature,
even limited at such a law. No party
advocated it; no platform mentioned
1t.
Whatever may have been the
secret purposes Of its progenitors
they remained secret during the
campaign, and the people voted In
ignorance that their right Of self.
government was threatened. And
nothing better demonstrates the in
fanny of this Traction law than the
fact that no candidate in the present
local election in New York City will
espouse it and all political parties
condemn It.
SPURNED BY SPONSORS.
Certain Republicans in the Legis.
lature at the behest of certain bosses.
who in turn acted at the behest of
traction companies. voted for the
bill. The same members Of the Leg
islature and the same bosses now re-
pudiate it. Their belated reputation
Is not enough: they themselves
should be so thoroughly repudiated
that neither legislator nor boss will
ever again dare to commit such an
offense against the people. The
present attitude of these legislators
and bosses illustrates what has ever
followed in our political life.
A job can be perpetrated in a
Legislatures: even a job which takes
the property and destroys the rights
Of a people. With the aid of news
paper allies the job may be braZeply,
cynically and arrogantly committed:
but how all the offenders scurry to
cover when there is an accounting
before the people! Where are the
advocates of the Traction bill in
this campaign?
While the legislature was in ses-
sion. it wasn't difficult for concen-
trated power and wealth and their
journalistic allies to send train loads
OF exultant individuals to Albany in
behalf of traction bill for the en-
riching of private corporations. 1t
was of little consequence to gentle
men of easy conscience that the
greatest city in the world should be
deprived, in dealing with railroad