The New York herald., 1921-04-17
Viscount Bases Review of
United States Affairs on
Fresh Observations.
EPOILS SYSTEM DYING
Progress for Better Govern
ment Is Seen in This and
Other Lands Visited.
SWITZERLAND IS UNIQUE
Great Piece Of Reporting,
Based on Facts, in New Work
of Two Volumes.

VI l. wv NOlu1uCS.
MODERN DEMOCRACIEs. BY James Bryce
{viscount Bryce. In two volumes. The
Macmillan Company.
The plain man would read more his
tory If it weren't so many times di-
luted. Herodotus with all his fairy
tales gives better notion of how II
actually felt to be alive two thousand
years ago than as If he had had more
scientific method in his madness. Lord
Bryce tells no fairy tales but, like
Herodotus, he tells in a very simple,
friendly way things he has picked up
for himself. Without being SO cred
ulous as the old Greek story teller. the
modern historian has a good deal OF
the antique simplicity and directness.
Modern Democracies" is a great
piece OF reporting. The author has
gone to the countries he writes about,
watched their political machine In
operation, talked with their leading
drawn his own conclusions. He de-
clares:
'The best way to get genuine and
exact first hand knowledge of the
data is to mix in practical politics"
He knows British statecraft at first
hand and his book knowledge Of the
worlds history Is probably as great as
that of any living man. With such
means of comparison and understand
ing, he went to France, Switzerland,
the United States, South America,
Canada Mexico Australia and New
Zealand for his facts. He is a phil
osopher and deals with principles in
the summing up. But he hammers
home the belief that any progress to
be made toward better government
must be based on a knowledge of to-
days facts, facts. facts" His repeti-
ton Of the word proves the value he
places on exact knowledge.
Independent study of U. 3.
The section dealing with the United
States Is not rewriting or condensation
of his American Commonwealth" He
gives here "a new and independent study
OF American institutions. New
phenomena have since appeared which
throw further light on the nature OF
popular government and these l have
endeavored to set forth and comment
upon, studying the facts afresh and un-
biassed by the judgments OF thirty years
ago"
No honest American can take excep-
tion to the unfavorable criticisms made
on the ground that they are simply one
more Englishmans fault finding. There
Is nothing in common between the acrid
pages of Dckens's American Notes and
these judicial conclusions. Lord Bryce
only repeats what Mr. Taft and other
distinguished Americans have said of the
laws delay. Writing of the courts he
says
Taking the States as a whole. one
may say that I'm most of them the
bench does not enjoy the respect which
ought to be felt for the ministers of
justice. and that in some few States
enough is known TO justify distrust. ).
.. In many States the rules OF
procedure are antiquated and absurdly
technical. and most of the codes of pro-
cedure adopted in some States have been
ill-drawn and cumbrous. The intelli-
gence OF juries, the learning and ability
OF the bar Qegal education is probably
nowhere so thorough as in the United
States), help the weak Judge over many
a stile; while favoritism and corruption,
at all times hard to prove. attract little
notice unless the case affects some public
interest
Though the administration OF civil
Justice leaves much to be desired, that
of criminal justice Is far worse There
are few States. perhaps two or three
outside New England-New Jersey Is
one-where 1t is either prompt or affi-
cient Many offenders escape
whom everybody knows to be guilty. and
the deterrent effect of punishment Is
correspondingly reduced"
But the observer evidently prefers to
note Improvement He describes with
enthusiasm the advance of civil SER
vice since 1883 The spoils system he
had counted "one OF the weakest points
In the American Government" But
now the quality of Government EN-
ployees is steadily rising. And the use
of specialists in scientific departments
Is highly commended. "As a home OF
science" declared Lord Bryce, Wash
inston is no whit behind London and
Paris"
There are severe structures on news
papers of a certain type. and in gem
cral he finds no one paper here so
powerful an Influence as certain jour
nails of other countries. But he finds
the exposure OF corruption a great SER
vice. The agencies of news are held
TO n sharper accountability because
public opinion is the real ruler OF
America. | mean that there exists a
Judgment and sentiment of the whole
nation which Is imperfectly expressed
through It's representative legislatures,
IS not to be measured by an analysis
or votes cast AZ elections, IL not easily
gathered from the most dligent study
OF the press. but Is, nevertheless, a
real force, impapable as the wind. yet
a force which all are trying to discover
and nearly all to obey"
The sketch of Brazil's Government
gives fair valuation Of its good points