Evening star., 1922-06-13

IT 7 NDER the big white dome
on Capitol Hill and be-
meath the roofs OF the near-
by Senate and House office
buildings many important political
| conferences go on these days as
Washington continues to be, with
ever growing Importance, the politi-
cal center of the United States.
Senators and representatives. chain
ed to their posts Of duty here and
confronted by disturbed political
| conditions back home" find it con-
| venient to have their centurions
| come down. talk over affairs. give
suggestions and receive instruc-
tions.
Thus it falls out that the Ma
| tional Capital, lacking the right Of
| suffrage, is the scene of the live
liest political activity. 1t is a com
mon saying that just now the Con
gress and the administration eat,
breathe and sleep politics"
"Why should there be so much
'buncombe' in politics7" the plain.
| wayfaring citizen and citizeness
may ask. The citizeness is more
| likely to be querulous in the ques-
| tioning than the male, since the
| feminine mind is said to Instructive
ly draw finer distinction between
| combe" is meant the setting forth
| of distorted allegations and the
| drawing of erroneous conclusions.
Wen. the only answer is that it seems
TO be a part Of the game. the ma
tur' OF the beast" The public must
| separate the gold from the dross-
| and there be some gold in politics
| after all. In the loftiest discussions
| of politics. and affairs of state as
, well. the discerning mind can often
! trace streaks of buncombe, while
4 with the ordinary or common garden
| variety of politicians it sometimes
| furnishes the whole web and woof.
| Good-natured acceptance of the
| prevalence of buncombe seems to be
the rule: as acQuiescence of neces--
| sary evil, or Is 1t that 1t is expected
that every one is supposed to recog-
| nize buncombe at sight and sound
| and discard it? There is buncombe
and buncombe: there is the adroit
| and subtle kind which registers by
implication. disguised under the
robes of speciousness, and there is
the buncombe which stalks hatless,
| coatless, collarless and unashamed.
| with truculent and braggadocio air.
| Campaign committees indulge In 1t
| profusely, cart-tail and soapbox
speakers revel in it. orators" do not
at times disdain to resort to 1t.
! \ X y
There Is a great deal Of misrepre-
| sentation going on now about the
use of money in campaigns, party and
personal. 1t would not be so preva-
lent II the public's attention had not
been called to some fragrant instances
of the undue use of cash in political
campaigns for nomination and cleo
ton. That there have been evils Is
unquestionable. The misuse Of money
in the great body of the American
electorate is unbelievable. That the
rank and file of the voters are
venal is unthinkable, and to say that
a considerable proportion of candi-
| dates are blind to morals and ethics
is preposterous.
| The general public probably has no
conception of the legitimate costs in
volved in political campaigning by
parties and by individuals. The ex-
/ pense has grown enormously in re-
| cent years. with the ordinary high
cost of living" and with the growth
| of the primary system as an impor-
| tant factor. Campaigns of education
are frequently necessary nowadays.