Evening star., 1924-10-08
The Corruption CHARGE

Mr.. La Follette's charge of cor.
rupt practices, raised yesterday at
Scranton, is one of those awkward
weapons, a two-edged sword, which
may cut both ways, harning the
wielder as well as the enemy. 1t is
not an unfamiliar spectacle to see it
swung ffercely in a presidential cam
paign, but it is a singular fact that
rarely, if ever, has it appeared in the
hands of candidate who has not
ultimately lost the fight
The specific charge is that an enor-
nous fund is being raised by a certain
committee to prevent the election of
La Toilette, who. according to letter
read by the Senator at Scranton, is de-
nounced as a dangerous radical men,
acing American institutions. The
ostensible purpose of this fund is to
buy the election" In plain language.
enough votes are to be purchased in
the doubtful or close States to give
the electoral votes of those States to
Coolidge.
Mr.. La Toilette places this prospec-
tive fund at from 81 1000 900 to SIS 5,0O0,-
600. He calls it slush fund, which in
plain terms means a voteb buying fund.
The sum of $4,000, 900 would, at the
low rate of s. a vote, secure some
100000 votes. If these were properly
distributed through the States in
which there now appears TO be d close
margin between Coolidge and La Fol
lette the election would be assured.
But the absurdlty of such a plan,
and therefore the absurdity of such a
charge, is apparent Immediately when
the ma gnitude of the undertaking to
buy the votes of 500 900 or perhaps
million people is realized. Such job
could not possibly be pulled off in
secret. Vote sellers are persons of
loose conscience and wretched judg
ment, shameless in their corruption.
1t cannot be believed for a moment
that in such a great number of politi
cal prostitutes-if as many as that
exist in this country-there would not
be many to expose their own shame
and therefore the corrupt work of
those seducing them.
"They are going to buy my voters"
is an old cry. My voters are not to
be trusted They are moral weaklings,
looking only for profit. I warn you,
honest men and women. that you are
associated in your support of me by
lot of crooks who can be purchased
by the enemy. and that unless we can
hold those crooks to us we will lose
the election"
That is the simple substance of the
cry of corruption. 1t is an insult to
the intelligence and the honesty of
those to whom it is addressed.
Senator Borah. chairman of a Sen
ate committee on campaign fund in
vestigation, says that if a direct COM
plaint is filed with him he will at once
summon the committee for an investi-
cation. That is right. OF course, the
committee cannot very well get to-
gether and develop the facts in time
to yield results before election. But
meanwhile Mr.. La Toilette has served
his purpose of putting his following
on guard against being bought. That
will perhaps hold his supporters in
line. And the topic of corruption
makes a fine talking line which he
may be expected to develop effectively
before his audiences. But he should
have enough political memory to real
iZe that the corruption charge is usual
ly regarded by the public as confes-
sion of impending defeat. If he has
any doubt on this point he might con-
suit the Democratic candidate of 1904,
who raised the same cry on the eve
Of the election which overwhelmed
him by an avalanche of votes.