Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-01-02
BY WILLIS j. BALLINGER.

T one OF New York's many
~ cross roads of humanity is
"A the Presbyterian Labor Tenn.
4 pie on the East Side. AS one
stands in the doorway almost
any evening an inCeSsant flow OF the
intellectually curious file in. Long
haired radicals, bobbed haired flappers.
age and youth, shoulder to shoulder
they come to satisfy their intellectual
curiosity. AS they push through the
first door n fumbling for the neces
sary quarter begins. This is plunked
down on a table under the watchful
eye of a broad-shouldered, sleeve-rolled
young hercules who says "Howdy" to
most everybody and smiles good ma
turedly.
On the walls one notices that DIR.
Will Durant will lecture this evening.
A few years ago and the name Durant
was associated almost entirely with
an automobile. Today one thinks of
1t as the name of the man who wrote
the STORY of Philosophy"-the book
which has outstripped the best fiction
sellers in its wide appeal to the intel
lectual interests of the Nations read
ers.
Unlike Other Professors.
you will know DIR. Durant easily
when he comes in" vouched the en-
trance magnate as he rendered change
rapidly to the pushing crowd.
HE is not at all like g. professor.
just as human as one of u.s." he said
between vigorous closings Of the Jaws
on gum.
1 had called on the author of the
STORY of Philosophy" on particular
mission.
In the last few years the atmo-
sphere of political prophecy has been
charged with predictions that democ
racy was breaking down the world
| over. Today half of the inhabited
globe, hundreds of millions of civilized
human beings and altogether nearly
a dozen countries are now ruled by
dictators or governed under dictator.
ships.
1 wanted to ask a noted philosopher
what he thought about American
democracy.
IT don't think that American democ.
racy is going to yield to any dictator
ships. But do think that our democ.
racy is a complete political failure.
1t is failure because it fails to elect
brains to office. Our public officials
today are sad commentary on brain
pOWcTs Sdlu LIZ OuEdHI.
"a few years ago, DIR. Durant."
said. "a very distinguished English
man said that the United States Sen
ate was the ablest deliberative body
in the world. What do you think
about the brains of the Senator"
II should say that the compliment
of the English visitor was great ex
aggeration. Relatively speaking.
feel that only about 10 per cent OF
those in the Senate have any real
craftsmanship. The majority are only
adept in their ability to get into pub
lie office and stay there"
Then you think that our public
men suffer from lack of brains?"
asked.
"A little" said DIR. Durant. ''Oi
course. such men are the product OF
our political system. Politics is now
as completely dominated by the ma
chine politician as 1t was during the
sos. The professional politician Is
more than ever our master. After 5C
years of struggle they have finally de
feated their enemy. the reformer. Me
diocrity has won. Everywhere intelli
gence has fed from the hustings OF
democracy as from an engulfing tide
Fools are in the saddle and ride man
kind.
Our elections have become con
tests of fraud and noise; and as sound
arguments make the least noise, truth
Is lost in the confusion. The country
is beginning to become conscious OF
its democratic farce.
National Talk Shop.
Greatness and foresight are not
found in our elected officialS-only
bare-toothed oratory and something
this side of starvation. Our Congress
today is nothing but a talk shop, a
national palaver. Political ability in
our public officials today is ability to
get themselves nominated, advertised
applauded and elected. They possess
this sort of ability in a highly deyel-
oped and specialized form.
"But while brain power in our
public officials is going out Of exist
ence, the intellectual problems of gov
eminent crowd on at an appalling
pace. What we are doing at Wash
ington is to ask self-advertisers to
handle problems of land ownership,
raw materials, coal mines, navigation,
aviation, arbitration and finance.
These involve technical details intel
ligible only to a specialist and painful
beyond bearing to men whose special
ty Is wire pulling.
"Once a government consisted OF a
king, his courtiers and his courtesans.
Today it is a vast and delicate
mechanism requiring its operators to
be highly trained
what is responsible for the failure
of our American democracy to elect
brains to Officer" I queried.
1.-THE trouble began when the suf-
frage was extended. We thought that
there was power in numbers and we
have found only mediocrity1 The
larger the number of voters, we have
found, the more ordinary must be the
man or the qualities that will appeal
to them.
"Then we interpreted the idea of
equality to mean that any man could
qualify for public Office. We have be-
come devoted to the fetish that every