Evening star., 1940-01-21
Political Alliance Is Blamed
For Philadelphia's Breakdown
Public Indifference Also Has Part in Near
Collapse of Water, Fire and
Police Services
By Marquis ". Chids.

PH1LADELPHIA.-In this community
Of 100000 people the essential services
water, fire protection and police-are
on the point Of breaking down. That is
how far grating misgovernment and
public Indifference have gone in what
has been jeeringly called "the city of
brotherly loot"
1t Is no new development. For at least
two decades, as the city debt mounted
and the water system wore out, the
crisis has been preparing. But not until
water from the tap began to taste
actually foul and doctors advised against
drinking it, not until the danger Of in
adequate fire protection became really
menacing. not until streets became al
most empty of police, were Phila-
delphians forced to realize how serious
the situation is
There exists today the possibility of
major tragedy. With luck, it will not
happen. With luck, Philadelphia will
get a $60,0000 900 loan from the Federal
Government to build new water sys-
TEN. With luck, the new city income
tax of 11a per cent will provide enough
funds to balance the budget. For
time at least, Philadelphia may get by.
Common to Most Cities.
The decay that has eaten so deeply
is not special to Philadelphia. It comes
Of disease common to most American
cities, political disease having its
origin deep in the American past. The
causes, or perhaps they are merely
symptoms, are the alliance of wealth
with machine politics and the indif1er-
ence Of "right-thinking," good" people.
The good" people of Philadelphia
feel they can afford to be more or less
indifferent. They live in the handsome
suburbs that ring the city-Radnor,
Wynnewood, Bryn Mawr, Elkins Park,
Germantown, Chestnut Hill Long ago
they moved out to escape industrial
smoke and CRIME, to get away from en-
croaching slums and high rents and
high taxes. The broker or banker or
accountant or editor who lives in,hand-
some Radnor may never see the appalling
squalor Of Stone House lane down be-
low the dump. Migration to the
suburbs, with the resulting deterioration
of residence property in the city, has
been one Of Philadelphia's principal
problems. Again it is q question whether
this is cause or merely a symptom.
Rule Of Republican Clique.
But while the disease is commou to
most cities, the significant thing In
Philadelphia is that it has gone 50 far.
With scarcely single break, q small
clique of Republican politicians has
. ruled this city for more than 70 years.
And the, final result is today's crisis.
Now and then the clique has pro-
duced William S. Ware or an Israel
Durham or a Matthew Quay. Just at
present there is no big, conspicuous boss.
But the rule is none the less tightly
held.
Conspicuous here in Philadelphia at
present are Joseph N. Pew, jr, Oil
multimillionaire, and Jay Cooke of the
Philadelphia banking family, probable
Republican candidate for the United
States Senate. These two men run the
Republican City Committee.
Their concern at present appears to be
not so much with Philadelphia as with
the Nation. Wealthy Republicans in Phil
adelphia and in Pennsylvania have one
passionate, whole-hearted desire, and
that is to get Roosevelt out of the
White House and end the New Deal
This is one reason they spent so much
money and effort on the mayoralty elec-
ton last fall. their Republican,, former
Judge Robert E. Lamberton, defeating
City Controller Robert c. White, who
ran on Democratic-F Fusion ticket, by
the narrow margin of 10000 votes. Mar
row, that is, for Philadelphia, closer than
the Democrats have come In many,
many years.
In cities with similar problems there
is periodic cycle of corruption and re-
form. Kansas City is now in the latter
phase of such q cycle. Here in Phila-
delphia the cycle is never completed.
Reform may be started, but it is never
carried to conclusion.
Between October of 1887 and March
Of last year there was a careful, earnest,
intensive investigation Of vice, crime
and law enforcement. The Democratic
State attorney general, Charles ]. Mar