Year: 1878

lHdU government Ol the people ny Iue
! people which is so much talked about


As we see it in this republic, the people


administer by frequent elections of legis


lative and executive oficers--a President


every four years, a national House oil


Representatives every two years, State


Legislatures every two years or every
year, these electing Senators every three
years State executive officers every one
two, or three years, but alternating so as


to make annual elections and annual
elections, between these, to elect county,
| township and city legislative and execu
tive officers. All these branches bring


elections around at least twice year,


and the system supposes that the elect.


ors will make elections one of their chief


occupations.


But what is an election Do the elect


ors spontaneously rise up, go to the vot-


ing places and put in their votes? This


would not be intelligent suffrage, and it


would throw away their votes. There


must first be popular discussion and con-


ference upon principles, policies, and


men. Every question of craftsmanship
enters into these. There must be an un-
derstanding in order to agree upon the
objects, and upon candidates to be nomi-
mated to carry them out To do this


with even pretense of intelligence re-
quires much discussion. One of the meth
DDS is by public speakers; another by the
printing and circulation of arguments
All this requires work and expense which
somebody must attend to. And the work
Of nominating candidates makes neces-
sary primary meetings of the voters, city
conventions, county conventions. district
conventions, State conventions, and ma
tional conventions.


Thus any intelligent administration Of
government by the people makes the
voting at the final elections a mere rati-
fcation Of what has been decided in all
these preparatory conventions and dis
cussions. And if the whole people did
make all this agitation, discussion and
organizing Of the preliminary conven-
tions their own work, and did attend to
it intelligently, it would make governing
their chief business. But they do not
The mass leaves this work to be done by
those who take it upon themselves.
These, even if they do only that which
our theory of government supposes every
man to do, are called the active politi-
clans. And when it comes to the elec-
tons they do not run themselves. The
people who have conferred, and have
united upon principles, and have nomi-
mated candidates to carry them out,
would be defeated at the election if they
left it to the spontaneous movement of
voters to the polling places.


Ballots have to be provided, distribut-
ed, and held at the polling places The
polls have to be guarded against fraud,
illegal votes and violence. At every poll.
ing place active men must attend at the
organization of the poll, and through the
day, to see that the election board is not
captured, that illegal votes are excluded,
that ballots are supplied, and that an
honest count is made. All this makes a
large amount of work and expense which
have to be done and paid Voluntarily
Somebody must do and pay, and they
who do either deserve well of their
country.


The diversity of mems minds with re-
gard to public measures and men divides
them into parties, each organizing to car
ry its own measures through the elec-
tions. Therefore a government by the
people is of necessity party government.
Its foundation principle is the complete
right of the majority party to govern
Hence there can be no government with
out party.


Thus the relation of the government to
the party that elected it is a necessary,
proper, and constitutional one. There
fore government which should declare
it's separation from, or its Indifference to,
the party which elected it, would destroy
its own foundation, and proclaim that it
had no right to exist England is often
cited as having o government service for
US to copy but in En- gland, although the
nominal executive power is permanent
the government is party government.
This nature of its constitution is plainly
recognized. And although the practice
of turning out subordinate officers with
the changes Of parties in the administra-
ton does not prevail, yet the administra
tion recognizes the right and duty to sus-
tain and strengthen its party, and it has
some practices in doing this which would
be called too strong in this country.


An English administration which should
give out its Indifference to the success of
its party in the elections to Parliament
would bring in party which would call
upon the administration to step down
and out.


Party government, in all its branches
of town, county, State, and national,
elects large number of men to public
places. These places are esteemed de-
sirable, both for the compensation and
the position they give, and are objects of
ambition and pursuit to a large number
of persons in each party. With these a
proper selfinterest is added to their zeal
for the public good which is to be gained
by the ascendency OF the party What
part shall they who are successful in this
pursuit take in all the work and expense
which we have touched upon, and which
are absolutely necessary to a government
by the people?


Shall they stand aloof? Shall they
say to the other men of the party, it is
your part to do the work and pay the
expense, and it is ours to enjoy? Shall
they assume that there is something so
degraded in the political work of nomi-
mating and electing that it will dishonor
their official positions Shall they take
the ground that, having been put into
official places, they are of no party, and
must do no party work? Would disin-
terested citizens continue to contribute
their money to election expenses, and to
give their time to the indispensable work,
while the Offices were held by these Phar-
isees, who affected to thank God that
they are better than those that made
them The work which they would thus
pronounce degraded is the work which
elected them. If it is improper for them
to do, they have no right to be where
they are.


If all this work of organizing elections
is what is called "the machine" then the
machine is an indispensable and an hon
orable part of our system, and all our
public men, from President to Constable,
are products of the machine. There is a
Scripture which says the thing formed is
not greater than he that formed it. But
is there anything that is not liable to be
abused? This organizing can be made