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JUNE 1, 190S
The Commoner
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fcfcA Prince Must Understand the Art of Feigning"
NIcolo Machiavelli was a politician who, bom
in Florence, Italy, in 14G9 had a tempestuous ca
reer. He distinguished himself as a diplomat and
in literature. In his view a statesman should
subordinate right to expediency, and so thoroughly
did he imprint his views upon the pages of his
tory that "Machiavellian" serves as a synonym
for duplicity or bad faith.
Among the books written by Machiavelli was
one entitled "The Prince." From the eighteenth
chapter of "The Prince," said chapter being en
titled "Whether Princes Ought to be Faithful
to Their Engagements," a writer in the New
York World culls the following interesting para
graphs :
"It is unquestionably very praiseworthy in
princes to be faithful to their engagements, but
among those of the present .day who have been
distinguished for great exploits few indeed have
been remarkable for this virtue or have scrupled
to deceive others who may have relied on their
good faith. In other words, a prudent
prince can not and ought not to keep his word
except when he can do so wi'thout injury to him
self or when the circumstances under which he
contracted, the engagement still exist.
"I should be cautious in inculcating such a
precept if all men were good, but as the generality
of mankind are wicked and ever ready to break
their words, a prince should not pique himself
in keeping his more scrupulously, especially as
it is always easy to justify a breach of faith on
his part. I could give numerous proofs of this
and show numberless engagements and treaties
which have been violated by the treachery of
princes, and that those whoenacted the part of
the fox have always succeeded best in their
affairs. It is necessary, however, to disguiso
the appearance of craft and thoroughly to under
stand the art of feigning and dissembling, for
men are generally so simple and so weak that
he who wishes to deceive easily finds dupes. "
"It is not necessary, however, for a prince
to possess all the good qualities I have enumer
ated, but it is indispensable that he should
appear to have them. I will venture to afilrm
that it is sometimes dangerous to use, though it
is always useful to seem to possess them. A
prince should earnestly endeavor to gain the
reputation of kindness, clemency, piety, justico
and fidelity to his engagements. He ought to
possess all these good qualities, but still retain
such power over himself as to display their op
posites whenever it may be expedient. I main
tain that a prince, and especially a new prince,
can not with impunity exercise all the virtues,
because his own self-preservation will often com
pel him to violate the laws of charity, religion
and humanity. He should habituate himself to
bond easily to the various circumstances which
may from time to time 'surround him. In a word,
it will be as useful to him to persevere in the path
of rectitude whilo ho feels no iuconvonionco In
doing so as to know how to deviate from it
when circumstances dictate such a course.
"He should mako it a rule, above all things,
never to uttor anything which docs not breatho
of kindnoss, justice, good faith and piety. This
last quality is most important for him to appear
to possess, as men in general judge more from
appearances than from reality. All men havo
eyes, but few havo the gift of penetration. Every
one sees your exterior, but few can discern what
you havo in your heart, and those few dare not"
oppose the voice of the multitude, who havo
the majesty of their prince on their side.
"Now, in forming a judgment of the minds
of men, and more especially of princes, as wo
can not recur to any tribunal, wo must attend
only to results. Let it then bo the prince's chief
care to maintain his authority. The means ho
employs, be what they may, will for this purposo
always appear honorable and meet applause, for
the vulgar are ever caught by appearances and
judge only by the event. And as the world is
chiefly composed of such as are called vulgar,
the voice of the few is seldom heard or regarded.
"There Is a prince now alive (whose namo
it may not be proper to mention) who ever
preaches the doctrine of peace and good faith,
but if he had observed either the one or the
other he would long ago havo lost both his repu
tation and his dominions."
One Day's Revelations
Revelations come thick and fast these days.
They are, indeed, almost too numerous for men
tion. Take, for instance, a New York daily news
paper for May 24. Here are some of the headlines
from that issue:
CASSATT'S MAN GOT A
FORTUNE FOR NOTHING
W. A. Patton, Assistant to Pennsylvania Rail
road's President, Forced to Tell that He Ac
quired $307,000 of Coal Company Securities
Without Paying a Penny
OTHER BIG TRAFFIC MEN
ON GOVERNMENT GRILL
High Officials Knew that Their" Associates Re
ceived Gifts of Stocks from Corporations That
Had Cars in Plenty While Rival Operators
Pleaded in Vain for Chance to Move Coal
Here are other headlines:
STANDARD OIL GETS STOLEN TELEGRAMS,',;
That Independents' Every Move is Known in
Trust Camp is Charged in Ohio
Federal Judge Wallace awarded a judgment
of $137,833 to Robert H. Westcott against the
Delaware, Lackawanna & Western railroad for
breach of contract. The headlines referring to
this decision, printed in the New York newspaper
above referred to relating to Judge Wallace's
criticism of William H. Truesdale who while be
ing president of the railroad is also chairman of
the committee appointed to investigate one of
the insurance companies, follow:
TRUESDALE'S ACT LIKENED TO THEFT
"Morally No Better than Larceny," Says Judge,
Denouncing Railroad President
WESTCOTT'S CONTRACT
DISHONESTLY REPUDIATED
Sordid, Arrogant Conduct Like Truesdale's
Arrouses Public Resentment, Court Adds
The same issue prints a dispatch stating that
a United States senator (Burton of Kansas) pro
tests against his threatened expulsion from the
senate because of dishonest acts.
Another dispatch refers to a letter written
by former Chief Engineer Wallace of the
Isthmian canal, in which he charges the governor
of the Panama canal zone with breach of con
fidence, in having advised him to take a certain
course of action and then anticipating it by
secretly writing to Secretary Taft; also that Wil
liam Nelson Cromwell, who seems to be some
thing of a general manager of the. whole Panama
canal affair, tried to secure the payment by the
United States of an improper claim, which claim,
however, was afterwards disallowed by the pres
ident. Another dispatch refers to the suit brought
against a republican leader in Delaware to com
pel him to account for $890,000 of money which
it is alleged he improperly applied to his own
use."
Another article tells of the revelations made
before the federal court at Kansas City, showing
where enormous sums in rebates were paid
through a "freight broker."
Another relates to the charge made against
an agent of the American Tobacco company who
attempted the bribery of Indiana legislators in
connection with the anti-cigarette bill.
Another refers to the revelations mado before
the interstate commerce commission with re-v
spect to the Standard Oil trust, and it is said
that the commission expects to present against
the oil trust, proof of the -following points: Ju
dicial decisions were influenced; ministers were
corrupted to act as spies; politicians in dominant
parties were used as tools; rivals' telegraph mes
sages were submitted to it; railway traffic man
agers took its orders on rates or suffered dis
missal; fought independents with illegal rebates,
"fixed" lawsuits and force of arms.
Another says that the sanitary conditions
in the packing houses are so bad that the Roose
velt administration has determined to begin pro
ceedings for relief.
Another dispatch relates to the threat of
Robert S. Waddell, president of the Buckeye
Powder company, to the effect that if Delaware
elects Addicks United States senator, he, Wad
dell, will go before a federal grand jury and
give evidence which will send Addicks to the
penitentiary.
Another dispatch is to the effect that the
bill seeking to do away with the immunity privi
lege which the packers took advantage of, is
slowly but surely dying in. a senatorial pigeon
hole.
PERKINS GOES FREE
The appelate division of the New York su
preme court, Judge McLaughlin presiding, has
discharged from custody George W. Perkins, in
surance magnate and member of the firm of J.
P. Morgan & Co. Perkins was arrested on the
charge of misappropriating money by contrib
uting $50,000 of New York Life Insurance com
pany funds to the republican national commit
tee. It was held that Perkins was not guilty
of a crime because the payment to the repub
lican committee was actually made out of Perkins'
own funds, and that the contribution was made
W
at the request of the president of the insurance
company, the latter "openly and avowedly" re
paying Perkins.
It will occur to a great many people that this
decision is far fetched.
In this case the people were forced to depend
upon the efforts of District Attorney Jerome, who
was already on record against the cause ho
pleaded, and plainly showed an indisposition to
proceed against Perkins and his associates. Jus
tice Greenbaum of the lower court held Perkins
for trial, but his ruling is superseded by that
of Justice McLaughlin.
District Attorney Jerome says that he will
take the case to the court of appeals and obtain
a final decision. The people have not much to
expect when District Attorney Jeromo Js to plead
their cause. The packers escaped after the "im
munity bath" and now Perkins goes free largely
because he nfade contributions out of his own
funds, even though he was reimbursed out of
the stolen funds.
Some people have grown indignant when it
has been charged that criminal laws were made
for the poor and helpless rather than for the
rich and Influential, but nearly every day we, are 0
ing rich and powerful men to account tor th'tlrWm
crimes. -
In the revelation in the Northern Securities
merger case, in the rebate cases, in the , beef
trust case, and in the insurance investigations
many men were shown to be guilty of serious
crimes but not one has been placed behind the
bars. Of all the men exposed in these disclos
ures, Burton, alone, poverty stricken and help
less, stands at the prison's threshold. (
This is a deplorable condition, yet when a
republican convention in Kansas recently adopted
the resolution: "We are in favor of letting well
enough alone," many republican newspapers
pointed to that declaration as at once the short
est and best platform of the season.
' JJJ
DOES NOT RING TRUE
It is difficult to believe that the energetic
business men of San Francisco scrrlousljr.aonteni.
plate asking congress for a loan of $100,000,000,
more or less, at a low rate of interest, to enable
them to rebuild their city, Such a request would
show a regrettable decadence in the "Spirit of
'Forty-nine." What Chicago, Johnstown, Boston,
Baltimore and Galveston have done under circum
stances just as trying as those surrounding San
Francisco, certainly San Francisco can do as well,
or even better. To accept such aid from con
gress, even if it could be constitutionally granted,
would be about the poorest advertisement San
Francisco could secure. For the sake of the rep
utation San Francisco has acquired for push and
enterprise and pluck, it is to be hoped that her
leading citizens will immediately make it known
that they have no sympathy' with the plan of a
congressional loan.
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