MnwaBoffli
A Remedy for Some
Forms of
Selfish Legislation
Reprinted from an article by Theodore Roosevelt In The Outlook, by special
arrangement with The Outlook, of which Theodore Roosevelt la Contributing
Editor. Copyright, 1110. by The Outlook Company. All Rights Reserved.
HE August number of the
World's Work contains an
JTjK |V article which Is of Interest
wlUr to all who are concerned In
the vital subject to which
we give the somewhat fog
gy title of “Political Reform." The
article, for obvious reasons anony
mous, 1b written by a member of
congress who, the editors of the
World's Work say, has served for
more than ten years In the house of
representatives, has acted on many lm
portant committees, and has been suc
cessful In "getting things" for his
constituency. The article Is described
as "showing the reason why the ‘pork
barrel’, special tariff favors, and pri
vate pension bills become law," the
iw reason being, to quote the words of
the author, that “the dictum of the
constituency to the congressman is
‘Get all you can for US.' There are
no restrictions placed upon his meth
od of getting it.
Until the American people themselves
become more national and less local,
until constituencies cease to regard
their congressmen as solicitors at the
national treasury, congress will con
tinue to enact Iniquitous groups of lo
cal favors into national legislation.”
This serious charge against the
American people—for which there is
unquestionably altogether too much
justification—the author proceeds to
substantiate by relating some of his
own experiences with constituents
which, however surprising they may
seem to the general reader, will seem
almost, commonplace to all who know
how the average constituency does in
actual practice treat its congressman.
The writer sets forth the fact that,
in the first place, ninety per cent, of
the letters which a congressman re
ceives are requests for special favors
to be obtained in some way or other,
directly or indirectly, from the United
States treasury. For instance, while
the Payne-Aldrich tariff law was un
der discussion, this particular con
gressman received in May. 1909, the
following letter from the secretary of
a powerful commercial association in
his district:
“I have been Instructed by the board
of directors of this association to ad
vise you that at special meeting May
20, a resolution, copy of which is in
closed, was unanimously adopted, urg
ing our representatives In congress to
use every endeavor to have the pres
ent tariff in (mentioning three of the
products of (lie industries referred to)
Increase 1 one cent per pound and the
present tariff on (mentioning the oth
er two products) increased half a cent
per pound. I wish to further advise
you that we have heard from Senator
- and he informs us that he
will take care of this matter in the
senate.”
When the hill was finally passed,
the congressman succeeded in adding
half a cent a pound to the duty on
two of these products and in prevent
ing any reduction on the others. A
year later, when the popular clamor
against the bill had become acute,
the same associy ion that had asked
him to vote for Increases wrote to the
congressman denouncing the bill as
“the most iniquitous measure ever en
acted by congress” and requesting
him to explain by letter why he had
voted with “the Reactionaries" to pass
the bill. When it was pointed out to
the association that it had urged the
congressman to obtain an increase of
duty on the products in which it was
interested, it dropped its demand for
an explanation. An influential news
paper published in his district edi
torially commended him while the bill
was under debate for his “intelligent
efforts” to increase the duty on manu
factured articles in which the district
was interested, and a year later the
same newspaper in the same editorial
column denounced him as one of “the
legislative banditti responsible for the
Payne-Aldrich measure.”
River and harbor legislation is an
other field in which local selfishness
busies itself, to the exclusion of na
tional needs. In this case requests
are not made by letter but by delega
tions which come to Washington be
sieging their senators and representa
tives. "There is," says the frank
writer of this article, “figuratively
speaking, between $50,000,000 and $60,
000,000 on the table to be divided. The
committee divides it so that every one
is satisfied, at least to a reasonable
extent.” Every one, that is, but the
people at large, the people who have
no special interest to serve, and who
feel keenly indignant that the rivers
and harbors of the United States are
developed in a fashion so inferior to
that of Europe.
Nor are all the requests for legis
lation merely. One constituent de
sired to have this particular congress
man put his name on the free mailing
list for all public documents. That
this would be impossible, because it
would mean delivering to the appli
cant several tons of documents every
month, does not in the slightest detract
from the interest of the fact elicited by
an investigation that the applicant was
the manufacturer of an article made
from waste paper, and the public doo
uments would afford a very useful
source of raw material.
Is there a remedy for such a state
of things? The answer Is, yes; and,
moreover. It is a remedy which con
gress can Itself Immediately provide.
There Is no complete remedy, ot
course. No scheme can be devised
which can prevent such a request aB
that of the constituent last named
who wished public documents to use
In his private paper business. Re
quests like this merely mean that In
every district Individuals will always
be found who will request Improper
favors. As regards these people, all
that can be done Is to create a vigor
ous public opinion—an opinion which
shall not only make It uncomfortable
for any man to demand such favors,
but which shall cordially support the
congressman In refusing them and
hold hlin accountable for granting
them.
Congress has now, and has long
had, the power to rid Its members of
almost all the Improper pressure
brought to bear upon the Individual
by special Interests—great and small,
local and metropolitan—on such sub
Jects as tariff legislation, river and
harbor legislation, and pension legie
I lation. Congress has not exercised
this power; chiefly because of wha*
I am bound to regard as a very short
sighted and unwise belief that it is
beneath its dignity to delegate any o<
its functions. By passing a rule which
would forbid the reception or passag ■
of any pension bill save the pension
legislation recommended by the com
missioner of pensions (this of cours.
to be rejected or amended as congres
saw fit, but not so amended as to
include any special or private legis
lation), congress would at once do
away with the possibility of its mem
bers being subject to local pressure
for improper private pension bills, and
at the same time/guarantee proper
treatment for the veteran who really
does deserve to have everything done
for him that the country can affbrd.
In the case of the tarifT and the
river and harbor legislation, what is
needed in each case is ample provi
sion for a commission of the highest
possible grade, composed of men who
thoroughly know the subject, and who
possess every attribute required for
the performance of the great and dif
ficult task of framing in outline the
legislation that the country, as dis
tinguished from special Interests,
really needs. These men, from the
very nature of the case, will be wholly
free from the local pressure of special
interests so keenly felt by every man
who is dependent upon the vote of
a particular district every two years
for his continuance in public life.
Such a river and harbor commission
could report, and probably would re
port, a great and comprehensive na
tional scheme for river and harbor Im
provements fit to be considered by
the people as a whole upon its merits,
and not dependent for enactment in,to
law upon a system- of log-rolling
designed to placate special interests
which are powerful in each of many
score congressional districts. Such
a tariff commission could get at the
facts of labor cost here and abroad
by expert inquiry, and not by the ac
ceptance of interested testimony: such
a commission could consider dispas
sionately the probable effect upon the
entire social and economic body of
all changes in any given branch of the
tariff, and its recommendations would
rer,regent the exercise of careful
judgment from a disinterested stand
point. Such a commission could work
in harmony with the commissioner of
labor so as to insure that the labor
ers for whom the tariff is passed get
the full benefit of It; for the major
part of the benefit of a protective
tariff should unquestionably go to the
wage-workers.
Even under such conditions of tariff
making errors might be committed,
but they would be merely those errors
of disinterested judgment incidental
to every kind of public or, for the mat
ter of that, private effort, and the work
would not be hampered from the be
ginning by the need of gratifying pri
vate selfishness.
It is only in this way that tariff
legislation, river and harbor leglsla
tion, and pension legislation can be
treated from the standpoint of prin
ciple and not from the very low stand
point of privilege and preference. The
obstacle hitherto to the adoption of
such a method of treatment has come
from the queer dislike felt by so many
congressional leaders to a course of
action which they (quite unjustifiably
feel would in some way be a limitation
of their powers. I think this feeling
is passing. It is simply another in
stance of the kind of feeling whic!
makes some executives suspicion
about delegating their work to an;
subordinate, and which makes mar"
voters, who have not pondered tb
matter deeply, desire to elect gre
numbers of people on a ticket of sn-1
length that it is out of the questin’
for any except professional politician
to know much about them. * *
THEODORE ROOSEVELT.
I
SEPT. 5aro9!s I9i«
LI IMCOL.N
THE STATE’S BEST PRODUCTS
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IN DAILY FLIGHTS
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I wish to announce to the general
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Goods delivered promptly to any
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NO. 509
THOS. J. WHITAKER
Market Price Paid for Produce Cash or Trade
JOHN W. POWELL
Real Estate and Loans
MORTGAGES BOUGHT AND SOLD
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Office in Powell lildq.
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re re. ROBERTS
Office over Kerr’s Pharmacy
Office Phene 200 Residence Phone 27)
KDGAR It. MATHERS
dentist
Phones: Nos. 177, 217
/
Sam'l. Wahl Building
DR. C. N. ALLISON
DENTIST
Phone 248 Over Richardson County
Bank.
FALLS CITY, NEBRASKA
DR. H. S. ANDREWS
General Practioneer
Calls Answered Day Or Night
In Town or Country.
TELEPHONE No. 3
BARADA. - NEBRASKA
.- ^-=*»- . Jiti_ .. . M —
CLEAVER & SEBOLD
INSURANCE
REAL ESTATE AND LOANS
NOTARY IN OFFICE
—————————————
WHITAKER
The Auctioneer
Before arranging date write, tele
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J. G. WHITAKER
Phones I68-Ijl-2I6I Falls City, Neb
Frank Peck’s Claim Dates.
J. B. Whipple, Poland China Hog
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| I i
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I: DRAY AND
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PHONE NO. 211
I I I I I I I I I M 11 I I I I I I ’.»>■
Paste this in
Your Hat!
J. B. WHIPPLE
WILL SELL
Poland-China
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Saturday, Oct. 15, 1910
Saturday, Nov. 19, 1910
The Central
Credit Co.
FALLS CITY. NEB.
DRAWER NO. 12.
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Domestic and foreign COLLEC
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