The Hopelessness of the Effort to Reform Politics
By L. A. S.
THE chimerical idea of the political ascendancy of righteousness over iniquity in this world, is one whose survival in any mind should be difficult to-day in view of the revelations of corruption in city, state, and national government, in high and respectable circles of society as well as in low, that are being made to the public. One of these revelations, made by Mr. Louis Seaber, an editor of the Philadelphia North American, in an article contributed to The Independent, describes “Philadelphia’s Machine in Action,” and tells why a recent effort to reform Philadelphia failed, and incidentally why reform efforts in all the large cities must result in failure, or at best in only temporary success. An election was held in Philadelphia in February last, in which a determined effort was made to free the city from machine domination. “Aroused by knowledge of public plunder and the criticism of other communities,” says Mr. Seaber, “a portion of Philadelphia’s well-meaning citizenship organized for battle. Led by men eminent in financial and commercial affairs, the opponents of the machine formed a ‘Committee of Seventy,’ the primary object of which was to labor for ‘better government,’ if it required three years. They determined that ample funds should be provided; that the public careers of the official agents of the machine should be investigated that all Philadelphia might know their conduct; that a political party should be placed in the field as an evidence of good faith.” “Meetings were held by the reformers. Machine candidates for re-election were denounced as ‘hirelings.’ The megaphone and the automobile were utilized to attract citizens to the cause. Every newspaper in the city, with one exception, was in sympathy with it. Clergymen, representing most of the churches, were assembled, and they ‘resolved.’ They denounced the partnership of the political official machine with the promoters of crime. They demanded the removal of the head of the police department, the director of public safety; they went further, and proposed the impeachment of the mayor.” “Boss” Durham, the head of the machine, arrived from Florida a week prior to the election, “stiffened the mayor’s backbone, issued the orders which were to defeat the city party,” and “waited for results.” The Democratic party of Philadelphia has customarily been permitted by the Republican machine to nominate five city magistrates, and the reformers determined to concentrate their efforts on these minority candidates. “Boss” Durham ordered that a large machine vote be given these Democratic nominees, in order most effectually to humiliate the reform party. The result was the election of the Democratic nominees and the overwhelming defeat of the reform ticket. “The Republican machine,” says Mr. Seaber, “deliberately transferred fifty-five thousand votes to the Democratic ticket,” which number was one fourth of the total vote polled. When the result was known, “Boss” Durham remarked: “Well, it does not look at if the people of Philadelphia were dissatisfied with the administration of affairs in this city. Our lines are unbroken, and the new party hasn’t captured a single magistrate.” Everybody can understand why it is that an army can easily overcome a mob, and the same reason will explain why the political machine so readily overcomes the people’s reform movements. The machine is an organized and thoroughly disciplined army; the people are an unorganized body. Occasionally it happens that the people’s party, by weight of numbers and a degree of preliminary organization, obtain a victory; but their organization soon disintegrates, while the machine remains a permanent army whose whole business is to win political victory; so the triumph of the reform movement is short-lived. The only way for the reform element to cope successfully with the machine would be to organize and put in the field its own machine, and follow machine methods of work; but it is in machine politics that the whole evil lies. Christians ought to rid their minds of the chimerical idea of a coming time when the saints will be able in this world to outvote the sinners, and place righteousness in political ascendancy. So long as they hold to that idea and devote time and energy to the effort to secure its realization, so long are they wasting time, energy, and means that are needed in the cause of Christ, and neglecting the true Christian commission to save individuals—not governments—by preaching the gospel to every creature, until its message has been heard in all the world. L. A. S.