Judge — October 15, 1927 — page 15: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

JUDGE Norman Anthony. Ausociate Editors, Richard J. Walsh, Phi How to Be a Real Mugwump EaLovs guardians of democracy. who still take their politics seriously are wont to bewail the decline in the use of the ballot. Pointing to the figures on voting, they bluster that the citizen is abdicating his sacred right of franchise and all that sort of thing. fs But now Simon forward a Michelet the inde- new set of statistics. These seem to prove that in the past six years the total vote in primary elections has increased more than sixty per cent. This growth, he says, has be- come “the most conspicuous feature on the face of American polities.” Some see in this a trend toward more distinct party alignment. Possibly, however, it indicates that more voters are getting wise to the ways of politics. In more than half the states the primaries are equivalent to an election, because one party is so weak that the nominees of the other are sure to win. In evenly balanced localities the characters of the candidates chosen, and not the party issues, are the decisive factors. New York City lost its greatest mayor through defeat at the primaries. The only voter worth wasting persuasion on is the mugwump. Politicians never lay themselves out to please the congenital Republican or Democrat, or, in contests with the party, the docile dub who can be counted on to support the organization slate. The catering and caperirg is all for the independent. He holds the balance of power. Conscientious independents used to think that they ought to keep themselves aloof by not enrolling in either party, staying away from the sordid primaries, and holding their fire until election day. But time after time they found that then it was all over but the shouting. The new tactics are: Size up the parties in your own district. Determine which is numerically strongest, or, if they are about equal, which is likely to have the closest co1.test in choosing nominees for the most important offices. Enroll in that party. Help it pi its candidates by voting within it at the primaries. Thus you will have put your ballot where it is most likely to have an effect on the final selection of office-holders. To do this, you have to ignore party issues, and you may have to sign some sort of statement that you intend to continue to support the party ticket. Whereas, being an independent, you may really ex pect to vote for the opposite party at the ensuing igable brings il Rosa, Jack Shuttleworth. Dramatic Editor, George Jean Nathan You are break- But salve your conscience by remembering that the rules of the game were made by the politicians, and play it your own way. If this be double-crossing, make the most of it. It’s one of the few really practical me: by which the sovereign voters can outwit the machines. SMART young man sent to * * * A fourteen New York newspapers the announcement that he and a certain young woman were to be married the next day in the municipal chapel. They weren't. The wouldn’t be bride sweetly informed the reporters that the story was only “a clever strategic move to rush me into marriage, a cave-man method of wooing, and it was unsuccessful.” This is a severe blow to modern publicity methods. What will happen to the great fraternity of public relations directors if it becomes known that there is even one woman who doesn’t believe all that she reads in the papers? Be Kind to the Broker Somenony in the Department of Agriculture gave out a routine report on cotton which said mildly, “Tt is likely that prices will decline in the next few months.” All of a sudden the cotton market turned a handspring, stood on its head and then ran and slid down hill. A lot of people lost a lot of money and a lot of other people made a lot. Dignified gentlemen protested; President Coolidge promptly let it be known that he didn’t think government officials knew enough to predict prices, and Secretary Jardine gave orders that there must be no more forecasting. This is sound enough if we go on the principle that govern- ment ought not to mess into business unnecessarily. But the funny thing is that a similar statement had been made a whole month earlier and the exchanges had not batted an eye. You never can tell about traders. Sometimes they’re blind and deaf, at other times they can see around a corner and hear noises in a vacuum. Always they are nervous and jumpy. Because they do not produce, convert or even handle the commodities in which they deal, because their fortunes are dependent on factors beyond their own control, they lack the self-reliance of the industrialist and the financier, and easily fall into the habit of passing the buck. Therefore it meet that we should treat them tenderly. Yes, this is mendacious. elections. ing the rules of the game. is R.J.W. comicbooks.com