Part 1

Transcriber’s Note Italic text displayed as: _italic_

CORRUPTION IN AMERICAN POLITICS AND LIFE

CORRUPTION _in_ AMERICAN POLITICS AND LIFE

By

ROBERT C. BROOKS

Professor of Political Science in the University of Cincinnati

NEW YORK DODD, MEAD AND COMPANY 1910

COPYRIGHT, 1910, BY DODD, MEAD AND COMPANY

Published October, 1910

THE QUINN & BODEN CO. PRESS RAHWAY, N. J.

TO

THE MEMORY OF

James Eugene Brooks

FATHER FRIEND

FIRST TEACHER OF CIVIC DUTY

PREFACE

Corruption is repulsive. It deserves the scorn and hatred which all straightforward men feel for it and which nearly all writers on the subject have expressed. Conviction of its vileness is the first step toward better things. Yet there is more than a possibility that the feeling of repugnance which corrupt practices inspire may interfere with our clearness of vision, may cloud our conception of the work before us, may even in some cases lead to misrepresentation—which is misrepresentation still although designed to aid in virtue’s cause. Fighting the devil with fire is evidence of a true militant spirit, yet one may doubt the wisdom of meeting an adversary in that adversary’s own element, of arming oneself for the battle with that adversary’s favorite weapon. Whatever views are held regarding the tactics of reform there must always be room for cool, systematic studies of social evils. These need not be lacking in sympathy for the good cause any more than the studies of the pathologist are devoid of sympathy for the sufferers from the disease which he is investigating. Nor need social studies conceived in the spirit of detachment, of objectivity, be lacking in practical helpfulness. We recognise the immense utility of the investigations of the pathologist although he works apart from hospital wards with microscope and culture tubes. In an effort to realise something of this spirit and purpose the following studies have been conceived.

Of the several studies making up the present work the first and second only have been published elsewhere. The writer desires to acknowledge the courtesy of the _International Journal of Ethics_ in permitting the reprint, without material alterations, of the “Apologies for Political Corruption,” and of the _Political Science Quarterly_ for a similar favour with regard to “The Nature of Political Corruption.” Objection will perhaps be made to the precedence given the “Apologies” over “The Nature of Political Corruption” in the present volume. Weak as it may be in logic this arrangement would seem to be the better one in ethics; hence the decision in its favour. Definition could wait, it was felt, until every opportunity had been given to the apologists for corruption to present their case.

The extent of the author’s obligations to the very rich but scattered literature of the subject will appear partly from the references in text and footnotes. For many criticisms and suggestions of value on portions of the work falling within their fields of interest, cordial acknowledgment is made to Dr. Albert C. Muhse of the Bureau of Corporations, Washington; Mr. Burton Alva Konkle of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia; Professor John L. Lowes, Washington University, St. Louis; Mr. Perry Belmont, Washington; Mr. Frank Parker Stockbridge, of the _Times-Star_, Cincinnati; and finally to Professor Frederick Charles Hicks, the writer’s friend and colleague in the faculty of the University of Cincinnati. Credit must also be given for many novel points of view developed in class room discussion by students of Swarthmore College and the University of Cincinnati. The members of the graduate seminar in political science at the latter institution have been particularly helpful in this way. To one of them, Mr. Nathan Tovio Isaacs, of Cincinnati, the author is indebted for a most painstaking reading of the whole MS., on the basis of which many valuable criticisms of major as well as minor importance were made.

To the members of the City Clubs of Philadelphia and Cincinnati, the writer also returns most cordial thanks for the various pleasant occasions which they afforded him of presenting his views in papers read before these bodies. While there was some smoke and at times a little heat in the resulting discussions, there were also many flashes of inspiration emanating from the political experience and the high unselfish ideals of the membership of the clubs. In appropriating valuable suggestions from so many sources and with such scant recognition, the writer trusts that his treatment of political corruption may nevertheless escape the charge of literary corruption.

UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI, Cincinnati, Ohio, April 1, 1910.

CONTENTS

I. APOLOGIES FOR POLITICAL CORRUPTION

PAGE

Introduction:—Corruption not defensible on the ground of the strength and prevalence of temptation 3

Four main lines of apology 4

That corruption makes business good 4

Protection of vice 5

Corrupt concessions to legitimate business 10

That corruption may be more than compensated for by the high efficiency otherwise of those who engage in it 14

That corruption saves us from mob rule 17

That corruption is part of an evolutionary process the ends of which are presumed to be so beneficent as to more than atone for the existing evils attributable to it 22

Conclusion: The probable future development of corruption in politics, the failure of the apologies for political corruption 37

II. THE NATURE OF POLITICAL CORRUPTION

Introduction, definition, etc. 41

Frequent use of the word corruption 41

Legal definitions contrasted with definitions from the point of view of ethics, political science, etc. 42

Verbal difficulties 42

Levity in the use of the word 42

Metaphor implied by the word 43

Distinction between bribery and corruption; between corruption and auto-corruption 45

Tentative definition of corruption 46

Analysis of the concept of corruption 46

Corruption not limited to politics. Exists in business, church, schools, etc. 46

Intentional character of corruption. Distinguished from inefficiency 48

Various degrees of clearness of political duties 51

Consequences of wide extension of political duties 52

Recognition of political duty 55

Legal and other standards 55

The radical view 57

Advantages sought by corrupt action 59

Various degrees and kinds of advantages 60

Rewards and threats 63

Degree of personal interest involved 65

Corruption for the benefit of party 71

Summary 74

III. CORRUPTION: A PERSISTENT PROBLEM OF SOCIAL AND POLITICAL LIFE

Extreme consequences of corruption 81

Less extreme consequences of corruption: recovery from corrupt conditions 82

The continuing character of the problem of corruption 85

Disappearance of certain forms of corruption; changes of form of corruption 88

Subsidies from foreign monarchs 89

Influence of royal mistresses 90

Lord Bacon’s case 90

Pepys and the acceptance of presents 93

Corruption and the administrative service appointments 95

Recent changes in the forms of municipal corruption 98

Limitation of corruption to certain branches or spheres of government 100

In local government only, in central government only 100

Middle grade of Japanese officials 102

Limitation of corruption in amount 105

Contractual character of most corruption 106

Prudential considerations restraining corruptionists 107

Summary 109

IV. CORRUPTION IN THE PROFESSIONS, JOURNALISM, AND THE HIGHER EDUCATION

Forms of corruption not commonly recognised as such; their significance 113

General classification of recognised forms of corruption 116

Defilement of the sources of public instruction 117

Difficulty of defining and regulating corruption in this sphere 118

Professional codes of ethics 119

Corruption in journalism: an extreme view; limitations 121

Corruption in higher education 132

Growing influence of colleges and universities 133

Higher education and public opinion 134

Personal responsibility of the teacher 136

The struggle for endowments and resulting bad practices 137

The teaching of economic, political, and social doctrines in colleges and universities 139

Summary 156

V. CORRUPTION IN BUSINESS AND POLITICS

Corruption in business 161

Effect of consolidation in business 163

Effect of state regulation in transforming character of business corruption 165

Necessity of further reform efforts 167

Classification of forms of political corruption 169

Political corruption resulting from state regulation of business 171

New forms of state regulation; other means of strengthening the position of government 174

The state as seller; difficulties and safeguards 179

Work of the Bureau of Municipal Research 184

Vice and crime in their relation to corrupt politics 186

Methods of repression 188

Tax dodging as a form of political corruption; _quasi_-justification of the practice 192

Methods of overcoming tax dodging 195

Auto-corruption, and its effects upon party prestige 199

Corruption in relation to political control the basis of all other forms of political corruption 201

Summary 208

VI. CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS AND THE THEORY OF PARTY SUPPORT

Party functions in the United States 213

Neglect of the sources of party support 217

Campaign contributions as a part of the problem 220

Payment of campaign expenses by the state 221

Publicity of campaign contributions 229

State laws requiring publicity 229

Congressional publicity bill of 1908 230

Voluntary publicity in the presidential campaign of 1908; results 233

Publicity before or after election 236

Special information of candidates before election 239

Publicity as applied to political organisations other than campaign committees 241

Prohibition or limitation of campaign contributions from certain sources 244

Prohibition of corporate contributions 244

Partnerships, labour unions, clubs, etc. 247

Contributions by candidates 248

Contributions by civil service employees 256

Limiting the amount of individual contributions 258

Effect of smaller campaign funds on political affairs 259

Time limits of large contributions 262

Geographical limits upon the use of campaign funds 263

Effect of campaign fund reform on business interests in their relation to government 264

Limitation of campaign gifts of services 267

Extension of campaign contribution reforms to state and local elections 268

To primary and convention campaigns 270

Administration of the reform measures 271

Possibilities of campaign fund reform 273

VII. CORRUPTION AND NOTORIETY: THE MEASURE OF OUR OFFENDING

Our damaged political reputation; how acquired 277

The garrulity of politicians, its explanation 278

Sensationalism of the press 281

Reform movements, to what extent are they evidence of moral improvement 287

Special privilege in England and Germany 290

Significance of the American attitude toward special privilege 291

Special privilege not always corrupt, but may come to be considered such 292

American criticism of special privilege as corrupt not proof of our inferiority to Europe in political morality 294

Consequences of the wide diffusion of political power in the United States 296

Conclusion: Corruption decreasing in the more progressive countries of the world 299

APOLOGIES FOR POLITICAL CORRUPTION

I

APOLOGIES FOR POLITICAL CORRUPTION

Nearly all current contributions on the subject of political corruption belong frankly to the literature of exposure and denunciation. The ends pursued by social reformers are notoriously divergent and antagonistic, but there is general agreement among them and, for that matter, among Philistines as well, that corruption is wholly perverse and dangerous. How then may one have the temerity to speak of apologies in the premises?

Certainly not, as one writer has recently done, by presenting a detailed and striking picture of the force with which the temptation to corrupt action operates upon individuals exposed to its malevolent influence. No doubt such studies are of great value in laying bare to us the hidden springs of part of our political life, the great resources, material and social, of those who are selfishly assailing the honesty of government, and the difficulties in the way of those who are sincerely struggling for better things. In the last analysis, however, all this is nothing more than a species of explanation and extenuation, which if slightly exaggerated may easily degenerate into maudlin sympathy. That men’s votes or influence are cheap or dear, that their political honour can be bought for $20 or $20,000—doubtless these facts are significant as to the calibre of the men concerned and the morals of the times, but they do not amount to an apology for either.[1] If, however, it can be shown that in spite of the evil involved political corruption nevertheless has certain resultants which are advantageous, not simply to those who profit directly by crooked devices, but to society in general, the use of the term would be justified.

Four main lines of argument have been gathered from various sources as constituting the principal, if not the entire equipment of the _advocatus diaboli_ to this end. These are, first, that political corruption makes business good; second, that it may be more than compensated for by the high efficiency otherwise of those who engage in it; third, that it saves us from mob rule; and fourth, that corruption is part of an evolutionary process the ends of which are presumed to be so beneficent as to more than outweigh existing evils.

I. Of these four arguments the first is most frequently presented. Few of our reputable business men would assent to it if stated baldly, or indeed in any form, but in certain lines of business the tacit acceptance of this doctrine would seem to be implied by the political attitude of those concerned. In slightly disguised form the same consideration appeals to the whole electorate, as shown by the potency of the “full dinner-pail” slogan, and the pause which is always given to reforms demanded in the name of justice when commercial depression occurs. But while we are often told that corruption makes business good, we are seldom informed in just what ways this desirable result is brought about. One quite astounding point occasionally brought up in this connection is the favour with which a portion of the mercantile community looks upon the illegal protection of vice and gambling. A police force must sternly repress major crimes and violence. Certain sections of the city must be kept free from offence. These things understood, a “wide-open” town is held to have the advantage over “slower” neighbouring places. A great city, we are told, is not a kindergarten. Its population is composed both of the just and the unjust, and this is equally true of the many who resort to it from the surrounding country for purposes of pleasure or profit. The slow city may still continue to hold and attract the better element which seeks only legitimate business and recreation, but the wide-open town will hold and attract both the better and the worse elements. Of course, individuals of the latter class may be somewhat mulcted in dives and gambling rooms, but they will still have considerable sums left to spend in thoroughly respectable stores, and such patronage is not to be sniffed at.[2]

Ordinarily this argument stops with the consideration of spending alone. It may be strengthened somewhat by bringing in the reaction of consumption upon production. A great city prides itself upon its ceaseless rush and gaiety, its bright lights and crowded streets, its numerous places of amusement and all the evidences of material prosperity and pleasure. These may be held to be enhanced when both licit and illicit pursuits and diversions are open to its people; and further, the people themselves, under the attraction of such varied allurements, may strive to produce more that they may enjoy more. In the Philippines, it is said that the only labourers who can be relied upon to stick to their work any considerable length of time are those who have caught the gambling and cock-fighting mania. Under tropical conditions a little intermittent labour easily supplies the few needs of others, whereas the devotee of chance, driven by a consuming passion, works steadily. In the present state of a fallen humanity there are presumably many persons of similar character living under our own higher civilisation.

Strong as is the hold which the foregoing considerations have obtained upon certain limited sections of the business community it is not difficult to criticise them upon purely economic grounds. Of two neighbouring towns, one “wide-open” and the other law-abiding, the former might, indeed, prove more successful in a business way. But we have to consider not simply the material advantage in the case of two rival cities. The material welfare of the state as a whole is of greater importance, and it would be impossible to show that this was enhanced by corruptly tolerating gambling and vice anywhere within its territory. On the contrary, economists have abundantly shown the harmful effects of such practices, even when no taint of illegality attaches to them. What the “wide-open” community gains over its rival is much more than offset by what the state as a whole loses. Moreover, it may well be doubted whether the purely economic advantage of the “wide-open” city is solid and permanent. Even those of its business men who are engaged in legitimate pursuits are constant sufferers from the general neglect of administrative duty, and sometimes even from the extortionate practices, of its corrupt government. They may consider it to their advantage to have gambling and vice tolerated, but only within limits. If such abuses become too open and rampant legitimate business is certain to suffer, both because of the losses and distractions suffered by the worse element in the community and because of the fear and avoidance which the prevalence of vicious conditions inspires in the better classes. Indeed cases are by no means uncommon where the better business element has risen in protest against lax and presumably corrupt police methods which permitted vice to flaunt itself so boldly on retail thoroughfares that respectable women became afraid to venture upon them. There remain, of course, the expedients of confining illicit practices to certain districts of the city, or of nicely restraining them so that, while permitting indulgence to those who desire it, they do not unduly offend the moral element in the community. But such delicate adjustments are difficult to maintain, since vice and gambling naturally seek to extend their field and their profits and, within pretty generous limits, can readily afford to make it worth while for a corrupt city administration to permit them to do so. And even if they are kept satisfactorily within bounds, the state as a whole, if not the particular community, must suffer from their pernicious economic consequences.