The connection was made
clear by the testimony of William Flinn, a contractor boss,
before a committee of the United States Senate. Flinn explained
the reason for a written agreement between Quay on the one hand
and Flinn and one Brown in behalf of Chris Magee, the Big Boss,
on the other, for the division of the sovereignty of western
Pennsylvania. "Senator Quay told me," said Flinn, "that he would
not permit us to elect the Republican candidate for mayor in
Pittsburgh unless we adjust the politics to suit him." The
people evidently had nothing to say about it.
The experiences of New York and Pennsylvania are by no means
isolated; they are illustrative. Very few States have escaped a
legislative scandal. In particular, Rhode Island, Delaware,
Illinois, Colorado, Montana, California, Ohio, Mississippi, Texas
can give pertinent testimony to the willingness of legislatures
to prostitute their great powers to the will of the boss or the
machine.
CHAPTER VIII. THE NATIONAL HIERARCHY
American political maneuver culminates at Washington. The
Presidency and membership in the Senate and the House of
Representatives are the great stakes. By a venerable tradition,
scrupulously followed, the judicial department is kept beyond the
reach of party greed.
The framers of the Constitution believed that they had contrived
a method of electing the President and Vice-President which would
preserve the choice from partizan taint. Each State should choose
a number of electors "equal to the whole number of Senators and
Representatives to which the State may be entitled in the
Congress.
Pages:
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120