6 9 6 



THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



EDITOR'S TABLE. 



SCIENCE AND PARTY GOVERNMENT. 



IT would be hard to name two sub- 

 jects which, in the general appre- 

 hension, are further removed from each 

 other than those associated in this title. 

 That science may in some way have 

 possible relations with government and 

 politics is vaguely believed by many, be- 

 cause they often hear the expressions 

 "science of government," " political sci- 

 ence," etc. But, as nothing is ever 

 heard of any such thing as " party sci- 

 ence," political partisans naturally con- 

 clude that, whoever else may be dis- 

 turbed by this intrusive influence, they, 

 at all events, may give themselves no 

 trouble about having to reckon with it. 

 But they repose in a false security As 

 civilization goes on and the laws of its 

 progress are better understood, it will 

 be found that science has more and 

 more to do with government, and, 

 therefore, with the methods and prac- 

 tices by which government is adminis- 

 tered. 



This matter is dealt with incidental- 

 ly in the able article of Professor Gold- 

 win Smith, on "The Machinery of 

 Elective Government," herewith re- 

 printed, and which will repay attentive 

 perusal. The writer has familiarized 

 himself with the w >rkings of the elect- 

 ive system, in various conditions and in 

 its most advanced forms, as illustrated 

 in England, Canada, and the United 

 States, and he discusses it with the dis- 

 crimination of a critical observer, and 

 the freedom of an independent student 

 of public affairs, who is but little tram- 

 meled by patriotic prejudice. The im- 

 port of the question at the present time 

 is thus stated : " The era of elective 

 government has come, and in the wise 

 ordering of it so as to give public reason 

 the upper hand, and to reduce, as far as 

 possible, the influence of passion, class 



interest, selfish ambition, faction, and 

 corruption, lies the political hope of the 

 world." 



But Professor Smith then proceeds 

 to show that, though the era has ar- 

 rived, the thing it has brought is very 

 different from the thing expected. It 

 was long believed that if the rule of 

 monarchs could be got rid of, and the 

 rule of the people established, all the 

 evils of bad government would be swept 

 away. But experience has not justified 

 this pleasing anticipation. The king 

 has disappeared, and the people are as- 

 sumed to be sovereign, but misgovern- 

 ment continues, with even an aggrava- 

 tion of some of its worst vices. Our 

 country revolted against hereditary 

 rule, and put in its place elective gov- 

 ernment by the people ; but, instead of 

 a true elective system, giving fair ex- 

 pression to the popular will, we have 

 got party government ruling systemat- 

 ically by caucus machinery, and defeat- 

 ing both the will of the people and the 

 proper objects for which government 

 exists. 



Professor Smith characterizes gov- 

 ernment by party as a vicious agency, 

 and enforces his view by convincing 

 illustrations of its working in different 

 circumstances ; he also points out the 

 policy which he thinks will have to be 

 adopted if the evils of the system are 

 to be abated or remedied. Of this pol- 

 icy we express no opinion : what most 

 concern us here are the defenses that 

 are offered for the continuance of party 

 government ; and our interest in these 

 defenses is chiefly because of the scien- 

 tific considerations they involve. 



"We are told that political parties are 

 the necessary means of carrying on free 

 popular government, and that they are 

 but combinations of men united to 

 achieve important measures of national 



