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 351

Reviews of Books "Great are the blessings of equality,

in a position to supplement his chapter

but what follies are committed in its name!”

on the federal courts with some remarks

He is led, also, to declare the tone

on the new dignity to which the Chief Justiceship has been raised by the pres

of public life “lower than one expects to ﬁnd it in so great a nation." It is notably lacking in reﬁnement. There is a lack of that respect for the dignity of office which tends to elevate public life.

ent incumbent. That the custom of choosing a jurist of high distinction

There is, moreover, some disgust on

on the workings of our governmental

the part of the luxurious and fastidious with the vulgarities of public life. Not only the elevation but the independence

machinery is not to be denied. It is interesting to note that Mr.

and courage of public men have been affected, "and the country has suﬁered from the want of what we call distinc

prospects of young lawyers.

tion in its conspicuous ﬁgures."

But

for Chief Justice, if there is any reason to hope for its becoming ﬁrmly estab lished, would have far-reaching effects

Bryce takes a hopeful view of the crowding of

the

The over

profession,

though

admitted, is not grave in comparison with more serious conditions in England.

there are signs, he says, that this is

Here, "according to the universal wit

becoming less true than it was twenty

ness of laymen and lawyers, no man who combines fair talents with reasonable industry fails to earn a competence, and to have, within the ﬁrst six or seven years of his career, an oppor tunity of showing whether he has in him

two years ago.

At the same time, Mr. Bryce considers

the "general tone of vulgarity" of public life an insigniﬁcant factor in deterring men of ability from entering politics. The necessity of forming disagreeable associations, and the certainty of mis

representation and abuse, are no greater than in old world countries, where “a politician has to associate with men

whom he despises and distrusts." A fact, however, which he perhaps neglects to bring out, is that the artiﬁcial selection of public ofﬁcials in a country which does not show due respect for superior talent necessarily interferes with the bestowal of

public distinction on

the

ﬁttest,

and to this extent the vulgarity of politics is responsible for the deterrence of able men from going into lic affairs. Nevertheless, in

pub later

years, "good citizens are beginning to put their hands to the machinery of government, and those who do so are, more largely than formerly, young

the makings of something great." The new material of the revised edi tion is embodied sometimes in the text and sometimes in footnotes, and there

are four new chapters, on our trans marine possessions, immigration, later developments in the negro problem, and later observations on the universi

ties.

During the past ﬁfteen or twenty

years the universities "have become popular and national in a sense never

attained before in any country.” Mr. Seth Low has also rewritten his chapter on municipal government. COMMISSION GOVERNMENT City Government by Commission. By Ford H. MacGregor. Instructor in Political Science in the University of Wisconsin. Bulletin of the University of Wisconsin, no. 423. Pp. 131+19 (bibliography). Pamphlet. (40 cts.)

)1

H1611.

Had this new edition been prepared a year later, its author might have been

UCH information regarding com mission government in the United States is presented in this brochure,