Page:The Wisconsin idea (IA cu31924032449252).pdf/252

 At the present time in nearly all of our states, an able lawyer may go before a committee composed of good farmers and merchants and though he may not speak the truth, he will sometimes have that committee absolutely at his mercy. He can tell them privately or in committee that a certain bill is unconstitutional or has been a failure where tried and defy individual members to answer him; he has behind him many clerks to gather statistics of all sorts for his use before that committee. What can the individual member of that committee or the committee itself do under those circumstances? Of course, the committee man does not care to make himself ridiculous and so he states the business in a half-hearted report or acquiesces in the statements of the attorney before the committee. If an entirely non-partisan and non-political department existed, composed of men of ability, there is no reason why that committee could not require briefs to be filed by these attorneys for private interests and invoke the aid of this department. In this case it would be more difficult to deceive by misstatements and the committee member could investigate for himself if he were honest and wanted to do his duty.

As to our department in Wisconsin, we are not trying to influence our legislators in any way, we are not upon one side or another of any question nor are we for or against anybody or anything; we are merely a business