in their assessments for
taxation, or by a loss of custom or employment, or by some other
action injurious to their personal or business interests.

2nd. Because as investors, employees, or otherwise, they have or
hope to have some pecuniary interests in corporations, contracts,
or offices, which would be much less profitable under a government
too pure to be corrupted, and too intelligent to be outwitted.

3rd. Because they believe that it pays better in dollars and cents
to submit to existing abuses than to expend the time and money
required for a long and difficult series of political contests.

4th. Because they consider that national legislation affects their
personal interests far more than any probable action of their local
government, and that their national party must therefore be
supported in its efforts to strengthen itself by securing complete
control of local affairs.

5th. Because they believe the local machine of the opposition party
is still worse than their own, and that to promote its success by
wasting their votes on a third ticket would only be jumping out of
the frying pan into the fire.

6th. Because they have no faith in the possibility of subjecting
politics to the principles of common honesty, or public affairs to
the methods of intelligent business.

This list is not complete, but it is sufficiently formidable to
show that the progress of reform principles among the taxpayers
must continue to be slow and difficult, unless city government can
be made to appear much more important and interesting than it has
hitherto seemed to be.

X. CIVICS IN STATE UNIVERSITIES.

A writer in _Christian Work_, urging the importance of action such as
the American Institute of Civics is devoted to, says:

With the new way of looking at Government, and with new tasks
imposed upon it, must come preparation for the grave
responsibilities of the present and future. Old ideas linger after
they have subserved their purposes. We are living in an industrial
age. Especially is it true in a country like the United States that
the ordinary pursuits of peace outweigh a hundredfold the interests
of war. Nevertheless, we have our well-equipped academy at West
Point to prepare young men for the army, and our excellent academy
at Annapolis to pre