y reformer who, like Mr. William Jennings
Bryan, proclaims views which are in some respects more than usually
radical, comes in for heartier denunciation from his brothers in reform
than he does from the conservatives. Each of our leading reformers is
more or less a man on horseback, who is seeking to popularize a
particular brand of reform, and who is inclined to doubt whether the
other brands are available for public consumption without rigid
inspection. Consequently, the party of reform is broken up into a number
of insurgent personalities. "The typical reformer," says the late Alfred
Hodder in a book written in praise of Mr. William Travers Jerome, "The
typical reformer is a 'star,' and a typical reform administration is
usually a company of stars," and a most amusing piece of special
pleading is the reasoning whereby the same author seeks to prove that
Mr. Jerome himself is or was not a "star" performer. The preference
which individual performers have shown for leading parts is in itself
far from being a bad thing, but the lack of "team play" has none the
less diminished the efficiency of reform as a practical and prosperous
political agitation.

These disagreements are the more significant, because the different
"star" reformers are sufficiently united upon their statement of
fundamental principles. They all of them agree to conceive of reform as
at bottom a moral protest and awakening, which seeks to enforce the
violated laws and to restore the American political and economic system
to its pristine purity and vigor. From their point of view certain
abuses have become unwholesomely conspicuous, because the average
American citizen has been a little lethargic, and allowed a few of his
more energetic and unscrupulous fellow-citizens to exploit for selfish
purposes the opportunities of American business and politics. The
function of reform, consequently, is to deprive these parasites of their
peculiar opportunities. Few reformers anticipate now that this task will
be easily or quickly accomplished. They are coming to realize that the
abuses are firmly intrenched, and a prolonged siege as well as constant
assaults are necessary for final success. Some reformers are even
tending to the opinion that a tradition of reform and succession of
reformers will be demanded for the vigilant protection of the American
political and economic system against abuse. But the point is the
agreement among practical reformers that reform