Life — August 19, 1920 — page 19: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

House, Mr. Wilson’s leading coadjutor and accomplice in all that misgovernment, is not too seriously stained and speckled to be the Ledger's leading representative abroad? If Mr. House is good enough for the Ledger, it may be that Mr. Wil- son will be good enough for Governor HE truth is that the leading issue this year is whether the Republican sen- ators saved the country by beating the Treaty, or whether Senator Lodge has done more harm than anybody of his size since the dawn of history. If the senators saved the country, we ought to let them run it a spell; and if Mr. Lodge has done so much harm, he ought to be stood on his cffending head. There was more hopeful world-leader- ship in Mr. Wilson's little finger than there is in the whole collection of Lodge- Republican senators. There is leadership in Mr. Root, who could not under the law have accepted the job under the League that he has been busy with, if the Lodge reservations to the Treaty had passed. The reservations forbade citi of the United States to accept appoint- ments under the League without the con- sent of the Senate. Since they failed, Mr. Root was free to go and do what he could, and he has done much. hate, and have been willing for a year past, and are still willing, to back sound world-leadership from whatever source. But they must feel that in the group of Politicians who control the Republican party at present, world-leadership is mighty scarce. Mr. Taft makes what al- lowances and apologies he can for Mr. Harding, but his real explanation of the Harding fall-down on the Treaty was that it was due “to the purpose of keeping Senator Johnson from bolting.” So long as Mr. Harding had to limit his remarks and ideas to such as would get by John- son, it could not be expected that his po- litical offers would carry much inspira- tion. UT there is more than the fear of Johnson the matter with the Old- Guard Republicans. They are like people have not heard the news. Their curious, blind Wilson-hate is instinctive, and due mostly to terror—a_ sentiment such as snakes probably have about mon- gooses. They have Wilson rout them by powers and means they could ither understand nor handle. His gic has beaten theirs. He has been ng uncanny to th driv them to fits of impotent prote& and to a long succession of absurd stories and slanders such as a company of skunks would hesitate to circulate about a ground bh Secing him disabled, and believi 1 to be discredited, they think their turn is come. But has it? It scems daily more doubtful. They are so peculiar. Their cry of “America first” is the offer of self in a campaign in which the issue promises to be virtually religious. To be brotherly and helpful to a distressed and disinte- grated world is religion. Not a note of all Harding's vociferation cal that. There are words about it, but they are feeble words in which there is no spirit of succor. Harding is all for safety first and staying by the sty and putting fat on home ribs. But surely that is not the spirit of the country. It is merely the spirit of the present Old-Guard Republican leadership the spirit of Lodge, Penrose, Knox, Brandegee and their fellows, backed by a great and powerful company of highly respectable and practically competent old- line Republican Tories, who feel that gov- ernment belongs of right to them, and that whoever beats them to it is a rascal and a usurper, who seen fairly fastidious nterest anyone to Doubt- will answer them as he should, for though he is a candidate from Ot:io, he is a candidate picked to beat a candidate from Ohio, and endowed, one may surmise, with qualities that will stand out in contrast to those of Mr Harding has been put up as a duplicate of William McKinley. In Cox, it may wat will Cox say to them? less he Harding. NINE DOLLARS A DAY be, we shall have another Grover Cleve- land. At all events it seems safe to expect him to answer the Republican challenge as he should and with a proper defiance. There are personal traits and ar: istics of Mr. Wilson—disabilities, some of them—which transferable to a cter= are not candidate for the Democratic succession. But there is also a great glory of accom- plishment under Wilson's leadership to hich the new lawful political heir, and one cannot doubt that candidate is the Governor Cox knows that and will claim what should be his, and throw his weight Mr. Wilson spent his strength for without attaining. Other things have happened that were not political. Resolute won the final yacht kept the Thomas not being inconsolable. hesides to win the League tha race and America’s cup, Sir Mr. Baker says army officers may not engage actively in political campaigning, and General Wood acquiesces manfully, and will not go on the stump for Hard- ing, and possibly, like Sir Thomas, is not inconsolable. Mr. Coolidg address of acceptance was much better literature than Mr. Harding's, but could not undo what Mr. Herding said. So Mr. esces, but wishes, possibly, that he could have gone to bat ahead of Mr. Harding. Coolidge acqui- comicbooks.com