The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-04-06

to change his mind on the
Il subject of being candidate
for the presidency Of the
United states must be conceded and
the only question to be considered is
whether his exercise of that right in
the present manner is wise or foolish.
There is no occasion for haste in eN-
pressing an opinion on this point. 1t
is a matter to be determined largely
by results
The admiral talks somewhat inno-
Gently about being the peoples candi-
date. but of course he can be nothing
of the kind a candidate. in these days
of highly developed political organiza-
tion, must have a party or make one,
and to make one is too difficult and too
prolonged task for Mr.. Dewey to un-
dertake at his timc of life. We. there
fore, assume that he or those behind
hm--the friends" who he says have
had this matter under extended consid-
eration-will choose the quicker method
of trying to capture a party. With
President Mckinley i'm the field and
possessing the thorough approval of an
overwhelming majority of the Repub-
liCan voters of the country, there is alb
solutely no chance for Admiral Dewey
through his friends to capture the Re
publican nomination, hence there re-
main simply the alternatives Of bat
Ting with Bryan for the Democratic,
or Of effectng some kind of negotia-
tion with one or another Of the small
| fry parties always to be found just
| before Il presidential election; and for
the latter course there would exist no
adequate incentive.
1t does not take an exceptionally keen
mind to perceive. therefore, That
| Dewey's natural antagonist is Bryan.
| Bryan is the pcrsonhCGtion Of the
| Populistic and socialist vagaries of the
day and every conservative Democrat
! is necessarily opposed to him. Dewey
is not much of anything so far as
! politics goes, but he is a war hero. Il
personification of victory in war and of
! expansion in peace; and the old time
! Democrats who want to wrest their
party from the clutches of Organism
have picked him out as the likeliest in
strument available for such a purpose.
less runs thus: "Denocratc defeat is
certain with Bryan; we. therefore, lose
nothing in fighting Bryan. by putting
up Dewey We may be able to prevent
Bryan from getting the two-thirds vote
in convention necessary to nominate,
and if we do ii will be Organism s
finish. We might also nominate Dewey
a long chance, but there is nothing TO
lose and everything to Win"
1t is questionable how far the hero
of Manila has been let into the real
plans of those who have pushed hin,
into the presidential arena. If they
have treated him fairly and laid tbs
whole case before him; in other words
if they have not set trap for blunt
old sailor man who is not supposed to
be proficient in all the intrgues of land
politics, the country will have no rea-
son to complain. In such a Contin-
genCy, while one of it's heroes may
suffer some diminution of lustel
through his voluntary exchange of the
pedestal for the hustings, there would
be the consoling reflection that to dOwr
Bryan is pretty nearly as patriotic an
undertaking as to sink MontOio. Bat
if these clever opponents Of the Ne.
braska Office seeker have led Dewey
into their game bindfOlded, they Will
live to feel the weight of public opin.
ions dspleasure.