Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1900-04-07

attitude before the people that causes
regret and disappointment all over the
land. Gone the strength and the mod
esty which made him so great in war
and peace in the far East, and which
seemed to make his fame as unblem-
ished as it was secure, and in their
place a laundering vanity that is moth
ing short of the pitiful and pathetic.
When Dewey said, last fall, that he
was not and would not be candidate
for the Presidency the people honored
him the more for his decision. When
the story appeared, this week. that he
| had changed his mind. the public
| charitably believed it yellow journal
| fake, but subsequent interviews have
confirmed the report and the national
hero has fallen from his pedestal.
What does it all mean? When he
came home six months ago, public en-
thusiasm was at such a pitch that the
announcement of his ambition to be
tant factor in the political situation.
But all this has changed. The public
is saner now and realizes that a man
must be more than a successful sea
fighter to make a good President. 1t
does not agree with Deweys innocent
assertion that 1.-The office of the Presi-
dent is not difficult one to fill"
Moreover, nothing in the future can be
more certain than that Mckinley and
Bryan will be the nominees of their
respective parties. No other name
than McKinley's has been mentioned
among Republicans. The party lead
ers want his nomination, and the peo-
pie demand it. In the Democracy Bry-
an is greater than his party, and as
sure as he lives he will receive the
Democratic nomination on the absurd
16 to l platform. So what can Dewey
mean by his change Of attitude?
Washington society says it is the am
bition of his wife who has forced him
to this position. Certain it is that
since his marriage he has changed and
lost much of his former hold on the
public. The unfortunate house episode
is not forgotten.
Others figure it out that he is the
catspaw of politicians who wanted
to stampede one or the other
Of the great parties to his sup
port. Their attempt has been a hope
less failure, for hardly a prominent
man or a newspaper in the whole
country does more than to note. the
absurdity of the thing and express sim
cere regret at the mistake. They all
say too bad" and too late" If it is
neither his rich wife's ambition nor
the schemes of others who prefer to
we must conclude that Admiral Dewey
has mistaken the significances of the
cheering crowds which have greeted
him and of the gifts and letters which
he has received. His head was turned
and he was spoiled by the hero wOr-
ship. He has developed a boyish en-
thusiasm for himself which has
blinded him to reason until he has
dreamed that there was really a popu-
lar call for him to become a Presiden-
tial candidate. What a fatal mistake,
and what a rude awakening he is get
ting. He has brought deep sorrow to
his best friends, and bitter regret to
himself which can only make unhappy
his declining years.
When American military heroes in
the past have turned their attention to
politics with any degree of success
they have had definite opinions Of their
own on the national issues and We're
not afraid to express them. But Dew
ey has refused to say where he stands
or what he stands for. He gives the
impression that he would take a NOM
ination from any party upon any plat
form. He simply says he would be
only too glad to be President and
that he regards the office as mot a
difficult one" to fill His position is az
vague as it is weak and hopeless. OF
course, nobody can dispute that
George Dewey has right to his am
bition to be President. That is the
dream of every American schoolboy
But in his case how much greater he
would have stood, how much fairer
would have been his page in history
| had not the firm refusal of last Oc-
| tober been followed by this unhappy
| episode of April.
The candidacy of Admiral Dewey
| will be nothing more than a brief
newspaper sensation. The country
| does not take it seriously. Nothing
but a political revolution, which seems
most unlikely possibility. can give
his announcement any influence on the
coming campaign. But for his sake,
what n pity it is. Those who tell in
coming years the splendid story of his
life will have to begin it with an apol-