The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-06-21
general, the symbol of the Republican
party as 1t exists today Mrs. Anterior

| party as II exists today. Mrs. Anterior
says:
u do not pretend to decide between the merits ant
the black iniqty of trusts, but certainly he seemeC
| 10 me today, standing among his platitudes ant
carossrg the audience with his unctuous voice. tc
| be the very symbol of the Republican party as il
appears in the eyes Of the Democrats.
No sane man will deny the Republican party
| its virtues and its careful md patriotic states
men, but Hanna is the party its enemies wish t.
| See lt-in other words, its worst side
1t is not at all necessary to hate the Re
publican party in order to agree fully with
| this estimate of Mr.. Hanna. The party
| is not entirely made up of men of his
J type. But it is ruled by them at the pres
ent time, and no one can possibly deny it.
Hanna himself was not afraid to say with
the roundest confidence. that he controlled
this convention. He does. The men who al
low him to be put forward as their figure
head cannot complain if the rest of the
world takes them at their own figure.
In all ages, especially at the time of an
| impending struggle between great forces,
men step forward as the types of these
contestants. the embodiments of one in
huence or another. AS civilizations grow
more complex, the leaders of various fac
lions become, curiously enough, more
simple and elemental. They are specialized
individuals. Every political doctrine in
modern American life has its totem in the
shape of a leader. who commands his fol-
lowing, not through his personal charac-
ter alone, but as the representative of a
principle. Hanna represents the power OF
the Republican party as it exists today
q power allied with trusts and corpora
tons, with money. with legislation COM
manded. created, and corrupted by money.
Aggressive as the character of the man is,
great as his personal power may be, he
holds control not for these reasons, but be-
cause he embodies force which is con-
trolling political action in this country
the force of large financial interests, af-
fecting millions of people, but contributing
to the enrichment Of but few. Everybody
recognizes that. The opposition to Hanna
boss s to be destroyed the influences which
made him must also be removed, or other
bosses will spring up in his place.
The country has now reached a point
where the money power openly seeks to
control the Government. No attempt is
made to conceal that fact. But as Mrs
Anterior remarks, Croesus is "a paternal
Croesus," and claims that the Government
is safe in his hands. The question now be-
fore the people is whether such method
of government is beneficial on general
principles. Are We to give up the idea that
no man is good enough to govern another
man without that others consent, and
make new rule. that dollars shall deter
mine such fitness? Are We to create finan-
cial instead of intellectual and moral stan
dards for the men who rule this country?
BY encouraging the predominance of Han
ma, supporting his plans, and obeying his
dicta the Republican party sets itself
claims that there is any special fitness to !
govern In Senator Hanna, or his creatures, |
aside from their acceptability to certain |
organizations against which |
the people generally are embittered. If |
Hanna is to be made supreme in authority, |
will the cause of good government in this !
be advanced. or not? That is the
question which the American people will
consider between now and November.