BoletiÌn mercantil de Puerto Rico. (San Juan, P.R.) 18??-1918, 1901-12-14
SAN JUAN, DECEMBER a
Editorial Comment.


With the assembling of Congress we
have begun to realize the full signltlcance
of the great change that was effected in our
political conditions when Theodore Roos'
evelt succeeded William Nc KInley as
President. The bullet of the assassin rang
out the old and rang in the new with a
sharpness and completeness Of Transition
without parallel in our history. In place
of q man who had fought through our evil
war there stepped into the White House 2
President who acas only two years OLD
when the war was declared and only seven
wears old when it ended. In place OF
man who had taken an active part IN the
national politics of the country during the
third of q century following the war, serv.
ing half of that time in congress, we had
as President man who had never been
in Congress, and whose political activities
had been confined mainly to his city ana
state. Few presidents in our history TAD
intimate personal relations with larger
number of the leading men OF both parties
in Congress than Mckinley, and few have
had such knowledge with smaller number
of them than Roosevelt has.
Perception of this extraordinary change
in the situation is uppermost in e minds
of senators and representatives IS they are
coming together in Washington now. Many
of them-men who have been the real
powers in both houses and in the politics OF
their states and of the nation for many
years-are lin the position of an active
modern man of business who finds himself
suddenly deprived of the use OF telephone
and telegraph because all the ''wlras age
ioere thei q su many 'pU'Itttar voies "ucw'd"
as there are in Washington to day. Nc
Kinle,'S associates and ttllOw politlca
workers had been in almost constant COLI
panionship with him tor many years, some
of them tracing it back through the war.
They knew him and loved him as all men
did, and they could approach him on terms
of familiar friendship. In other words, an
enormous number OF men had "pails" upon
him OF one klnd or another, and they Worked
them for what they were worth. All these
"pulls" have been severed utterly. There
may be new ones established witd President
Roosevelt, but the old ones canUot lie made
to connect. Political business cannot be
resumed at the old stand in the old way !;
an entirely new business, acith nes methods,
must be substituted.
This is not to say that President Roose
velt is to part company with the leaders Of
his party or with its members in Coz gress
There is not, in our 0piAioD, the remgiesi
danger OF such catastrophe as that w,ud
be to the nation, for the rupture of thu Re-
publican party now would mean tue success
Of Bryan in 1904. All that we mean 10 saJ
is that the leaders of the party and is msm.
hers in congress will have to find method
Of getting on with President Ro 1sevelE tn t
will be radically different in many respects
from the method which they followed with
his predecessor They will fad, after one
or two visits t. the White House, that there
IL a new anu very strong personality there
but they will find also that it is neither
cantankerous nor an imrracticable perso
nality. Somebody has called him prac.
tical theorist', and that is precisely what he
IL. As he himself is fond of Saying, he
finds it more difficult to live down to his
ideals than to live up to u EN-. He con Q
a. near as be can to securing the ideal, but
he will not sacrifice rasulsRip blind pursuit
Of the ideal.
After all, what is a .sstheoretcav mani
Is there anybody, statesman, lawyer, mer
chant or other, who does not conduct the bus.
mess Of his life upon a theory? He would
never succeed If he d1 not President
Roosevelt has very clearly defined theory
10 his own mind, and be leaves no doubt 10
anybody else's mind as to what 1T is. He
believes in party government, and he be
lieges that the best government atta;nable
Is best for the party that supplies IL as we'll
~ for the country that receives it. Bstset n
two equally fit men for given place, he
believes in taking the party rather that the
man, simply because he can see
10 peimauent advantages to be gained BY
lisrupting your own party with the ineyi-
able result Of putting another and and less
equitable party into power. Insttad Of an.
sgonizing the politicians OF bis own party
Ie believes in scorkiDg scith Il EN- to secure {
he best results, even though at times it may 4
70 necessary to sacrifice ideal results. O1e q
hing he has never sacr feed knowin9ly. +
md that is his fundamental principle that
one but reputable men shell be put in pu
lie office. Is
1t is not surprising that in the presence b
I theory Of this nature both the scra.h Of
he dishonest politician aod the venom Of
be unjust critic have proved p0Werless fos 5
arm. The dishonest politician soon finds 9
bat he cannot publicly oppose man who q
vs. that he does not object to appointing
Dliticians 10 Office, but only says be will
OF appoint disrep sble aud Incompetent p
DlItIcians to offic The unjust crItc SOON 4
Iscovers that ass Ill upon bal psrty gop In
'nment iG cne b. ng, aud assault upau II
suy government is quite another; ia oiherl
ords, that president may be party a
IN and ,tlI not be seoundrel. The only 10
,pse there il foE Independence IN politics