The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1902-04-01
The Power OF
a Sovereign.
Henry WatterSOn's Response to the
New York Tines.
.Houisville Courier-Journal.9

louisville Courier-Journal9
Observation-Disclosures the general tt
tie Of Colonel Watterson's Bogy." the
New York Times, prcfacing its i'll opin-
ion of recent speech of mine TO an
association of Virginia Democrats by
some observations Of kind rather fip-
pant than convincing, proceeds to say:
When Colonel Watterson undertakes 10
tell US that the president of the United
states us engaged IN an attealpt to turn
this government into a military desDot-
ISM Colonel Waterson ceases to be im-
presslve, or valuable. or even serious
W hen he says of the president. affecting
the simplicity of the cowboy, he conceals /
beneath the self-cOnhdence and queer
manners of the brOncO-buster the senti-
ments and ambitions if not the talents, Of
o DlaZ, we may waive the question of
the prOpriety of applying such language
70 the incumbent of the highest office in
tne l nlted states, and content ourselves
with simply saying that the artist has
not produced a speaking likeness Of the
president. And when he goes on to cite
tue new army reorganization bill as i
PROOF OF the presidents reasonable pur-
pose, we are compelled 70 say that he
has not the least notion of what he is
talking about.
The Times is truly tastidious in the
limitations it would ahlx to political
criticism. If it be sincere. it should
follow its own prescription. To say Of
a fellow-craftsman, who has at least
some experience in public affairs and
some credit for good faith in dealing
with them, that he has not the least
notion Of what he is talking about"
while affecting such sensitiVity as to
the president of the United States, is,
We submit, to emulate that particular
bird which is chiefly distinguished for
fOu ing its own nest Nor does the
Times much mend its attitude in this
regard when it goes on to say:
Il would be interesting to know where
Colonel WattersOn got his information
that because the reprimanded lieutenant
general, answering the summons of ID
committee OF congresses was his duty
expresses an opinion adverse to that bill,
1t is proposed 10 retire him from the ser
vice When 1t is proposed by the pTesi-
dent to retire the officer at the head Of
the army on that ground We shall all
sympathize with the indignation which
Colonel WattersOn has worked up in adj
vance of the fact. But when the colonel
describes the bill in question as an act
to make the president of the United
States a military dictator he really ought
to inform himself a little about that
measure.
In the face of the fact. notorious here
at Washington, that the club" Of re
urament' has been for weeks suspend
ed over the head Of General Miles, the
Tines Interrogation point suggesting
ignorance becomes. on its part. very
nearly allied to disingenuOusness. SUt
when it rushes to the defense Of Mr..
Roots army bill-to be thrown out by
the military committee of the senate
embracing in its membership the most
trays the cloven foot. Read in con-
nection with the following further ex-
tract, which, for purpose of illustra-
ton, l venture to make. we are enab led
to ascertain precisely where we are
at
In the first place. it is a measure which
Mr. Root has been urging ever since he
became secretary of war. So that the
original purpose Of il must have been to
MAKE military dictator Of him whom
Colonel WattersOn calls Mckinley. the
statesman" by way of invidous anuithe-
sis to Roosevelt, the rough rider But
the whole business is bosh The bill IN
question is simply a bill to promote the
reorganization of the army on modern
lines. If Colonel Waterson had read the
bill. or had taken the opinion upon It
of the progressive officers of the army
who are not in possession of the soft
things of staff appointments, he could
ilDL Dt 50 dDSAAu aS 10 EEDAEsEAAA ~ d. q
bill to make the president, be he the
statesman or rough rider, military
dictator.
There is in all this a most suspicious
shall l say servile-pTomptitude, red
client of the spirit which affects con-
servatism in lesser things, the better
to advance the ends Of extremism in
greater ones; because every Repubh
iiean practices-from the abrogatiOn Of
the old-fashioned legislative functions
Of the national house OF representatives
and the substitution of the autocracy
of a committee on rules to the assumP-
ton by the president of not only the
ipse dixit, but also the temper and
manners of the dictator-travels the
well-worn familiar historic highway
toward absoIutism and arbitrary pow
er.
He who cannot without much stretch
Of imagination see how a union of the
president, supported by the army, and
the speaker OF the house, supported by
the committee on rules, might not, in
time of danger and excitement, lay the
basis for a INSTRUMENTATION of the gov
ernment-that is, for the prolOngatiOn
Of one party in power and the cOntin-
uance Of one president, a Ia Diaz, in
office-can see nothing except he runs
directly against it.
Q . 9
Absolutism in politics means, among
other things, corruption in politics. Ar
bitrary power becomes in the end but
another name for breach of trust. In
all ages, under all governments, be
ginning with patriotic professions,
sometimes patriotic NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
the self-appOinted guardian of the ma
tiOn's credit and now the self-anOinted
civil service refOTmer-One assumption
has followed upon another assumption,
until of a sudden the people have
awakened some fine morning TO discOv-
er the legend official posted upon the
public walls and, as occasion has re-
quired, a sentTy-bOx at each street
corner.
But, of course, I'VE" are in no such
danger I'VE" are an exception to all
experience and all rule. The man on
horseback foreshadOwed in the person
of General Grant prefgured again
though it may be only slyly peeping
out of the stable-yard of the White
House in the person of Theodore
ROosevelt-''he'' can never menace our
liberties or lead a chance despOtic par
ty majority to the overthrow Of the
constitution and the MeXicanization of
the government. Oh. no. The very in
timation exposes its author to detrac-
ton, either as an alarmiSt who does
not know what he is talking about or
else as a sensationalist who does not
care.
I will not burden this letter by a dis
cussion for an army bill which, for the