The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1902-08-04
RoosEvELT's UNPoPULARITY.
1t May Change the Phase of the Pres
idential Situation in 1904.
o. Z. Stealey in Louisville Courier
Journal

were going along very quietly anu
smoothly for the Democrats until for
mer President Cleveland made his
speech before the Tilden club in New
York, and then the racket began and
has been kept up increasingly since.
What the former president said and
the way he said it evidently gave Of
Tense to many Democrats, and they
have not been slow in voicing their
resentment. OF course Mr. Cleveland
is as selfish. egotistical and ambi-
tious as ever, and is impressed With
the vain belief that he is the only man
living that can lead the Democratic
party to victory. But success with Mr..
Cleveland. even if it We're assured.
would not be a victory for the Demo-
cratic party or its principles. While
president for two terms Mr.. Cleveland
did no more to establish Democratic
principles at Washington than have
Mckinley and the present occupant of
the White House. This is a pretty
broad statement to make, but it is a
true one. 1t is true that he appointed
a few Democrats to office, but always
with the understanding that they
should not help their party out in
political campaign.
g 81 g
I did not start out, however. TO abuse
Mr.. Cleveland or anyone else, for l do
not think that Mr.. Cleveland has any
more chance of being IL Democratic
candidate for president in 1904 than
toad has TO swallow an elephant In
deed, l regard him as "A moldy back
number and only factor among the
little coterie of New York mugwumps-
He has had his day, and a sorry day
it was for the Democratic party.
Mr.. Bryan is also again on the ram
page and doing a great deal of talking.
What he is at present saying is doing
himself and his party no good. He
should realize as all good Democrats
do that the less said at this time by
the Democrats the better it viii be for
the interests of the party. Let the Re
publicans do the talking and the fuss
ing They have lots of trouble of their
own and as the year goes by and an
other year and another congress come
in their troubles will increase. and not
a little. If the Democrats will only sit
steady in the boat and do no rocking:
If they will only saw wood" as it were,
they will win hands down in 1904.
Z. g g
There is no menace or no danger to
! the Democratic party from Roosevelt
in 1904 1t is even money now in New
York that he viii not be nominated.
| and if by some strange fate he should
| be, he viii be beaten out of his boots
( by the Democratic candidate whoever
| he may be. He will pass under the
rod of defeat the same as have all the
/ other vice presidents who gained the
| position of president by the route of
I succession. That other New Yorker,
| General Arthur, who went down in
( 1884, was a greater and better man
] than President Roosevelt, and was as
/ strong and popular with his party in
| 1882. two years before the convention,
! as is Mr.. Roosevelt now.
These state conventions that meet
! and indorse candidates FOR president
| two years before the time for action
| amount to little. The tug of war comes
| in the decisive year. a man is NOM
! mated unanimously for congress for
| his first term. and two years later he
| is shelved and nobody nominated in
| his place. And yet, as is often the
! case, the beaten man has made good
! congressman.
! But 10 return to Roosevelt He is
! now enjoying the top wave of his great
position, prestige and popularity. He
/ thinks that he has the people with him
and has a walkover as his own sue
! eessor. Many people think the same
thing, but they are fooled. So is the
/ president.
What makes you think SOP is
asked.
Simply for the reason that Mark
Hanna. Tom Plat. Allison, Fairbanks
Aldrich, old and wise Republican lead
ers. are flirting with and footing Teddy
and he is not yet onto their little game
and when he does tumble TO their
music it will be too late for him to
| recover
And there are others after the scaIr
Of Teddy besides the willy senators who
| do business with him. After congress
| adjourned / spent a week or ten days
in New York, and confess that I was
amazed at the talk / heard from bis
money men against Roosevelt A multi
millionaire and a good Republican told
| me that he had no idea Roosevelt
would be nominated. But if he should
De-" he said, Il know that any good
conservative man on the Democratic
| ticket would carry New York agains
him by 100000
What's the matter?" 1 asked.
"Oh. matter enough" was the re
joinder. Roosevelt has not the con
hdence OF the money, or business in
terests of the country. He is sort O
cranky and is liable to raise the deyi
any time. We are always WONDERING
and dreading something disastrous
that he may do
] Il
| publicans say about the same thing
One man told me that when McKinle,
died if Roosevelt had not pledged him
self to retain the Mckinley cabine
and carry out McKinley's policies Their,
would have been the greatest financia
crash in New York and the countr,
that was ever known.
The man the big money men want
the men who put up the dough- Z
elect Republican presidents, is Mari
| Hanna. He is their friend and there i
no danger to be feared from him. H
makes no bad breaks. He is aIway
serene, unruffled and knows his bust
/ ness. He is modest these days and i
protesting gently to all that he has NJ
thoughts of the presidential nomina
ton. Don't believe him. gentle reade;
He is fooling thee Remember that h
is chairman of the national Republican
/ committee, and that he is not losing
single political trick. Why, only a fey
short weeks ago he refused the reques
of the president to allow one of hi
committeeman to retire in the Cleye
land district to please Burton. The oh
man intends to hold fast to the ma
: chine. not only in his own state, bu
throughout the country.
At the Manhattan Beach hotel tn
other day sat the astute Senator Tor
: Platt, surrounded by a group OF Ne1
York politicians. Someone asked hir
: if he thought Roosevelt would be nom
mated for president in 1904 The an
! | swer was:
Yes, l guess so. We are all fo
Teddy now and he winked the othe
eye. And so Ii goes. All for Tedd
5 now. with a smile, a smireh and