The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1903-06-24
CLEAN SWEEP LOOKED FOR.
Democrats as Well AS Republicans
Expect Big Republican
Victory in 1904

Victory in 1904.
1t is evident that both democrats
ana republicans are looking for big
republican victory in 1904. This is
shown, so far as regards the demo-
Gratis, by the way they put forward
asplrants for their nomination. Not
one of the half-dozen or dozen Cleve-
land newspaper boomers have said
or animated that he would have any
chance of election. What they did
say was that he would keep down the
republican majority in the electoral
college to smaller figure than would
any other democrat who could be
named. This is the way also that
| the boomers for Parker, for German,
for Bryan and for all the rest of
the democratic nomination possibili.
ties talk. No democrat expects to
see a democratic victory in 1904.
North, south, east and west the
democratic journals talk in the same
strain. Each says his especial ia
vorite would come as near election
as any other democrat could, or near
er. Nobody ever before saw candi-
dates in this country in such humor
wooed, says the ST. Louis Globe-Dem-
ocrat.
This feeling of republican invinci
bility for 1904 is perhaps responsible
for the prediction of Representative
Slemp, of Virginia, that the repub-
licans have a good chance to carry
that state next year. Il firmly be-
lieve," says that congressman, that
Virginia will go for Roosevelt in
1904" While republicans in general
have not been looking for gains in
the south in next years canvass, such
things are possible. We have been
told by democratic papers that Roose-
welt is unpopular in the south, but
this assertion may safely be disre-
garded. He is sure to get as large a
! vote in the south as any republican
could, and the probability is that he
can get larger vote than any other
of his party. However. the republic
ans have not been counting on car
rying any new southern states. They
win very likely carry Maryland and
Delaware, while West Virginia is sure
to be republican. No democrat has
claimed Nest Virginia for his side
at any time since 1886. That state is
as safely in the republican column
as is Ohio or Illinois Delaware and
| Maryland are pretty sure, too. to de-
clare for the republican ticket.
No rainbow chasing southwark will
be engaged in by the republicans in
| 1904. One of Tie reasons for this is
that none of the southern states will
be necessary for. the success of the
republican ticket. Several times in
the past the republicans had hopes
of making big gains in the south, but
always these accessions failed to ma
terialize. At the present time the
republicans are giving very little
thought to the southern states in a
| political way. The south is very
interesting and important section of
the country, but it has no influence
in shaping the country's policies or
in choosing the country's candidates.
In fact, it is as isolated in parti-
;an sense as if it was in the colonial
stage. No republican asks what the
south wants in the way of a candi-
date or Il policy. and the democrats
also ignore it. This is not very
pleasant reflection for the south, but
it is the truth, and it is truth
which the south has frequently heard
from both the inside and the out in
recent years. Until the south as
serts its independence and gets a
voice in the big conventions and at
the polls. nobody will take any no
tice of it in partisan sense. 1t
would please the republicans exceed
ingly to win Virginia and several of
the other southern states in 1904.
Such a change would benefit those
states materially as well as social
| ly. Moreover. the winning of one or
two of them next year is within the
scope of possibility. But the repub-
lican party can sweep the country
without getting an electoral vote
from any of the present solid south,
and consequently it will not take the
! south into consideration in the selec-
ton of its ticket or the framing Of
| its platform.
|