The Washington times., 1903-12-26
Marcus AlonZo Hanna.
What This Ohio Business Man and
Politician Is, and What He Is Not.

Politician Is, and What He Is Not.
The frequent mention of Senator
Hanna's name as a possible candidate
for the Presidency has brought him
INTO public notice u-pre prominently
tLan at any time since, as Me-
kinley's next friend, he was admitted
TO be the power behind the throne.
The popular impressions of Hanna
are somewhat conflicting and Devil
dering, although he does not strike
one as complex character, and, in
deed. he is not. The trouble is that
while typical politician of today, he
does not correspond to any of the
figures familiar to the imagination OF
the average man.
Senator Hanna Is not, of course, the
brutal, unfeeling, constituencies crea-
ture which the political cartoons of
the Bryan party represented him to
be, any more than Mr.. Roosevelt is a
cowboy terror riding about with a pis-
to- in each hand and one in his teeth.
Neither is the Ohio statesman the
wonder of sagacity and wise con-
servatism which other people think
him. The simple truth is that he is
the business man IN politics.
There were once statesmen in this
country, and there are few even to-
cay, to whom political life is a serious
profession, to be undertaken with the
view of realizing certain ideals polit-
zeal. moral, or both. In doing this,
means not altogether irTeproachable
nay De used, but the point is that this
type OF statesman Is man to whom
abstract ideas mean something. He
believes in free trade or protection,
reciprocity with Cuba, imperialism or
anti-imperialism, not because his per-
sonal interests dictate such belief, but
because he has thought the thing out
and come to his own conclusions. He
adopts the political creed of some
party, and works more for reputa-
ton than for any more material per-
sonal end This type of politician
Senator Hanna is not.
There are politicians at the present
day, and there always have been poll
ticians, who are in the business solely
for what they can make. They 60
into ward politics, and afterward
State and even national politics, as
they might go into The tooth powder
or patent medicine business, and their
methods are much the same as those
Of an enterprising drummer. They
Ike the money, and next to that they
like the power. This type of poll
tieian Senator Hanna is not.
In tins country, within recent years,
there have come TO be, in increasing
numbers, business men who, having
n ade money in some form of trade,
become interested IN politics as affect
ing their trade, and study the hand
hing of political leaders precisely as
they would any other problem which
came up in course of their business.
They not infrequently form warm
friendships for some of these leaders.
and are willing to advance their III
teIests in all possible ways, at least so
long as the politician remains loyal
and ready TO serve the ends Of com
n'erce. 1t Is a noticeable fact that
such business men rarely, if ever.
form a friendship with a political
leader of strong convictions on alb
slract questions. Such men they do
not understand, like, or trust. The
ioea of a man caring so much about
a principle as to be willing to risk his
everlasting fortunes and his reputa-
ton for good judgment in defense of
II is utterly incomprehensible to these
unimacinative and solid men. They
are apt to be equally imperturbable
when questions of civic right and
wrong are involved, and hence are
ready to stand by men who have served
them even when Caught with the
goods on them,' as Rathbone was. In
a word, when they go into politics
they expect to condone dirty work
and so long as the end is reached, fine
distinctions are imperceptible to them
That is the type of politician Senator
Hanna Is.
The personal conscience and the po-
htieal conscience of such a man ars
curiously distinct. The personal con-
science may be active enough to keep
him upright and generous in private
l..