West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1904-12-01
How II All Happened Anyhow. as
Told by
CHARLES A. EDVARES, SECRETARY
Democratic National Congressional
Committee, From Inside Infor-
nation at Headquarters.
Special Correspondent OF Tho Argus.
WASHINGTON, ID. C.,

causes for going so Overwhelmingly
Republican, the lessons it has taught
and everything connected Herewith,
are the sole topics of conversation
at the National Capitol among the
men of prominence in tie national
councils as they arrive to take up
the work of the short session of
Congress which opens earley in
December. The general consensus
of opinion among the prominent
Democrats who have arrived here
concerning the causes which brought
about the defeat of the Democratic
party, may be summed up in one
sentence: Prosperity, Roosevelt's
personality and revenge. Undoubt-
eddy, the general conditions existing
throughout the country were such
that many business men hesitated to
change for fear that something
would go wrong. Again, the vivid
personality of Roosevelt so filled the
public eye with its varegated color
and was so pleasing thereto, espcci-
ally TO the young voter, that he re-
ceived many hundved thousand
votes that no other Republican
would have received.
Again, the Bryan Democrats were
bent on revenge for the course taken
by the Eastern wing or Gold Demo
Gratis in the two campaigns of 1896
and 1900 and thousands of them
either voted straight for Roosevelt
or else stayed at home and did not
vote at all. The result in the State
of Missouri proved this beyond all
question, where not less than fifty
thousand Democrats stayed away
from the polls. This same thing
undoubtedly happened IN many 9TH
er States and the result could not
have been anything else than the Sc
called landslide for the Republican
ticket.
When the vote is cast up and the
totals are given it will be found that
the vote has been very much less
than it was in 1900 counting the re-
gular ratio of increase in the four
intervening years. This was a stay
at home election. The majority of
the people were satisfied with pres.
ent conditions, and the majority Of
the Democrats were resentful toward
the eastern Democracy which was
responsible for the defeats of the
past two campaigns.
They felt that the very men who
conducted this campaign had be-
trayed them In the past and they
felt no interest in this campaign.
While many of them would not vote
the Republican ticket they showed
their resentment by staying at home
and having nothing to do with the
campaign. A member of Congress
from Missouri who went down in the
avalanche in his State told me how
this resentment worked out there.
He said that Bryan had oceans of
people to hear him speak in that
State and when some of the rank
and file who had been Democrats all
their lives and had twice Loyalty sup
ported Bryan were asked about his
speeches and his advice to them TO
vote for Parker and the whole Dem.
ocratic ticket, they would answer:
That's all right, Bryan has to be
regular, but we do not" That tells
the feeling in a nut she'll and it
worked the same way in every State
in-the Union. They felt that the
two parties were too much alike and
that there was no room in this coun.
try for two Republican parties.
They believe in Democratic princi.
pies and Democratic methods in the
interest Of the whole people and
when the Democratic party becomes
Democratic and fights the peoples
battles then they will all gladly sup.
port the ticket and thu party will
win battles.
] believe I said in this correspon.
deuoe away back last spring that it
would be useless to put up a mega.
tive md coloTless candidate against
Roosevelt. I said it because ! was
here on the ground and was watch
ing events as they shaped themselves
and because I saw the trend to
Roosevelt Of many elements Of
strength simply on account Of the
fact that he was strenuous and did
things with swish and a sweep that
is very pleasing 70 the average
American citizen. What we needed
then vas man who was just as rad
icsl and as strenuous as was Mr..
Roosevelt and who would promise
to the people that n he was elected
he would swat the trusts hip and
thigh and stop their robbery Of the