The Saint Paul globe., 1904-06-20
sA-REAL.REFoRMER

mayor mcclellan, OF new 4 OIK city,
continues to delight his friends and dis
appoint his enemies. Tammany Halt
has been preparing to make great
showing at st. Louis, to which 1t pro-
poses to send some 1,2Q0 delegates. All
the members of the city administration.
including the board OF aldermen. were
booked for the outing The city char
ter. however, requires the board of al
dermen-to meet on the first Monday in
July; and the mayor, not satisfied with
enforcing penalties provided for nom,
attendance, has ordered the aldermanic
body ''to stay at home and attend to
business"
This is an attitude as unusual as it is
commendable lin an executive official.
We have not, for instance, observed
any mandatory orders issuing from the
White house to prevent federal officials
from running away from their jobs in
order to manipulate the state conven-
tions. The act of Mayor. Mcclellan is
all the more singular and courageous
in that he has been supposed to be
possible dark horse. It is an open Sc
cret that the Tan1ihariy' authorities
have had him in mind as "a compromise
candidate, and there has been much
talk and no little work with reference
to springing him on the national con-
yention.
The strong wine of such a possibility
even is enough to upset the head of
older and wiser men that Mayor Nc
Cleilan. The intoxication OF a nomina-
tion for the presidency. although virtu-
ally assured long in advance, has trans
formed Theodore Roosevelt from a
straightforward, sincere man into the
bargaining politician, quieting his con-
science with the plea that the end JUS
tifies the means. So great a promotion
might well have caused Mayor McCIel-
Ian to overlook an ii,fornaality On the
part of his friends for which they could
not be called seriously to account. He
chooses instead to stand by the plain
letter of his official duty and let conse-
quences take care. of themselves s.....,
This. is the spirit and temper and
courage. that, sow and ripen great po-
Iitica1 haryests. Mcclellan was COM
ma "a tfva11r 11oi-pavr ,soop +bo,,cl,+- -
only as the son of his father, when he
was made the. Ta1inairnany candidate
for nlayor9 of Greater New York. Few
people at that time believed him to be
more than a f1gurehead for the shrewd
leaders behind him. Less than six
months In an Office which SO able a man
as Seth Low proved himself unable to
handle in two years have made for him
a phenomenal record. He has cleaned
up the town, he has reformed the police
force, he has enforced the laws, he has
put an end to gambling and has shown
that a Tamnany man can be real re-
former as well. His courage and good
sense in this latest act are equally in
dicative Of the man. ,....,s
+ This is the path to political honor
and preferment if he has strength to
follow it. = 1t rs the path that opened
everythinsj before Grover Cleveland
Mayor Mcclellan, Is NOT; likely to be the
Democratic candidate this wear, and it
= zfESTtSiF
would probably be unfortunate both for
himself and for his parts party if he should be-
He has but to f1iaintafh. the attitude and
continue the record that mark him,
however, in order to make his nomina-
tion and election to the highest Office in
the land one of the political certainties
Of the future.
-.