The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1904-12-16
MEANING OF THE ELECTION.
Triumph for Ideals OF Honesty
Justice and Manhood.

triumph Tor ioSals oI TIoHcSly,
Justice and Manhood.
In. the last issue of The Saturday
Evening Post, William Allen White,
under the caption, The Reorganiza-
ton Of the Republican Party" writes of
the great problems before the nation
In part he says in the article;
The republican party of the 9Os is
not the republican party of to day
Not merely have issues changed-pro-
lection and the gold standard becoming
obsolete by their general acceptance
but the basic principles of'issues have
changed in the four years last past.
The republican party has turned the
corner, and is now on new road. So
strong is the leash Of party loyalty on
men that few republicans realize how
far they are in a new highway, going
in different direction from that which
Mckinley led them The average re-
publican has not begun to feel strange
among the new issues, because he is
surrounded by his old party friends.
But for three years the party has been
following President Roosevelt and he
has led the way from the consideration
of problems that concern the accumula-
ton Of national wealth toward problems
that concern its equitable distribution.
This is a new attitude toward property
for the American people to take.
Property rights have been held sacred.
Heretofore the people have not gone
behind the abstract OF title. Might
made right. The rich man was good by
reason Of his wealth. Larceny paused |
somewhere between 500, 900 and 500, 900
and became "misapplication Of funds
AT 1000 600 it became a marvel of |
high finance" When a dispute con-
cerned q sum of money set down in |
seven or eight figures the interference Of |
the sheriff, until three years ago. was !
regarded by the American people as
official impertinence, no matter what |
moral turpitude covered the disputant |
who was in the wrong. But that spirit |
has disappeared. The American people
following their leader, are now quite
willing to believe that one set of morals
must govern all men, and that mere
wealth does not signify goodness, any
more than mere poverty proves virtue.
Therefore, the triumph of Theodore
Roosevelt at the recent election means
infinitely more than the personal vic
tory OF man. Indeed, the fortunes of |
the President from now on are i'm
material-except that he is needed as
leader during the few critical years
while the new movement in American
politics is taking solid form. But the
tendency manifest in this election to
consider problems of distribution rather
than those of the accumulation of !
wealth is strong, definite and perma-
nent one in American politics. Theo-
dore Roosevelt can give it great aid by
merely living and working with the
people during the coming four years,
but the tendency has gone beyond him;
it is in the heart of the people. Per
haps he had less to do with it than it |
had to do with his attitude.
We know well enough how to get |
rich, but we do not know as nation
or as individuals-ho to be fair The
problem of distribution is the problem
of fair. play. Roosevelt calls it a
square deal" The Issue is not between
labor and capital, as such. That branch
of the main issue is rather better ex-
pressed as the issue between wickedly
aggrandized capital abusing its power
and dishonesty organized labor vicious
ly misusing its power on the one hand
and the ordinary run of American
people on the other hand. But that is
merely a branch of the issue; vital
branch, Of course, just as honesty in
public service is branch of the issue;
and it is big in the minds of the people
just now. Also, on the other side the
enroachments of government functions
on the rights of the individual become
an issue growing out of the main issue.
This makes it difficult to define the
main issue in explicit terms Fair play
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