The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-10-30
DEMOCRATS WILL
 NAME ROOSEVELT Trend of Public Opinion Seems
 Miraculous TRIP SOUTH AN EXAMPLE Every Section of the Country Seems to Be Vieng With the Others to Show Honor to Popu-
 lar Executive.
TRIP SOUTH AN EXAMPLE

Chicago, october 2s.-tspeelal.) )-Nalter Wellman writes to the Record Herald from Washington as follows:
 , Theodore Roosevelt will be nominated for President by the democratic party in 1908, will be indorsed by the republican party and will be well-nigh unanimously elected
 This truly startling prophecy is made not by your correspondent, but by several southern democrats and others who have either spoken written to him on the subject. It is a pretty big pill in the l forecast line to swallow at one dose, and careful observers will hesitate a long time before they conclude that such a | revolution in otir politics is to be worked l through the phenomenal popularity of a single man. As l have heretofore had l occasion to remark in consideration of the | political future of Mir Roosevelt, many l things may occur during the next three years. It is by no means certain his pop ularity with the nfasses of the people, now one of the most amazing things ever seen in our political life, win endure the test of the coming years and trials. 1 A former democratic senator and one who has had much to do with the manage ment of affairs for his party during the | last eight years says he has not the | slightest doubt MT. Roosevelt will be the democratic nominee in 1908. In this gen | tlemans opinion the democrats will make an opportunity to rehabilitate themselves | by holding their convention before the re- publicans meet and by making Roosevelt their standard bearer, thus forcing the republicans to follow suit and trail after them.
 ! One of my correspondents in the south, l a business man rfoted for his keen insight
 into political affairs, l have had occa. sion to observe quite often in the past, writes me:
 'iAs you know. 1 have never liked Mir. | Roosevelt very well He is too intense and theatrical for me. But make mis- | take, he has captured the south. All the people down here are crazy over him. l 1 believe the democrats will name him as their candidate three years hence. He | is their ideal. He is just the man they l have been looking for. And if they do 1 nominate him they will claim that ab- l not to be g. candidate again. Though have never liked MT. Roosevelt, l have enough respect for him to believe he was l sincere when he said under no circum- | stances would he be a candidate for an- other term. l believe he is sincere now. l But if such a thing as a nomination by | both parties should come about, which means that the people, without respect l to party, demanded that he stay another | term in the White House, of course it wou4u be impossible for him to resist 1 Another friend of mine in the south, this one a politician, writes me In a similar vein. Here in Washington number of men, democrats as well as republica IS. | have spoken to me of the probability that | the democrats will be the first in the fielu in the next campaign, stealing the repub- | lcan thunder by naming Roosevelt. These manifestations of current opinion, while 1 perhaps not valuable as an indication of l future events. are certainly too interesting to be ignored.
 | MT. Roosevelt may or may not be the almost unanimous choice of the people for 1 his own successor, but it is suIe that l his tour of the south now just completed, has presented one of the most rem lrka ble episodes known to the political history of our country. It is conceded to be such by all observers. Before he went south the l people of that section were mildly critical | II. l him, moderately, both as a man and as l president. He has done and said things l they did not like. He had rubbed the | fur the wrong way" But he goes down | Into their midst and conquers them. He captivates their imaginations There Is something about Theodore Roosevelt--it is not easy to say what 1t is-which appeals | to the hearts of people. He is fascinating. | There is glamous about him. Probably | it is the fascination of great earnest 1 ness which excludes all suspicion of act ing. Mckinley made people like him. But he was smooth and oily and diplomatic. Even the men who gave their affections | to him sometimes stopped to inquire l how much of that which pleased them was sincere and how much good acting. His intimates knew that Mckinley was great natural actor. If he had not taken I to public life he could have won fame and fortune on the stage. But Roosevelt is no actor. If he is, he is such a good one that no one ever discovers it.
 In my opinion the men who believe Roosevelts conquest of the south presages such startling political revolution as | that which the prophets are now talking , about ascribe altogether too much impor- | tance to the heartiness and enthusiasm of the southern nature when stranger is 1 within the gates and is to be welcomed ! and to be made to feel that he Is among
 
 | for their hospitality. for their warmth of 1 feeling, for their fine manners. We shall at least have to wait time to see more clearly what political effects are to fol- 1 low that wondrous tour.
 | That it was a most remarkable tour every one comedies. Probably no other President of the United States was ever before received with such ovations were accorded Mir Roosevelt in the south. But at the same time it is we'll to remember that the people of the south are tenacious of their political traditions and habits. and we should not forget that l events of the near future may impair Mir l Roosevelts popularity, not only in the south, but everywhere in the country. It is theory among acute observers here that the President is now at the f1ood-tide of his success. He is on the crest of the | wave Henceforth he is Go go into a slow but marked decline
 l One man. republican official, thor oughiy familiar with MT. Roosevelt's char 1 acter and wholly friendly to his chief, | analvzed the matter in this fashion, "Mr Roosevelt is much stronger and l abler man now than he was when he
 first came to the White House. But I see