The Athena press. [volume] (Athena, Umatilla County, Or.) 18??-1942, 1905-06-27

his way there despite the politicians
of his own party and the average peo-
pie without respect to party helped
to put him there by the greatest ma
jority ever given to presidential can
didate. They believe of him two
fundamental things: First, that he
was honest, and second, that his
sympathies were with the plain people
of the country. Believing this they
gave him their complete confidence.
So far he has done much to Justify
that confidence; they believe that he
will do very much more. They know
him to be strong man and they
know his impulse to be good. There
fore they will and have overlooked
some things that would have come in
for criticism in other men. They
recognize his impulsiveness and see
in him tendency to plunge headlong
into some things to which it is suspect
ed he has given too little sober
thought.
But nevertheless, always barking
back to the unshaken belief in the
honesty of his intentions, they have
invariably sustained him. But in
addition to all this he has done things,
some of them Of great consequence to
the country. Above all he has stood
for honesty in high places and he has
set examples which the people were
glad to see.
At the same time they do not fail to
realize that he is now approaching
the most critical stage of his whole
career. The forces in opposition, the
elements which constituted the back
bone of the huge machine Mark Han
ma created and whose predatory i'm
pulses it followed, has been lying
low of late. But it realizes, as every
observer must realize, that the strug
gle to the death is just ahead. Rail
road determinations and the tariff
here are two far-reachlng questions
Those things that are now recognized
as vitally affecting the general welfare
cannot idly be brushed aside; they
must be faced and met somehow.
Some of those who surround the presi-
dent, some of those who are intimate
with him, are undoubtedly unfavor-
able to any step that will cripple the
special interests. The political man
ayers of the republican party are I'M
favorable to such steps. They have
their own men scattered everywhere,
in the most unexpected places, and
they will not prove trustworthy. But
Roosevelt is gathering about him a
strong cabinet, strong for the work in
hand. Some of the members have the
capacity as we'll as the disposition to
aid in the work.
There is mans job ahead of the
president. In open or covert opposi-
tion to him in case he tries to carry
out fundamental reforms he will have
the implacable enmity of the man
ayers of his own party; he will have
the implacable opposition of many OF
the old time managers of the demo-
cratic party, avowed or covert. He
will have with him the masses of the
people who may be in position to do
him little good except to afford en-
couragement. alright, if persisted
in, and it must be if Theodore Roose-
velt is to achieve the place in history
to which we all too fondly think he
will be entitled, will split the republi-
can party as it is now constituted.
Its instincts now are all predatory just
like the democratic party would have
been Rad Parker been elected. But it
is the only way that our national
affairs can be brought to higher
plane, that the interests of the COM
mon people can be subserved and that
square deal can be given to the
country. Right ahead of him are the
times that will try the soul and test
the capacity of Theodore Roosevelt.
If his determination to follow the
strait line persists all patriotic men
must wish him we'll. They will give
him hearty good will in his enterprise
and in whatever way they can they
will aid him. His fight will be their
fight. 1t is fight that must be made;
crisis that must be faced and there
is no better time than now to make