The Butler weekly times. (Butler, Mo.) 1881-1918, 1905-10-19

the Presidents request. he could direct
the militant forces of Republicanism in
the last campaign, has not been able
TO even nOminally surrender the reinS
Of party management, although the
vast responsibilities of the Postmaster
Generalship devolved upon him at the
beginning of this year.
Ii was under the Hanna regime that
permanent headquarters of the Repub'
licln .NaIional Committee were cstab-
lislicd in NNhslif8ton. Mr.. Hanna set
-thr-fashfofr N Tf1t chairman of the Ma
tional Committee settling quarrcls he
tween warning factions, quarrelS that
threatened 50 to disrupt the party he
tween campaigns as To seriously darken
its prospects in intervening state. Con
grcSSional and city elections,
The Democratic National Commit,
tees headquarters are nominally in the
offices of Chairman I. T. Taggart, in
Indianapolis. though much of the worl;
of that organization is still done in
New York 10y August Belmont and VIM
+. Shcchan. the leading members of thu
Executive Committee in the last cam
paign. As the Democrats have no Fed
cral patronage TO dispense, the worl;
that falls to MessrS. Tagsart, Belmont
aud Shc"han is Of 4 purely advisory
and supervisory Character, 1t .syoc>
without saying, of course, that the ", IN
William i. Bryan has very great inilu
cnce in the decisions as to policies
even though he is clothed with no olll
eial authority.
The organizations next in impOrtanc,
to the National Committee are The
State Committees. In each of the forty
five States both of the old parties main
tain central committees, whose flmc
tions within their respective jurisdic
tiOnS are similar to those Of the Ma
tional Committees.
The Congressional National Commit
tee stands next in the line of our mill
tant political system. These commit
tees are of comparatively recent origin
and are logical development of ON
party government system. Each part!
in Congress selects its own committee,
in caucus in Washington usually jus
before the expiration of the Congress
then in session. Each committee il
turn selects its officers. who, as II rule
are members of the House. Both o
these committees have permanent head
quarters in Washington. from whicl
are conducted those fierce biennia
struggles for control of the House u
Representatives. Attached to cac
committee is corps of salaried assist
ant secretaries, stenographers, etc.
City, ward, county and precinct con
mittees, State legislative and senatoria
committees. Congressional committees
each district of the States, judicial dis
trict committees, not to mention III
myriad host of political clubs of musl
room growth and others of stable lii
and permanent habitations, complete
line of political organizations tn;
ramify every avenue of our activiti'
and are in the wool and web of our III
tional life.
Nearly every candidate for Presidel
keeps always in his employ-rarely.
course, avowedly-a well-organized mi
chine, usually headed by one or mol
alert and enterprising press agents an
seconded by practical politicians ran
ing in the social scale from the high
respectable corporation president to IL
much-abused ward worker. These pr
vatc machines are grinding from Il
close of one Presidential campaign
the opening of the next. In a wore
so numerous are the political organic
tons, so varied are their methods. ,
unccasing are their activities that Il
American voter finds it virtually impo
Siblc to escape surveillance.
With all this marvellous perfection
political machinery, however, it
worthy of note that ut 10 time in Il
recent history of the United Stacs h;
the American voter shown more ind
ppndcncr of thought In fact. this
one of the reasons for the unceaSll
Labor and vigilance of party leader
To test public opinion. to follow pop
lar sentiment i'll the making of pla
forms and the nomination of candidate
is one of the important functions of o
ganiZation. The American voter Is il
telligcnt. alert and independent. III
party machinery of. to-day is not or
ated for the purpose of driving me
like sheep, TO the polls or in the e.
recitation of hoodwinking the voter
1t exists for the purpose of crystalli
ing and making effective Il particul;
political creed. 1t can do nothing mol
than this.