New-York tribune., 1905-03-04
THE PRESIDENT.

| A unique ceremony will take place to-day in
| front of the Capitol at Washington. Thirty
| three times before have American citizens stood
among their fellows to take the oath of office
as President of the United States. Never before
| has a man called to that office, not by direct
election, but by the accident of death, been
permitted to take the oath a second time as
| the first choice of the people for the Presidency
| 1t had almost come to be a tradition Of Ameri-
can politics that no Vice President could hope
to be elected President. Only three times be-
fore, and then in the earlier stages of our his
tory, was any elected President after
being Vice President. John Adams, Thomas
Jefferson and Martin Van Buren rose to the
first place from the second. John Tyler. Mil
lard Fillmore, Andrew Johnson and Chester
A. Arthur, like Theodore Roosevelt entered
the White House by accident. All naturally
desired an election TO the Presidency as token
of popular approval and to give complete dig
nifty TO their title. However unjustly, trace of
the old feeling which once led Congressman to
address John Tyler as "Vice-President, acting
as President" fingers, and, even if it does not
hamper in his work a President holding office
TO ill vacancy, it handicaps him as an aspr-
ant for election.
Over this tradition against VicePresidents in
general and against Vice-Presidents called to
fill out a Presidential term. the achievements
personality and wonderful popularity Of Presl-
dent Roosevelt triumphantly prevailed. He has
broken the record. His is even a greater dis
tinction than that of a President reelected
That is to be expected after a term of success
full service. But it is not to be expected that
a suddenly drafted to Presidential duties
to take charge of anOther's administration, with
its commitments and without the prestige OF
an election to the place, will so sgnally COM
mend himself TO the country. Theodore Roose-
velt has done this. He has not merely won the
office of his ambition. but he has won the hearts
Of the people as well.
The administration which begins to-day is
one the policy Of which is clearly foreseen The
last three years are an earnest Of the future
Years of peace and of progress. Years of that
true conservatism which preserves institutions
by correcting the abuses which grow up about
them and tend to provoke indscriminate hos
tility. President Roosevelt has the enthusiastic
support of the great majority of the American
people, Democrats and Republicans alike, in
his aspiration for "a square DEAL" and his de-
termination to his powers to give every
what he is entitled to under the law. He
has steadily followed this policy since he took
Office, in spite of all the outcry of those who
wanted to sophisticate the law in their own
selfish interests. The people have supported
him in that polcy-not at all in a spirit of reck
less radicalism, but with the serious aim of
preserving under new conditions the essentials
Of our old individual liberty and equality, and
adapting laws to safeguard them against
new. dangers. Theodore Roosevelt is a Presi-
dent with ideals-ideals in which must be
found the salvation of the American nation
allured as its people are by material ambitions