Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1906-05-09

of all the people. So let It remain.
Oh! my friends, it would be re-
proach upon Iowa, If after all these
years, 1t should "go populist." Tire
menduous applause.)
The Important Thing.
It matters little whether Jones,
Brown or Smith is governor of this
state; but it matters very much
whether the life of the republican
party, its welfare and its interests,
shall be considered. Above the gov
ernorship; more, more far reaching
than that Is the election this year of
a republican House Of Representa-
tives. 1t would be calamitous, to my
mind. If we should this year, repeat
the example of 1890, when. in the
midst Of Harrison's administration, we
elected democratic House of Repre-
sentatives and tied up the admins
tration for the remainder of his time
and prepared the way for the cleo
ton Of a democratic president In
1892. Shall we do 1t now? And we
were reasonably prosperous then. Is
1t as dangerous to be prosperous as
1t is to be poor? Sometimes / think
1t more so. l don't know but what
people are well off If they have
to attend pretty closely to their own
business in order to get a living.
Every republican who Is sincerely de-
sirous of holding up the hands of
Theodore Roosevelt Is anxious that
his administration shall be successful
and 1t cannot be successful If it is
to be broken down now in the midst
Of the term which a generous and
conf1ding people gave him two years
ago in his own right, that out Of his
success he may achieve that distinc-
ton for this administration and win
more laurels and have more inspira-
ton for more years of this kind of
republican rule. But If we turn down
the administration in the middle of
the term then it will be regarded that
Roosevelt has proved failure; that
his administration has come to
naught; that he has divided his party;
that he has left 1t without strength
for the future. And instead Of honor.
ing him we shall have disgraced him.
Should be Shoulder to Shoulder.
So 1t becomes us as republicans to
act together and govern ourselves ac-
cordingly. What a shame 1t Is that
the republicans Of this great state we
so much boast of, so much to be
proud of in the relationship to the
history Of the past, should be In a
state of mind Of hatred and of a
frenzy more intense between republl-
cans than between republicans and
do M a I
said while ago that have exercised
every ounce Of my strength to avoid
such things. did not favor the
nomination of Albert y. Cummins In
1901, but upon the adjournment OF the
Cedar Rapids convention l dropped
al that difference. became sup
porter of the platform upon which he
was nominated. I became an advo-
csEe in 1902 for the reaffirmation OF
that platform in the interest OF party
harmony. desired that the adj
ministration Of Mr.. Cummins should
be successful. never was, for a day
nor an hour, a bolter against the
peace nor welfare. contributed In
every way possible to make his adj
ministration successful. ! won some
favor from the governor and in 1908
he desired harmony and a unanimous
denomination and I was for him. Az
ter a visit to Chicago where he had
taken the matter up with j. w. Blythe
he came to me to go into conference
for the purpose of agreeing upon a
platform and securing his renomina-
ton in the convention. He found
Blythe, as he reported to me, as
anxious for harmony as he was him.
self. At the suggestion Of the COVER
nor I became interested. / went to
Dubuque and conferred with the senior
senator. l went to Chicago and there
one day, in company with him how
ever-so that l was comparatively
safe-I met ]. w. Blythe, and that
is the only political conference l
ever had with that man In my life
and II any great harm was done the
good governor is responsible. met
time and again with the senator and
with the governor and finally a plat
form was agreed upon. 1t was sub
mitted to the convention. The govci-
nor was unanimously renominated,
and In that platform there was one
thing else besides Cummins and that
was the heartiest endorsement that
we could frame of Theodore Roosevelt.
Was First For Roosevelt.
I had heard the suggestion Of a com.
bine against him for the following
year. This was before Hanna died.
1t occurred to at least few of us
and 1t occurred also to Senator ALI.
son and myself that it would be ex-
pedient, with the state Of Iowa, occu-
plying it's chief position In the central
west, to make the proposition early
that the republicans of Iowa were
for Roosevelt, in order that there
could be no hope Of division through
Iowa. II we had had this discori or
quarrel in our convention 1t would
be interpreted as involving the presi-
Dental campaign. We gained that
much at least. II we didn't gain har-
mony for our state we at least gained
harmony for the Roosevelt conven.
ton where he was unanimously nomi.
mated the following year. and here is
the mystery that was not In the plat
form of 1903. But as my friend,
LATE Young, there, happened to be
chairman Of the committee on reso-
buttons In 1904, and l was humble
member Of the committee trying to
keep pace with the governor on the
platform of 1909. got turned