New-York tribune., 1906-05-07
REPUBLICAN PROSPECTS.

With good reason Governor Higgins may say
that the political situation in New York State
from the point OF view Of Republicans is more
satisfactory than it was six months ago." The
state administration in that time has made an
exceptionally good record and impressed every
body with its thorough devotion to the best in
terests OF the people. Last years election,
coming just at the height of the agitation over
insurance abuses, gave the Hearst party an Un-
rivaled opportunity to register in their behalf
every protest, whether against machine politics,
business abuses, Tammany administration, labor
conditions or transit shortcomings. The re-
suit was a vote which unsettled politicians and
people. But six months have served to quiet
many nerves, to bring many persons to juster
view of conditions to demonstrate anew that the
Republican party is qualified for constructive
craftsmanship and can be trusted to safeguard
public interests much better than those whose
only capacity for administration is shown by
self-advertisement and a taste for being uncom-
monty extreme and incendiary in their fault
finding Last year the wave of sOcialistiC ex-
pertinent was strong in Chicago, and Chicago's
example was potent here. Now there is failure
and disappointment there and little incentive
for New Workers to take the same difficult road
toward the solution Of traction problems.
When Democratic newspaper like ''The New
York World" despite its opposition to some Of
the most important acts of the Legislature, tells
it's readers that 1.-The record Of the present Leg
"isature is the best that this political generation
has known" the acknowledgment is of great
significance. That verdict is substantially rati-
fed by other leading Democratic and indepen-
dent newspapers Usually each legislature Is
the worst ever known, according to the oppOsl-
ton press When an administration succeeds in
wringing unwilling praise from its opponents
vsfr
to trust it. and the party in power has right
to look for the favor Of the voters. The Re-
publican administration in the state has made
good" It has attended strictly to the peoples
business while that business was pending and
has refused to be diverted from the work OF se'
curing good and avoiding bad legislation to in
dulge in sensational outside performances, how
ever plausibly urged. Believing, as we do, that
the voters of this state are by a large majority
sane, hard headed men, who, at least after they
have had time to think about 1t, can tell gold
from tinSel in character we aye confident that
the sound, conscientious work In the discharge
of public duty done by the Republican admins
tration in the last six months will appeal to
them next November more powerfully than all
the clamor and reckless promises Of either wing
of the Democracy.
BY that we do not mean that the party can
afford to rest on its oars It cannot. We are
in a critical time, with spirit Of dangerous un-
rest to face, and. as the Governor says, there
is still room for Improvement" in the party sit
uatiOn. But we do mean that good start has
been made and that Republicans have rea-
to take up their task with confidence. Hard
and faithful work must be done to organize ef-
fectively for the campaign, to expose the shams
and dangers of the policies preached for the
delusion of the people and to continue the pro-
gramme of correcting public abuses. A summer
of such effort, we believe, will surely carry the
Republican party to another victory.