The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-12-31

President Roosevelt is on record as de-
 claring that he will not accept a second
 nomination for the presidency. Many citi- zens who believe he made that statement in all sincerity also think that the re- I publican party will be forced to nominate him again, says the Boston Globe.
 Meanwhile, as his present term as Pres
 ident is passing rapidly, there are several very talented writers filling space in mag azines concerning his remarkable career and most of these also think that he may ] succeed himself in office.
 These descriptions of the life and of ficial acts of President Roosevelt are in
 tensely interesting to all students of political history. The articles deal with
 every phase of the Presidents career and
 recall his strong tarits of character as exhibited to the public while he was a police commissioner of New York city, | a civil service commissioner in Washing ton. assistant secretary of the navy, d soldier in the Spanish war, Vice Presi-
 dent and President. Nevertheless, the
 public is as familiar with the acts of President Roosevelt as are the gifted magazine writers, and the vote he re- ceived at the last presidential election fully demonstrated the confidence the citizens of the country had in his hon. esty, ability and good intentions
 There are many who, while criticising certain acts of the President, do not question his honesty of purpose or his courage to act according to his convic- | tions.
 This honesty of purpose and courage to in, ba inf npODle cording to his best judgment. constitute the basis of President Roosevelts success | in positions of public trust. He is not the first President, however, who has had this confidence of the public for not De- l ing afraid of Congress and siding with the majority of citizens on momentous questions. It was not education entirely I that made Washington, Jefferson, Jack son. Lincoln and others such able Presi- | dents and popular idols in their day i Their popularity and success came rom 1 the exhibition of those traits of char
 acter which the people admire.
 The most successful Presidents nave 1 been those actuated by honest motives | and possessed of the requisite nerve to | act in accordance with their oath Of or flee President Roosevelt evidently took as his prototypes chief magistrates or 1 that character. His experience In Wash | ington as civil service commissioner, as | SlStant secretary OL lllt navy anu Nie' 1 president made him acquainted with the obstacles in the path of President Hence when he assumed the highest of flee in the land he was at liberty to i choose what he would be-President in fact or merely a puppet in office to be controlled by the financial rings in Washington-and he chose to be Presi- dent.
 The rings" in Washington often wreck a Presidents administration. Democratic Presidents have fought these rings just as vigorously as has President Roose- welt. and been popular for so doing. Pres ident Roosevelt, having no previous en- tanglements with the rings" merely made up his mind that they should not dictate to him. It was a hard battle. but he has succeeded so admirably thus far it is to be presumed they can never influence him during the remainder of his term
 The various rings" or Hobbies. support ed by powerful financial interests, gen. erally known now as trusts" have all ways infested the halls of Congress They have helped keep the republican party in
 power for many years. They have con
 tributed very literally to the political sue
 cess of that party. The leading contribu-
 tors, representing the trusts, are very
 bitter against President Roosevelt. The
 President went against the policy of his
 party in fighting the trusts, and adopted
 the programme laid down in democratic
 platforms and expounded by Mir. Bryan
 and others. Indeed, Mir. Bryan has praised
 him for some of his democratic acts.
 The President is entitled to much credit
 for what he has been able to accomplish
 in the face of tremendous opposition by
 a republican Congress-. and from Wall
 street. The magazine writers. however.
 should guard against writing him up in
 a style too suggestive of an obituary,
 for he is far from being a defunct per
 sonage, politically or otherwise. They
 should be more optimistic in regard to