The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-07-26
From the Washington Herald.


 tion of poliical writers in every section of the country, although the topic has failed to arouse more than an academic interest in any quarter It is note worthy that the most pronounced sen timent against the southern man idea finds expression in the south, where the feeling prevails that it would be inexpedient at this time to nominate a southern candidate. Coupled with this feeling, there is q natural regret that the south should still be some- what Isolated from the main currents of national politics, and that the voice of her statesmen should be of relative ly smaller weight than they are en- titled to in the councils of the demo- cratic party. A demand is frequently met with in the south ern press that the democracy of that section should as- sert itself in the next national con vention, and the hope is entertained that some day the south will come into it's own as an influence in national af- fairs.
 Just what Is meant by these expres- sions it is difficult to say. The south has no special interest to subserve by regaining that supremacy in national affairs which it exercised prior to the war. Governor Vardaman's propagan- da for the repeal of the fifteenth amendment has not become popular enough to command the united sup port of the southern people. We are unable to discern distinctively south ern political idea in the utterances of modern southern statesmen, for the state rights dogma no longer has it's old significance, being nowadays mere question of how far it is expedient to extend federal powers over matters of national concern as to which there Is the same division of opinion in the south as elsewhere. In fact, political opinion in the south, leaving out of consideration the race question, with which the federal government has little to do tends more and more to divide on national instead of sectional lines. There is no pending political issue, and there has been none for some years past, on which the south has been pitted against the north. This being the case. the part played by southern statesmen in national affairs must de- pend more upon their personal char acter and influence than upon their ability to command the adhesion of their party or the country to particu- larist ideas.
 It may be urged that this theory of the situation supplies the best possible argu- ment for the nomination of southern candidate for the presidency. If southern htr sectional political ideas, why, it may be asked should not some one of them be found who would answer all the require ments of a presidential aspirant? Ger tain of the southern papers answer this question by saying that sectional feeling has not altogether disappeared at the north, and that 1t would be unwise not to take this fact into consideration. The New Orleans Picayune remarks or this points
 Let it be known that the south is claiming the right and manifesting the intention of renewing the struggle TOT political control by putting forward one of its sons for the chief executive office of the republic, and there would at once be raised the outcry that the south was again in the saddle and would soon be marching on Washington in an effort to regain supremacy"
 Unfortunately, there is enough truth In all this to put a damper on the aspira- lions of southern candidates, particularly if they are to be brought forward for the avowed purpose of restoring southern domination in national affairs. Such an ambition, though hattering to southern pride, produces an altogether different im- pression in other portions of the country.
 In this connection the St. Louis Repub- lie offers a timely reminder that the nom- ination of a southern presidential candi- date would contravene a long-settled pol icy of the south in national politics. That paper points out that "the south has wise ly preferred to fortify itself against at- tack by alliances in the north and west" and for two decades preceding the Civil war '1t was the steady policy of the southern democracy to seek a northern or western candidate" This policy, the Re- public thinks, Is not likely to be changed, and the reason is obvious It is that the south remains as solid politically as it was before the war, and any democratic ac- cession of strength must be looked for in other portions of the country. The win ming candidate of any party must be strong in the doubtful states. he must have some hope of gaining votes where political converts may be reasonably ex-