The Irish standard., 1907-01-19
Party Leaders Feel That Time is Opportune
to Break the Ice and Test the Feeling
Of the Nation.
The South Has Large Body Of Able and
Experienced Men Well Fitted For
Political Leadership.

Back Of the incipient scramble for
the position Of minority leader Of the
house Of representatives, there is a
good deal of jockeying going on for
second place OH the democratic nation
al ticket next year, says the Chicago
Tribune.
There seems to be a feeling on the
part of the southern democrats that
the time is about come when they
might break the ice and put. southern
man on for second place AS most
people in the north know, they might
have done this long ago. because Sec
tionalism in the republican states has
been dead for many q year. 1t would
he hard to raise an issue against a
candidate even for the presidency that
lie happened to have his. yptans plaee::
south ii the Mason and Dixon line.
The issues Of. the war are buried q !.
great dear deeper in the north than
they are in. the SOUTH. ~.
,,szsouthern, politicians have never been
able to understand this. completely
and have reen afraid. that the: presence
of southern name OH the national
ticket would doom it to defeat. Late
ly. however, they are beginning to
understand that if high grade south
ern man should be nominated for the
vice presidency his residence would do
him no harln.. go. :.
1t might arouse some untayorable
sentiment. among the old soldiers II
a confederate: soldier should be NOM
mated, but surely no one i'll the north
ern states would seriously object from
the sectional point of view to any" one
of half a dozen Of the younger south
ern democrats who belong to a genera
1ion since: the war whose waving OF q
bloody shirt woisld be sentimental en-
tircly. They still talk of the war more
or less in the southern states, whereas
the corresponding generation !: in the
north sefdonf ,r never speaks of'it, and
then without Il trace Of bitterness
Under the circumstances a southern
man for vice president OH the demo-
cratic ticket would not materially re-
duct the strength OF that party iii the
north and tile southern leaders are at
last beginning 10 realize this fact. OF
course. it would not do to pick up q
tirebrand like T;illnan or "a discredited
politician like Bailey: Either one Of
them would he subject to attack on
legitimate political grounds without
any regard to the fact that they might
happen to represent d certain extreme
and antiquated southern sentiment OF
the swashbucklng type. =
But almost any one OF the higher
grade OF southern statesmen of the
younger generation stands Il good
chance of being put on the democrat
ic ticket, and his being there would
not in any great degree lessen the
chances of success of William Jen
nings Bryan, whose nomination fol
the presidency next year by the demo-
Gratis is practically assured
1t is remarkable that the democracy
has developed no good leaders in the
northwest. There We're a great many
people who believed that a strong com.
hnation might be made by selecting
William Randolph Hearst as the run.
ming mate for William Jennings Bry.
AN. but the events in New York last
fall seem to have put all end to that
plan Mr. Hearst not only failed t1
carry his own state. hut he was :the
only man on his ticket who was. de.
feated. and this is recognized by poll.
ticians the world over as an inevitable
indication of personal political. weak
ness.
AS usual, New York is more or less
of a pivotal state. The solid south
needs New York to make an approach
to q majority "f the electoral college
90 fia,s hen nrafti llY. eli1a1ini