The morning journal-courier., 1907-12-23

Attorney-General Bonaparte is one of the busy after-dinner speakers of the administration, though he is not credited with being the representative of the administration while on his feet. When there is need to take the coun- try into its confidence and President Roosevelt does not care to do it him. self, he sends out either Secretary of State Root or Secretary of War Taft. At the same time Mir Bonaparte is charming and felicitous speaker, as New Haven diners know. He is not without originality and wit, two re- quisites, it is said, of successful after dinner oratory
 At dinner held at the city of Chi cago Saturday evening MT. Bonaparte was the principal guest of the even- ing. Among other things he offered prescription for the successful nom- ination of presidential candidates. He appears to have drawn his inspiration from the fable of the wolves in Aesop's tales undertaking to prove to the sheep that it would be for their advantage to send away their watch dogs. He said: Just now the denizens of that great sheep-fold, the American union, are beginning to turn their thoughts to the grave problem Of choosing a head watch dog to guard them for four years. I cannot help thinking it may aid them in this weighty task to estab- fish first of all negative test of fit ness Whatever applicant for the job is viewed with particular favor by the wolves may we'll be left in his home kennel; wolves can be trusted to know what they want and to want what the sheep don't want In plainer language, no man can be safely trust ed to take care tLat the laws be faith fully executed if his choice be longed for and urged by all or many of those who have obstructed the faithful exc cution of the same laws in the past, and whose influence and resources are formidable obstacles to their faithful execution to-day
 It would have been more iluminat-  ing had MT. Bonaparte been more ex- plieit in his references. For example, would Senator Knox, a legal father of trusts, come under this new classifica- tion of undesirable citizens? Should we look there for the name of George B Cortelyou, the secretary of the treasury, who is believed to have been the secret hope of the captains of in- dustry? Tucked away somewhere would we find the name of Uncle Joe Cannon, who has bravelyf announced that he thinks the age of unreason and experiment has run on long enough Obviously we would look in vain for the name of either Secretary Taft or 1 Governor Hughes The indications are that neither of thess%gentlemen en- joys the confidence of the wolves. They would be eaten alive and swallowed | in one mighty gulp if the watch dogs should fall asleep or go astray Mir. Bonaparte himself can no longer be included among the favorites of the wolves now that he has gone for them hammer and tongs. We really wish he had said nothing or else little more than he did say.
 Indirectly, however, MT. Bonaparte 1 has done a. good service in thus indi- rectly booming the direct primary nominating principle. If the people en- ioyed the power as they do the right to do their own selecting by visiting the polls and there declaring their per- sonal preference the wolves would be on the jump for the tall timber and the watchdogs would be relieved oi their depressing job. And wouldn't il be fine if there should be popular nominee for president on the Republi- can side compelled to meet a popu. lar nominee for president on the Dem, ocratic side9 We should then come pretty near having in fact Demo. cratic scheme of popular elections