The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1907-01-01
TUESDAY. JANUARY l, 1907.
The Campaign Against Roosevelt.

-ous4 lIc L ItSlucllldl campaign o
1908 is yet eighteen months distant. tn,
American people, with their usual fore
handedness, are eagerly discussing tn,
merits and availability of candidates 70
the Executive Office. In spite Of hi
declaration of two years ago that he hat
no desire for another term in the Whit.
House, President Roosevelt is the mos
conspicuous figure in the discussion. The
reasons for his predominance in the arena
of Presidential politics are, first. that a
great many people believe Mr.. Roosevelt
is his own logical successor, notwithstand-
ing his evident dissemination 70 break
the thiTd-teTm precedent. and secondly
that the President is obviously making
use, or intends making use, of his infiu-
ence and prestige to secure the nominal
ton of member of his official family,
who can be counted on TO carry to their
natural fruition the administrative and
legislative policies initiated by him. So
that the question Of the Presidential sue
cessiOn is whether, if we are not to have
four years more of Roosevelt, we shall
continue to 90 forward along the path the
President has marked out for us In the
unique series Of messages embodying the
Rooseveltian political faith.
That the Presidents enemies. political
and other, fully understand the nature Of
the issues involved in the Presidential
succession is sufficiently evident from the
method Of the campaign now in progress
against him. We observe that from Ger
tain quarters the attack is directed sig
niicantly enough toward the economic
features Of the Presidents programme.
and it apparently proceeds from the great
financial and corporate interests which
the President, in pursuance of what
he has conceived to be his public duty.
has antagonized. and whose schemes Of
aggrandizement he has. in some instances.
thwarted Aiding these interests. Dur
posely or unccnsciously. is an army Of
disgruntled politicians and greedy office
hunters who have not been favored In the
distribution of the spells. And lastly.
there are number Of sincere and thought
full men who fear that a strong man in
the Presidential Office, confident of his
own abilities and unwedded to precedent.
constitutes a real danger to our govern
mental institutions, and may involve rs
in difficulties worse than the evils from
which We are attempting to fly.
We ,g4 br~.
personal aspects Of the campaign against
the Roosevelt administration. but with
the broader question whether that cam
paign is justified on its economic side. We
ind. for example, 50 well-polsed a Journal
as the New York Sun declaring that as
consequence Of President Roosevelrs adj
ministration-
''Class is auayed against class The relations be
tween the employer and the employed are DESTROYED
and enmity and hatred have taken their place The
rich are held up to universal ezecration ard are
sssailed in the pory which Mr. Roosevelt has huit
for them. All over the land there is imBatienca 4
with the law and intolerance Of Judges. The cop- /
sttuted authorities set at defiance. Men cbafe
at the restraints which the safeguards Of liberty
Labor, earning reward heretofore undreamed Of is /
disooutcnted and unruly; it is more than ever the
prey OF the innumeTable agitators whose trade il
10 debaueh and punder H. Il IS losing its habit Of
thrift and industry, and its wages turn from q
blessing to a curse There is a greater unrest and
greater uneasiness in the air than there vas be-
fore Sumter was fired on
This appears to US an exaggerated ar
count Of the conditions existing in This
country. Even If true, II is an inverted
vision which would ascribe 10 the official
acts or teachings OF President Roosevelt
the direful situation conjured up by the
Sun. The social unrest came into being
before the election Of Roosevelt IN the
Presidency and all the other items Of
the Suns portrayal Of the unhappy state
OF the country could have been duplicated
in any Presidential administration within
the last twenty years. The truth is that
these conditions, where they exist. are ,
due 10 quite other causes than the course
of the Executive. They might with much
more show Of reason be attributed 10 the
attitude and behavior of the masters Of
finance and captains OF industry. whose
lately revealed dishonesty, disregard Of
law, and fragrant breach Of trust have
so amazed the country. If the spread Of
radical opinion be menacing, then pred {
atory wealth is a thousand tines more
responsible for it than President Roose-
welt. More spectacular than anything
President Roosevelt has done, more in
1uential in molding radical public senu-
nent. have been the rise of colossal for ,
tunes built up by monopoly and the I
grasp OF power-threatening to become J
'oeval with that Of the government it. q
a group Of half a dozen multi
nillionaires. President Roosevelts eco
lomic programme is a conservative force
with the lessons brought home /
o the people by the doings Of our in e
ustrial and financial magnates. f
We do not believe the people Of the n
United States are ready to repudiate the :
policy of the administration. Il
). in fact, the one feature of Mr.. Roose- c