The Washington herald., 1908-02-02

take hold of some lansuishinS Presi-
Dental boom and put ginger in IT, The
country abouGds jus, now in near-War-
wicks. but none has shown that he is
endowed with those attributes of lead
ership which made Hanna great.
There is to-day no great political gen
erul in either party. 1t Is rot generally
conceded even that Roosevelt is one. the
claim being that were the prestige Of his
Office taken from him his influence in
shapHE party destiny would be small
The Republican politicians, the men who
control caucuscs and State conventions.
it IS declared, are not followers of the
President Most Of them make public
profession OF allegiance 20 him, but their
sincerity is questioned The opinion pre-
walls widely that they are ready to desert
his standard the moment man appears
whom they believe strong enough to save
taom from the consequences Of such de-
sertion, It is a rugged, forceful, domi-
neering boss the Republican party wants.
The scepteT awaits the man who can
prove his right 10 WELD it
Bryan His own warwick.
The Democratic party presents no such
opportunity. It Is true the Democracy
lacks efficient generalship. but the over
shadowing personality of Mr.. Bryan.
himself "a candidate for the Presidency
and the probable nominee, occupies an
the spotlight Mr. Bryan is his own
Warwick: his manager must play "a
minor role,
1t is the Republican party that is ripe
for the coming OF a master. There is no
Clay or Blaine among the men, in the
race for the Republican nomination. no
enc Of them seems capable of inspiring
I'm his following that blind devotion
which mocks defeat and scorns the spoiIs
OF victory. None has any large hold
upon the imagination of the party
masses. If the public has any preference
among the aspirauts, il is yet TO be dis
closed So far the race is spiritIess
one, q tame and colorloss affair There
has been manifested but little enthusi-
asm. and even that did not ring true It
has been shaped Of poor material by un-
skHful hands
Here are six. perhaps seven. mon
counted as Presidential possibilities. No
va etll-4- t-el' eli4F tiitliI 4tNE "a htlil-
manding lead; no one of them is 20 tar
behind that he may not be hrst None
apparently, has sufficient strength within
himself TO carry off the prize. So far as
u now is possible 20 judge. any one Of
them would De reasonably acceptable TO
the party as its candidate. Was there
ever a situation mere to the liking Of "a
master craftsman What possibilities OF
combination and manipulation What a
mass Of good fighting material 10 be
welded into any army. Were q Hanna to
appear, the party workers who have
been waiting only for a sign Of leader
ship, would enlist with him in droves.
Ii would not matter greatly whose cause
he esPoused. Probably he could nomi-
nate any man now reckoued as a candi-
date; OF, should he deem it better politics.
IL is not too Idtc 70 bring a new man
into the held
Logic Unchanged by Sentiment.
Tt is possible that Mark Hanna wac
not healthful influence in American
politics. Many good citizens might de
plore the coming of another Hanna.
These considerations do not alter the logic
of the situation. The fact remains that
the opportunity awaits the man who is
big enough to grasp it,
Most of the Presidential candidates al
ready have been managers. bat so far no
consuming flame of genius has shown iu
their methods. In several notable in
stances the candidates would have been
better of had fheir managers let things
alone. II viii not do. though to be I'm
too big a hurry about chasing as anna
teurs any OF the aspiring President
makers. II will DE recalled that late in
1885 and early I'm 1896 some of the Eastern
party magnates referred 70 Hanna as an
amateur, and even suggested that he was
babe an the wood when it came to
the game of politics. Hanna wasn't long
in learning all the old tricks. and IL soon
d became apparent that he had q surpris-
ingly large batch of new ones He found
ed q school or politics that in effective
ness was FAR In advance Of the schools Of
Platt and Quay. IL may be that some
man VIII be- produced this year who will
make the Hanna methods seems as anti
Cuated as Hanna made the methods Of
his predecessors. 1t Is cOntended by his
admirers that Cortelyou greatly improved
on the Hanna methods when he managed
ROosevclt's campaign in 1904 But il
must bC remembered that COrtelyou'S
task was TO elect a candidate already
nominated. a candidate of overwhelming
popularity. Managing a campaign ia ad-
vance of the nominating convention is
quite a different thing, and the political
genoralship required is OF an altogether
different quality
Senator Crane Is Promising.
OF the men now identified with Repub-
liCan Presidential bOoms. Senator Win
throp Murray Crane, Of Massachusetts, /
claimed as a supporter Of Senator Knox. |
and. if he viii consent. likely to be
placed in charge of the Pennsylvanian's
campaign FOR delegates, gives evidence
OF having been east in the largest p0-
htcal mold. Senator Crane IS blessed !
with tho fine Italian hand, which. /
translated from political parlance into |
English, means that he is an effective 1
worker under cover lie has been but /
f, three years in the Senate, and is not /
given TO speech-making, vet he wieds an /
influence entirely out of proportion to his /
visible qualities as a statesman. His in |
Huence arises from the fact that he has 4
exceptional talents as a harmoHizer and /
the gift Of getting men together. His /
achievements in this lire have won him /
the title OF THE peacemaker-' Valuable /
attributes, these, in political manager: /
Yet it is notable fact that Cranes /
first attempt to exercise his talents in /
the Republican Presidential contest was F.
"a failure. Originally he was disposed to /
the cause of Taft and was quick to /
recognize that the contest between the /
War Secretary and'Senator Foraker would /
seriously hurt Taft's chances of secur-
ing the nomination He set about to
compose the quarrel. but met with no
success. Crane would not become a party