Los Angeles herald., 1908-10-19
RoosEvELT's PRESTIGE

X that President Roosevelt's pres
AU tige has suffered during this CAM
paign. Before the convention he was
easily the most popular man in the
country. His expression, "a square
DEAL" had become proverbial, and his
name was synonymous with everything
that was best and bravest and fairest
and most American. Mentioned at a
Democratic meeting. 1t would have
been cheered as heartily as at a Re-
publican meeting. But he has changed
all that. In New York, the other day,
when he was criticised by a public
speaker, he found one lone defender in
q vast audience. That defender, true to
his earlier faith, exclaimed: Anyhow,
Roosevelt is the best man in the coun-
try Immediately from all parts of
the crowded house came cries of put
him out!" "Sit down." and "Shut up!"
And he had to\"shut up" or be put
out. And this in New York city,
Roosevelt's own city!
Only former residents of New York
can appreciate fully the significance of
this incident, but all citizens can ap-
preciate it in a measure; and prob
ably sufficiently for all practical pur-
poses. We would like to have little
personal talk with the president. Per-
haps we might be allowed to address
him as follows:
president Roosevelt, when a young
man, with the avowed intention of
leading a life far different from the
lives led by the fellows of your aris-
tocratic, well-to-do set, you made the
assertion, for while exemplif1ed in
your earlier life, that partisan politics
was incompatible with the highest
Americanism, and irreconcilable with
the ideals of the best citizenship. Men
called you a dreamer and vaporer,
but you held on your way, and as civil
service commissioner you were ap-
plauded, because apparently you were
bent on putting your principles into
practice. Several times you adminis-
tered severe rebukes to the machine
element of the Republican party. You
we're told by those who liked you and
talked with you confidentially that you
were too good an American ever to
be nominated for the presidency by the
Republican party. Surely you have
not forgotten some Of the talks you
had with your friends, in which this
assertion was made repeatedly. Do
you remember how Platt sneered at
you? And do you recall your JOY over
the first nomination of Mckinley, be-
cause, although he had the Ohio Hanna
machine behind him, he had scoffed
at and defied and whipped the New
York Platt machine. to which YOU
were opposed?
"Do YOU remember the time when
YOU said that If ever you were presi-
dent you would be president OF the
machine politicians as well as of the
others, but you would never allow
political machine or a machine poll
tician to be president of YOU? Do
you remember that? Your friends
thought it was great and said so.
but Taft, your Man Friday, is
chosen by you to be your superior,
and you go to the machine politicians,
and say nominate Bill! and they pack
the Republican convention with your
appointees, Oh Civil Service Reformer,
and they nominate Taft-on an anti
Roosevelt platform-because they re-
fused to see how a man who worked
in order to procure a machine nomi-
nation for his personal friend could
possibly have the nerve to demur at
the platform on which they decided
your successor as presidential can
didate should run.
Thanks to your interference as re-
CARDS the nomination of Taft, the Re-
publicans refused to listen to your
voice in the matter in which your coun-
sci would have done more good than
in the choice OF a candidate. They
turned down your platform suggestions
and adopted YOUR man-and the
worst set of resolutions under which
any well meaning candidate ever
set out to do business. Taft has for
gotten all about the platform. He
never mentions it in his addresses. But
he cannot deny its existence. He is
pledged to put it into effect. He cam
not unmake 1t. TO vital social ques-
ton, the question of questions, a
thoughtful reply to which would have