Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1908-11-15
100 srRose FoB THE SENATE

The leading Republican papers Ct
tbs eozHtry al cs1ce3e that Sect
Rect csn have hls choice Of tEo pluuz
he can either remain a. tbs head Of
The stzts Department Or he can enter
the Senate as The successor 81 the
miserable and thoroughly dlscFedlted
Plat Judge Taft Is reported 10 BE-
exceedingly desiroas to have him con
tin8e n his present cabinet position.
but Root Is said to Be watering be-
tween the t~o Former Lieut.. Cor
error woodruff. II Is true. IS also an
asBlrsnf for the senatorial toga. but
tie opInton prevails that the Ross
velt federal and Hughes stale ma
chimes together vii Be too strong for
Woodrun % overcome il Root finally
decides 70 lay aside his cabinet honors.
Walter Wellman. the eminent cor
respondent. who has been studying and
snalyzing the situation, believes, with
many others. that Root Is really too
strong = man for the Senate. and
that his services as Secretary Of State
vii BE- far more valuable 70 the coun-
tn and far more honorable to himself
than anything he could do in the up
per branch Of the national legislature.
Mr wellman looks at the situation IN
this way:
Could Mr. Root add anything TO his
fame, or enforce his usefulness in the
Senator I doubt It. The Senate Is an
| Oligarchy. II Is run By a coterie Il
has its peculiar traditions, IT'S unwrit-
ten laws, It's idiosyncrasies The abb
est men are not always the great sue
cesses in the Senate They must bow
| the knee 70 the system, 70 precedent
70 The ruling clique. Instead OF purely
/ Intellectual exercise, instead Of being
real statesmen, they must play lot Of
| petty politics il the cloakroom and
| accustom themselves 70 being only
small cogs in big wheel
a man Ike Nr Root will make bis
| mark anywhere. He cannot long be
| kept down. But I fancy # would take
many years before he reached thu
| stage where his service in that body
| would be thoroughly satisfac cory 70
| himself He has the habit OF doing
| pretty much as he pIeases. In the
| Senate he would have 10 yield subjec-
/ ton 10 the system. He would have
| influence and power, but he would
| have 70 wait 50 long TO feel that these
/ were real and tangible and incur sc
/ many aunoyances and irritations while
| waiting Another axiom here at the
| national capital is that a man of real
vital Intellectual force and independ-
ent character should commit suicide
before going into the House Of Repre-
| sentatives and think twice" before he
| goes into the Senate
The country At large is hardly apt
70 concede the accuracy of such views
II Is true that under the domination Of
the Republican party by arrogant
wealth large number Of mediocre
men. servants Of trusts, or rich seek.
ers after social standing. have secured
seats il the Senate, and have seriously
initiated against the greatness of thai
body and its esteem in the public eye
But it has not reached point Of de.
cadence where genuinely great mer
can be smothered in it. With Root as
an addition to the Republican side and
Bryan as an addition to the Democrat
ic side. with an infusion Of new blood
OF not quite so marked strength
from several states. there is every
reason to believe the senate would
speedily re-establish Itself in public
estimation and become, what It was
fifty years ago, one Of the greatest de
Lucrative bodies OF the world, BODY
Ion which at times the eyes Of all ma,
lions were centered. We can all hope
regardless Of political affiliations, thai
such man as Root viii be the sue
cessor to the puerile Plat.