Arizona republican., 1908-06-25
GROVER CLEVELAND.

Grover Cleveland, the twenty-fourth
 president of the United States, lived
 long enough to reap a generous meas
 ure of his country's appreciation of his
 services. Doubtless, though, his na-
 tion's history will give him a larger
 place than he even now holds though
 that is much greater than the niche he
 occupied twelve years ago when it was
 declared that he had ruined his party.
 Instead, it may be said that he had
 not ruined it but had laid a new and
 strong foundation for its crumbling
 walls. The populistic debris which he
 had rejected only gave an appearance
 of ruin and desolation. But until that debris is removed and the site cleared,
 there can be no successful construction
 upon the foundation laid by NIT. CleVe-
 land between 1884 and 1896.
 MT. Cleveland will rank with the few towering presidents of his country though neither of his administrations covered a history making epoch. It IS true that he was not always right but he was never intentionally wrong nor was he ever wrong long at time.
 In several instances his course was
 extremely unpopular, even within his
 own party, but in every instance save one, time has justified his course and
 it is possible that the exception may be removed. Sentiment is turning to- ward the tariff views he announced twenty years ago.
 MT. Cleveland came to the presidency apparently without adequate training. He had been a desultory law student and a lawyer without enough practice to keep him out of the sheriffs office of Erie county, N. Y. He was after ward mayor of Buffalo where he put down official extravaganza and cor 1 ruption so effectively that he attract ed the attention of the entire state. Fortuitous circumstances made him candidate for governor and his defeat of Charles J. Folger by a majority of | 100000 turned the eyes of the country in his direction. The masses perhaps | were not aware that Folger was crushed in the Conkling- Platt-Garfield feud rather than under the weight of MT. Cleveland's popularity. But at any rate his victory had put him in line for the presidency which he ob- tained by a series of apparent acci- dents.
 There were no accidents in the sub sequent career of MT. Cleveland. His record is made up of great accomp- lishments and the exercise of rugged and answering honesty. The times would have rung with his praises had his accomplishments been more spec tacular
 We may trace much of what we call the new period of the nations history back to MT. Cleveland. In his admin Fe navy. The interstate commerce com mission was born during his first ad- 7 and revolutionized the  between the states. The ' democratic party was given in spite of itself, its first definite position on the tariff question, a position it still i but now with contentment t and even pride. C
 Civil service reform had its begin hing with MT. Cleveland and through put his two terms the name had , meaning. The iniquitous tenure of d office act was wiped out. c
 MT. Cleveland was the first cham 1ion of currency reform. The demo- ,ratic party was already bound to the f iilver heresy and the republican party h IS party had no well formed belief when MT. Cleveland promulgated the O loctrine of the single gold standard. = Sven after he had passed out of of- T icial life we had on one side free sil- W Ter and on the other the hardly less il ridiculous bi-metallism. There is noth- ng now and can never be any but the h old standard. h What MT. Cleveland did was done d uietly and quickly. The great rail- s ?, oad strike of 1894 provoked the mailed z, ist of the president in protection of n he mails and interstate commerce so O. hat there will never be another strike q Ike it. The swift application of the Monroe jr