The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-06-26
Anour yIcE PRrsrpENrs.

II
 So far as the selection of candidates
 is concerned the Republican Party has
 done It's do," as the saying is. and the | result is for the future to decide. As to it's candidate for first place only the most intense and unreasoning parti-
 sanship can deny that the selection is good one. Mir. Taft is of full Pres
 idential size. If he is elected, and ad- ministers the ofiee free from outside influences, as his partisans declare he will do, we have no reason to think that he will not make the country a good President. This much can be said of him by any Democrat without any diminution of party loyalty. Not so much can be said of his running mate, but perhaps even he might not be a failure if called to the Presidential chair.
 l So much for the other party, but what of our own? It is but a short time until the Democrats meet at Dem yer. and so far but little is being said about the Vice Presidency. No one seems to want it. and 1t can truthfuliy be said that no one seems to be con- sidered as the proper man to be put on the ticket. And yet that is a consid- eration of hardly less importance than Is the selection of a candidate for first place. We fully agree with The Brook | lyn Eagle that mo man should be named for Vice Presidency who would not patriotically and competently dis charge the duties of the Presidency. should they devolve on him."
 That is sound doctrine and should be acted on by the Democrats. When we remember that no less than five Vice Presidents have become Presi- dents since ls4o by the death or as- sassination of the Preidents we can un. derstand that the man selected for sec ond place should in every way be com potent to fill the chief place if called on. The second place. in short. should be given to a man who measures up to full Presidential size.
 In some respects the original plan of getting a Vice President was better than that now in use. Then the elect ors voted for two men for President. The one who received most votes, If that was a majority of the whole vote. became President, and the man receiv- ing the next highest vote became Vice President Thus 1t happened that as 1t could not be known in advance who would get most votes it was natural that only competent men should be put up to be voted for, and no matter would be a man qualified for the ofice.
 After 1904 this plan of choosing Vice Presidents was discontinued because 1t was realized that it might produce complications after opposing parties came into existence. It might have happened that the man who received the next highest vote would be of a different political faith from the chief and thus there might have been con- tinued wrangles and dissensions be- tween the two highest officials. It was decided that such a possibility overbalanced any good that could come from following the earlier practice and so the present plan was adopted and has since been followed.
 We are not writing this in the inter- est of any particular man. nor are we trying to work up a sentiment in fa- vor of any individual. It seems set tied now that Mir. Bryan will be nom- mated for President. Whether he will intelligence cannot solve. If he should succeed, no man can assure his life dur ing his term. and therefore the Dem yer Convention should select a man who is in every way competent and qualified to take first place if called to it. The names of number of thor oughly competent men have been men toned, and the delegates will have no cause or justification for taking up an obscure and incompetent man and put ting him on the ticket for sectional or partisan reasons That would not be good policy or sound patriotism, nor would it be dealing fairly with the people or with the country. Let the convention nominate MT. Bryan or an- other for first place and put on the ticket with him a man qualified to make a good President if called on to i'll a vacancy.