Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1908-02-07
Democracy In the House.

MI A11tNANONA- Cd
Mr.. Gaines Il remember that dis,
tinctly.
Democracy In the House.
About the time that this discussion
was proceeding in the house of repre-
sentatives several reporters, represent
ing newspapers of varying political
opinions, were attempting to find out
whether a poll of the Democratic mem
bers made recently by the Washington
Post and exploited chiefly by the New
York World was at all accurate. The
Post and the World, which are chiefly
interested in beating Bryan, discovered
ninety-eight votes for him and thirty
one for Governor Johnson of Minneso-
ia. Judge Gray had ten votes, and the
rest were very much scattered. The
new poll, made by a nonpartisan or
ganiZation, does not show so very great
an increase in the Bryan vote, but does
show a very material difference in the
vote for the opposing possibilities, p"
for there are no openly avowed OPP
posing candidates. The total number
of members interviewed was smaller.
Mr.. Bryan's vote was larger-positive-
ly much larger relatively-than in the
first poll. Governor Johnson's vote
was mere half of what it was report
e ed to be by the news collectors of the
papers that are pressing him to the
front. But, though 1 am in a position
to declare it absolutely authentic, hay
ing in my hands the names of the men
who expressed their opinions and the
personal assurance of the men who Sc
cured these opinions that they were
correctly reported, 1 still attach com
paratively little Importance to them.
One gets a better knowledge of polit-
zeal opinion throughout the country by
travel and by association with the peo-
pie than he does by conversation and
association with the politicians who
are sent to Washington. Not but that
they are high types of men, believing
that they know the sentiment of their
districts, but as a mere matter of logic
when you find senator or represent
ative saying: Il think Mr.. Bryan will
be nominated, the people in my dis
trict are all for him, but l think he
should withdraw in favor of a strOn-
ger candidate it makes you wonder
whether the speaker represents the peO-
pie or his own ideas. If the people are
going to insist on Mr.. Bryan's nomina
ton, is it for Mr.. Bryan to decline it
or for any representative of the people
to urge him so to do?
Concerning Uncle Joe.
Harking back to something 1 wrote
in these letters some weeks ago,
want to reiterate emphatically what
then said-that, while the Taft trum-
pets blow. the Hughes hurrahs are
loud and the Foraker fire alarm may
ring as it did in the brave days of DID,
it will be we'll for people who are in
terested in public affairs to watch the
quiet progress toward a Republican
nomination of one Uncle Joe Cannon
of Illinois. Today in Washington the
one argument urged against him is
that he is old Even so, most people
would match him in a foot race against
Taft or in a contest of wit against
Fairbanks. He has had the best ma
chine in politics-namely, the house of
representatives. The other day Mr.
Shackleford of Missouri attacked him
justifably as the greatest car of mod
ern days. Mr.. Shackleford was abso-
lutely right Speaker Cannon yields
more power than the president, and,
while the presidents power and infu-
ence are diminishing daily, Mr.. Can
non holds his own and gains. 1t was
characteristic of him that while being
attacked by Mr.. Shackleford in COM
mittee of the whole he sat at a desk
before the orator and seemingly enjoy
ed the assault. 1t is characteristic,
too, that much as the Democratic side
of the chamber denounces his methods
the members sitting there like the
man. He has a pleasant humor which
has made him popular wherever known.
One story of him, not new one, illus
trates his quaintness of expression.
They tried to nominate him for vice
president with Roosevelt in 1904 With
his cigar tiptilted and his inimitable
drawl, he said to correspondent who
asked him about it, 'My boy, at my
time of life | don't intend to let them
pin a peacock feather on the tail of
my, coat and then watch me break my
neck trying to admire my decorations"
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