The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1908-08-14
PRESIDENTIAL CONTEST.
The Elements Involved Favor Mr.
Bryan--Judge Taft Badly
Handicapped.

written for The Pennington Times
1t is too far in advance OF the
presidential election to give fore
east of the results based upon facts
and figures. There is no one in
/. possession of sufficient facts to
foretell the results in the many
doubtful States next November.
The only guess now that is worthy
of any credence must be based upon
fundamental principles, the person
alities Of the candidates and the
trend of popular opinion.
Taking such things into consider.
alton, Mr.. Bryan has an excellent
chance OF being the next President
Of the United States. In his former
candidates. for that high office such
a statement might have been met
with smiles. To-day, elements have
entered into the contest and there
has been such change in national
thought that the statement can he
made In sober oarnestness, and
only the thoughtless and prejudiccd,
or the biased partisan, can refuse to
give 1t due consideration. Certain
~, Mr.. Bryan's prospects for sue
cess were never before so promising.
/ There is more than an even break
in the chances for his election next
! November.
Three Elements to be- Considered.
Three elements enter into the dis
cussion of the question that consti.
tute the grounds for this opinion.
First. Mr.. Taft, the Republican
nominee, Notwithstanding his own
personality, his undoubted ability
and some of his achievements in
public life, has n load to carry that
undoubtedly weakens his candidacy.
| An overweighted race horse cannot
win.
! Second There has been n radical
change in public sentiment and
opinion alongg0vernmentu lines that
brings Mr.. Bryan into the spotlight
as the logical candidate to Civ"
force and expression to this changed
! thought.
| Third Mr.. Bryan's own develop
mcnt and the increased regard for
the public policies for which he
stands
These are not idle statements, but
they are verified by the movements
of the past few years, by facts and
by even the slightest knowledge Of
public thought.
Taft an Overwhelmed Candidate.
Mr.. Taft il overburdened with
various things that tend to impede
him in the race for the presidency.
Among these the following are n
matter Of common knowledge:
First. Rightly or wrongly, he oc-
cupies the position Of bowling to Mr..
Roosevelt. He stands rs IA candi-
date pledged to carry out the poll
cies of the present incumbent Of the
White House irrespective OF other
considerations. He does not occupy
in the public estimate any striking
place as man with his own ideas.
The popular conception Of Mr..
Taft is that he is but II second edi-
ton OF Mr.. Roosevelt. However
IN lNa
the place he has gained for himself,
the impossibility of passing that
same fame or reputation to others
is an open fact. The American
people do not want imitat0rs, mere
ly, in high Offices, they want men of
strong personalities. They do not
desire reflected glory. In this
position, he must carry the weight
Of opposition to Mr.. Roosevelt that
has developed in his own party in
addition to the public dislike Of par
rot-like imitation of any one or any
thing.
Second. There is necessarily II
| lecllng Ul resentment III tle matter
of his nomination, the dictaturial
methods of the President and the
unfair means used to accomplish
| the end in view. A square deal"
and fair play" have II meaning for
! the American pcop,e. The BigStick
welded by Mr.. Roosevelt in behalf
of Mr.. Taft will not do him any
good. The Steam Roller used in
! Chicago savOrs of trickery rather
than right. The nomination Sc
cured by Federal patronage and
coercion of the delegates cannot he
called popular one. Even the
Globe Democrat, before the conven-
ton, time and time again bcwailed
the influence of the Federal office
holder in the various conventions
being held.
To all Of these, add Imposition of
| Mr.. Hitchcock and his fellow conspir-
ators as members of the national
committee by urpxV Dassiuu unou