Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-11-10
"Bugaboos" Coniured Up to
Alright Republicans.
RESULT NOT INFLUENCED
Brownsville, Unemployed Labor and
Campaign Fund Scares.
ALL APPARENTLY FELL FLAT
Politicians Concede That Material
Considerations Outweigh All
Others With the Voter.

,."What became Of all the campaign bug
aboos?"
That is a question the politicians are
asking, now that 1.-The tumult and the
shouting dies, the captains and the kings
depart'-and as the dust Of battle floats
away and reveals to view the scene OF
action. What did happen to all those
fearsome things which were conjured up
from time to time to alright timid repub-
licans and give flush of hectic color to
pale and anemic pessimists?
What became of the steam-roller bug
aboo which, after the Chicago conven-
ton, was to turn thousands Of votes to
the democrats in resentment of the high
handed action of the President in forcing
Taft's nomination.
Never showed once in the campaign
BY the time the fight got to close quar-
tiers nobody thought or cared about what
happened at Chicago. The water had
gone over the wheel, and there was other
grist to grind In point of fact, the sus-
plcion was latent in some quarters that
steam-roller methods were in a way pop
ular.
Labor and Brownsville.
What became of the labor bugaboo
the delivery by Mr.. Gompers of the
great body Of the labor vote?'
The goods seem to have got away
from him. Any how, he did not de-
liver That was a real bugaboo and
had pretty much everybody in tina repub-
lican camp scared half to death most
OF the time. 1t was the main asset of
the democrats, upon which they failed
to realize more than 80 cents on the
dollar.
What became of the Brownsville bug
aboo, the balance of power of the
negro vote, which was to turn several
trfcts in New York;"
Slipped its trolley somewhere, for it
did not arrive. Parsons and OIcott in
New York. each with more negroes in
years ago. won out handsomely. In Ohio
1t may have counted for some of that
difference. between Mr. Taft's plurality
and President Roosevelt's 255,oOO of four
years ago. but 1T was not balance of
power. sufficient to swing the state. The
same in Indiana.
Publicity in Contributions.
"How about the campaign contribution
publicity bugaboO?
There was one of the high cards in
the democratic hand. They did not fill
the draw. The fact is, people would not
get excited over that question since they
felt that the democrats were not sincere
and that neither party would make an
honest confession of where they got It,
The contributions announced did not
represent the total received, as the sim
Pile ruse was adopted of having portion
of the contributions made direct to state
and county chairmen by the contributors,
thus never showing on the headquarters
books The people apparently considered
contributions as one of the necessities
Fof the game.
ployed bugaboo?
That was an apparition of horrid mien
to many in the campaign. Through the
gaps in the -empty dinner pail" with the
bottom dropped out. they espied. as they
thought. a sullen and revengeful host
marching under the democratic banner.
Apparently, they were on all fours with
the story of the man who offered a car
load of frogs from his pond. but could
get only a basketful. From the noise
they made he thought there must have
been q carload there.
How about the coup of the Oil can,
the Rockefeller imitation of the Bur
chard act?' 1t did not work. President
Roosevelt put them wise" to the scheme
How about the bugaboo of the Presi-
No one seems to have resented it but Mr..
Bryan. Looks as if the rank and file
kind Of relished it.
In fact. none of the scarecrows Of the
campaign seems to have scared any one.
The politicians in analysing the result
bring 1t down to one basic proposition,
in the main a material question affecting
the voters In their everyday affairs,
transcending all policies, isms and criti-
cisms. One of them put it this way:
1T came to q question between the per-
sonalty of the two candidates, out
weighing all else. The question was
which was the safer man, Taft or Bryan,
and whose election would more likely
tend to business confidence and revival
Of business?"