El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-10-31

Y HE congressional election in the
off year of 1926 resulted for
the first time in the history of
the country is returning to congress a
majority definitely and violently oppos-
ed to the president and his federal ad-
ministration. This campaign also was
remarkable in that it represented the
first popular political protest of the
plain people against what was known
as the governing class Its direct re-
suit was to overthrow the political arts
tOcracy which was modelled on the
lines of English practice, and which
had ruled the country from the be-
ginning. Its direct result was to es-
tablish the American system of poIitf-
cal party organization, which in the
course of years has developed a polit-
ical oligarchy of greater and lesser
bosses against whom insurgency now
threatens destruction
The movement which resulted in the
triumph OF the Jacksonian Democracy
in 1896 had it's definite beginning three
years earlier. In 1920 Monroe had been
elected president by unanimous vote.
The congress elected in 1922 had 40
Democrats in the senate against eight
opposition members, and in the house
there were 141 Democrats as against ~
opposition members. The majority of
these nonDemocrats were known as
Federalfsts, although many of them
called themselves anti-Monroe Demo-
Gratis AS matter of fact, they were
not organized and there was practically
but one party in existence.
Repudiate Caucuses.
Until that time nominations for pres
ident and vice president had been made
by partisan caucuses of the members
OF congress AS long as there were two
parties of approximately equal strength
this system was satisfactory because
it was calculated to secure harmonious
party support for the chosen standard
bearer. But as the Federalist party
became more and more ineffective. the
conflicting ambitions of Democratic
leaders brought the caucus into disre-
pute. No ambitious leader was willing
to leave the choice to a caucus suscep-
tible to influences of wire pulling when
there was abundant opportunity to car
ry the matter to the states for final
decision.
There had been no effort to establish
a uniform method Of choosing presi-
Dental electors in the several states,
and the whole system was chaotic The
electors were chosen by general state
ticket, according to the now establish
ed uniform practice in some of the
states; while in others they were elect
ed by districts, and in others they were
chosen by the legislature. In each
state one of these three methods would
be selected for each presidential cleo
ton, according to the judgment OF the
leaders of the majority IN the state leg
islature, a judgment always based
upon considerations of party welfare.
AS result, the people as a whole took
little interest in the presidential cleo
lions and were concerned with state
politics, almost to the utter exclusion
of national affairs It was generally
accepted that the leaders at Washing
ton would choose the president, and
that the people had no business to in
terfere with their choice.
Hard to Shake Off English Influence
Although the adoption of the consti-
tuition had set up a government differ
ing radically in form from that Of Eng
land, 1t was impossible for English col
cnists instantly to shake off the influ-
ence of British institutions. There
were two parties in England, but both
of them were represented in all phases
of political activity by men who
were acknowledged to occupy posi-
tion socially superior to the common
people. These men and their
class, regardless of their partisan af-
filiations. were then and still are
known as the governing class. This
practice was followed in the American
republic. The Federalists, Adams, Jay
and Marshall, as we'll as the Democrats.
Jefferson, Madison and Monroe were
all social aristocrats. However radi-
cal may have been Mr.. Jefferson's
democratic political theories. and how
ever far he may have gone in decrying
the superiority of the aristocrats, he
was by birth and education a represent
tative of the ruling classes.
In the generation of political lead
ers which appeared on the stage in
the uprising of 1910 men like Clay and
Calhoun also were of this same class.
Violent as they sometimes were in their
political disputes, until 1923 they were
all agreed, and their position that only
men trained especially in the profession
of statecraft should be entrusted with
public office, was not questioned in
any quarter.
Presidential Succession.
With the exception of the four years
of the Adams administration the pres
ident always had been a Virginian and
a member Of a certain aristocratic clan.
1t had become the accepted rule that
either the vice president or some mem
Der Of the cabinet should succeed to
the chief magistracy. Washington
was SuCCeeueQ Dy vice pTeSlueHI AOaIS,
Adams was succeeded by vice president
Jefferson, Jefferson was succeeded by
secretary of state Madison, Madison
was succeeded by secretary of state
Monroe, and Monroe's second term was
about to expire and as there was but
one party the question of succession
was much mooted.
John Quincy Adams, secretary of
state, thought that he was in line of
succession, according to the practice
of years. William H. Crawford, secre-
tary of the treasury, John c. Calhoun,
secretary Of war, and Henry Clay, |
speaker of the house of representatives,
also aspired to succeed Monroe in the
white house. These three cabinet mem
bers and the speaker of the house all
were together in Washington, and
they had no thought but that they
would be permitted to fight the mat
ter out among themselves and the 9TH
ers of their caste Of professional poll