The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1912-02-02
| JUDsoN HARMoNs WEAKNESS

ness of Woodrow Wilson's candidacy
for president. We shall speak with
equal frankness of the chief weakness
of Judson Harmons candidacy.
If the governor of New Jersey has
said too much, the Governor of Ohio
has said too little.
The World has very great respect
for Gov. Harmon and for his talents.
If he were elected president we be-
lieve he would discharge the duties
of that office faithfully and admirably
and excellently. But We are not deal
ing with Judson Harmon, president of
the United States. We are dealing
with Judson Harmon, candidate for
the presidential nomination. The
public is entitled to more specific in
formation as to his attitude on public
questions than it has yet received.
This information is the more neces-
sary because of the character of many
of his most CONSPICUOUS supporters.
So far as we know, all the reactionary
democratic bosses, like Murphy in
New York Guffey in Pennsylvania,
Taggart in Indiana and Sullivan in
Illinois, are Harmon men. This may
mean much or little, but there is no
Disgusting the fact that it arouses
suspicion. The average democrat
wishes to know the reason that i'm
pei men of this type to regard Gov.
Harmon as the most available candi-
date.
Their support is doubly unfortun-
ate because the sO-called conserva-
tive democracy shares their opinion.
The World itself does not regard Gov.
Harmon as Wall streets candidate.
Were he president, we believe he
would be far less considerate of Wall
street than Mr. Roosevelt ever was,
or than Mr.. Taft has been, but the
fact remains that Wall street senti-
ment strongly inclines toward the
Ohio governor. The same safe and
sane" democrats that blighted the
Parker candidacy and made Judge
Parker's election hopelessly impossi-
BILE are reaching out toward Judson
Harmon.
We do not say that the governor is
in sympathy with them, that he has
any understanding with them, that he
is in any sense their candidate; but
nevertheless they are supporting him.
Possibly they are influenced only by
the belief that he is prudent and care
full and deliberate in his actions, and
that a Harmon administration would
| mean government by due process of
law; but the country has no way of
knowing this. It's judgments are
based upon externals, and the COVER
nor has little as yet to clarity his own
| position.
He has not made it Enthusiastically
plain where he stands in relation to
the tariff or the trusts or the railroads
or the Sherman law His record in
this respect is less frank and open
in his discussion of public questions
than Gov. Wilson has been.
In some circumstances this might
be a great advantage. More candi-
dates have made themselves unavail-
able by what they have said than by
what they have left unsaid But the
reputation of some of Gov. Harmon's
active supporters and their attitude
| toward Big Business make it highly
desirable that he should meet all the
issues of the campaign without hes
itation or evasion.
| The country is in no mood to grope
| in the dark or to elect a president on
chance. 1t knows that Judson Har
mon has been a wise and capable gov
ernor of Ohio, and that he is a man
of very unusual abilities. 1t knows
that in respect to character and exper-
fence he fully measures up to the pres
| idential office, but it wants to know
more, and it has a right to know more
A democrats house of representa-
tives has passed a bill requiring that
the president in the appointment of
| judges shall make public their in
dorsements. If the Endorsements of
judge are important, the indorse-
ments of a president who appoints
judges are UNNECESSARILY more i'm
portant The great weakness of Gov.
Harmon's candidacy is his own sill
ence in tn eface of the character of
his Endorsements. This is a disability
that only Judson Harmon himself can
remOve.-World.