Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1912-07-25
OUTLOOK IS WRIGCLING.
The Contributing Editors Organ Try
ing TO Justify Him and Itself at che
Expense OF the Pc ciodicni's Reputn.

ing 70 JusOfy Him and Itself at che !
Expense OF the Periodicals. Reputa. !
tion.
tFrom the Now York Evening Post.)
THIS weeks Issue of the Outlook 10 a |
moral curiosity. It's own readers have
begun to put 1t to It's defence. One of
them asks 1t bluntly why 1t refuses to
aid in 1.-THE regeneration Of one OF the old
parties" which offers us for the presl
dency progressive. n man of strength,
OF insight. and. above all. OF upright.
ness and independence This writer
puts tho question: "Wili Theodore Poose-
,elt nov justify the faint from which
We have so often defended hm-that his
personal relation to movement blinds
him to the general good?" Another sub
scrlber asserts that Hundreds" Of the
friends OF the outlook are surprised and
! disappointed at Its present course in set
ting u2 as the 'organ of person"
To these complaints and protests the
outlook replies in five columns of edi-
torial wrlggling The contributing edi-
tor has only twenty columns for his
share, but he too, wriggles in trying to
escape from the same hook. Seeking to
flop clear. he boldly sets up the conten-
ton that Wilson was nominated by the
| bosses. "Dr. Wilson's victory" writes
Theodore Roosevelt, would not mean the
| the dethroncment of these men Sullivan,
! TaEgart. Murphy, It would mean their
| perpetuation in power. 1t Is not neces-
sary to stop over this assertion by a
| man who has n thousand times shown
! that he can persuade himself that black
iy white, when It Is to his personal ad-
vantage to do So The fact that every
| body knows that what he says is not
| true does not for a moment deter him
| from affirming It, But we had fondly
! hoped that 1t was otherwise with the
editors and proprietors OF the outlook.
| Yet they accept and adopt this monstrous
| perversion as their own. They say that
| the Baltimore convention, "whi1e 1t nomi-
/ mated a progressive man for the presi-
dency. strengthened rather than weak
! cned the hold of the democratic bosses
in their several States" Only the week
before, however. when 1t was rejoicing"
H. the nomination of Wilson as indicat-
ing 1.-The growing resolve of the people
tc end the partnership between political
machines and special interests" it stated
that the bosses fought him at Baltimore,
and explicitly set 1t down that Govern
or Wilson has also identified himself in
an effectual way with opposition to ma
chine rule . . and has thus become
the center about which has gathered a
large number of high-minded democrats,
who are opposed to boss rule"
There could hardly be more complete
decentralization, after that, than to
write unblushngly that the nomination
of Woodrow Wilson meant the triumph
of the bosses. If any intelligent reader
of the Outlook believes that. he will be-
l!eve anything. These things were not
done in corner at Baltimore. The whole
drama was played in public. Every spec
tator. near by or far away, could see ex-
actly what the bosses were doing and
hoping. Nor does any man In his senses
doubt what Mr.. Roosevelt and the Out
look would have said If Speaker Clark
had been nominated instead of Wilson.
They would have shed tears over the
lost opportunity to select candidate
whose name was anathema to the bosses.
But Pops" prayers for Clark not having
been answered. the prepared attack was
made just the same. though all the world
can see how ludicrously it Is misdirected
The gun was loaded, and had to be fired.
whether the game was there or not.
But this Outlook cry about Wilson and
the bosses cannot possibly be sincere III
it is not a deliberate attempt to deceive.
it Is a discreditable effort to shuttle away
from the plain facts These facts are
visible to all Wilson's anti-boss record
l.; much clearer and stronger than Roose-
velt's Consider Smith barred from the
Senate by Wilson's attack, and then con-
slider Plat and Quay elected without a
murmur of opposition from Theodore
. Roosevelt-ndeed, with his apparent APP
prevail and delight Moreover. in the
preparations for his campaign, Governor
| Wilson has given every proof of his In
tention to keep It out of the hands OF
, the bosses. Let the Outlook scan the
| list of the names of the committee OF
fourteen selected by Wilson to conduct
his campaign. Is there a boss faint on
! any one of them? Do they not all show
that the greatest care has been taken to
include no one who could by any stretch
e be called a tool of n boss or the creature
OF a machine? Governor Wilson may pe
fairly open to many criticisms. but the
attack which Mr. Roosevelt and the Out
look make upon him is so VIGOROUSLY
0 unfounded that it falls to the ground OF
n itself damaging nobody but those who
D cook it up.
n OF all people in the world the editors
n and proprietors of the Outlook ought &c
be jealousy on their guard against
n bringing railing accusation against
, Wilson, or twisting an argument in fla
vor of Roosevelt This Is not simply
because they are moralists who profes!
y the highest standards. 1t IS not alone
because they carry the fervor Of religion
into political discussion. They are In
. | peculiarly delicate position. They have ;
distinct money stake in Mr.. Roosevelt.
!, fortunes They pay him large salary
. His policital success means financial sue
. cess to them Now, we do not even init
- mate that they are swayed by such con
.iderations We only point out tn
| special obligation to be scrupulously raj
which rests upon them. They know
what will be said of every sign Of ba
II or prejudice they display. They know
g what they themselves would say OF an.
II other paper so perilously situated a.
II theirs 1t is a fearful exposure to mis-
II understanding and to the attribution
o unworthy motives which they are IN
Il curing And their friends may we'll i'm
| plore them, as they value their reputa
| ton and hope for influence. not again Z
fall into so gross and palpable falsi
dcation OF the fact as their assertion
:. that the nomination OF Wilson meant
= victory for the bosses. Such an exces
h of fighting zeal they had better leave I