The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram., 1912-08-14
THE STATE PRESS
A. STRONG MAN ESSENTIAL.

we need a new party DaQly
enough" remarked an Indiana citizen
the other day. There is no doubt
about that. The things been brewing
for good while. The old parties have
outlived their usefulness and it is
time 4 new organization came out of
them that would leave the useless
junk and rotten timber behind. But l
don't think l can support it now be-
cause it is so dominated by Roose-
welt. | admire him, | alwaye have.
He is cry able, we all know that. but
he wants his own way too much. He is
too anxious for power. l can't stand
for it,
This sort of feeling crops out fire.
quently, but it is not well based. The
majority of the men in the new par
ty are glad that their leader is one
who has power, who commands it
wherever he is by his force of person
ality. A political movement of this
kind must necessarily have a leader
who 2nforces his own and their ideas.
He must be in harmony with the ideas
of other men, to be sure, else he could
not enforce them, but he must reach
and preach those views with such
vigor that no one can mistake their
character.
Only a man Of compelling person
| ality and character can lead the Pro
gressive party at this time. What
| would such a man as Taft do with it,
! if he could be imagined holding Pro-
gressive ideas? What could Wilson
do, had circumstances put him at the
| front in connection with it? Assum-
ing that he is in sympathy with re-
| form ideas, which in many respects,
| judging by his past utterances, is
doubtful, his quality is not that of
leader who can unite men into CO.
| hesive fighting body.
Mr.. Roosevelt has demonstrated
that he has this power. He is the
man above all others to lead the new
party He will never exercise more
power, should he be made president
again, than the people permit. That
is in their own hands. But they need
a strong man now, and where could
they find such another?-Muncie Star.
AN EXCEPTION TO THE RULE
Hiram w. Johnson, candidate for
vice president on the Progressive
ticket, presents to the people new
view of the Importance Of the second
office in the land.
"A man fit to be president and COM
petent to be an excellent president,
are the words Theodore Roosevelt
used in describing Johnson, and this
| chara cterization carries to the peo-
| pie the Importance of the office and
| the care that should be used in the
selection of candidate for the office.
In this country we have many types
| of candidates for the office of vice
president Some good-most of them
| bad. The general run have been can
didates by exhaustion, candidates by
reward for party service, or candl-
dates by carelessness. In some no.
| table incidents the nation has sur
fered as result, but to these warn
! ings the bosses needed not. In the
first convention for many years where
! the selection was made by the peo-
pie strong man was chosen The i'm
portance of this office appeals to the
average man. He does not want the
office of vice president on whom may
devolve the executive power OF the
nation given to an incompetent as
reward for party service, as a healing
balm for political sores, nor as
laurel to a man whose constituents
are interested enough to remain until
the end of the convention.
1t has often been charged that the
! weakness of vice presidential candl-
dates may be attributed to the care
lessness of the people. We maintain
that it has more often been attributed
to the expediency of the bosses
Logansport Reporter.