The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1912-03-22
Is THE THIRD TERM
DOCTRINE TO FALL?
Haus the Opposition the Second Reelection of tho
President Arose and Grew; the Falacy of the
y Consecutive Term Argument.
president himself
mino
sxe but W he m
James The commonwe ath.
From the Detroit

snszsadacY, or whatever it may b,
~ssl0MR-1f Theodore Roosevelt for thu
2wwSican nomination for the presi
'sxxxs,g furnishes the seventh example
- are third term question being def
1Slssy brought to the nations notice
'sSSsr@ Il has rather seemed to hav,
Erriaad its quietus. but 1t evidentl!
ans mauy lives.
TST chronological story of the thiT;
snnn doctrine is instructive in it
sxsnsc2E on present cond~ MS and ar
ssessugwes- The Outlook says the oh
osrmans to the third term were init
Atssx ay Jefferson, apparently desiring
~ camxey the impression. that Wash
ssfzEx had nothing to do with it. l
zsasax be more nearly correct to Sc.
,txsS Rae third term precedent was Sc
~ washington and approved IN
sasosE language by the house G.
representatives in his day, and thai
Saxsssss5a first formulated the doctrine
In gHs words with which We arc
sauEI9Gaz.
M the convention which adopted
Nc national constitution, of which
Washington was chairman, it was al
3yx proposed to make the presidents
isswu seven years, but. owing to OBJ
.srcsfanS to so long a tenure, this was
skssggsd to four. 1t Is definitely
lSsswn that Washington wished to re
Inn after his first term, and that he
sxs Madison draw up an address stat
ywM hls intention of establishing an
tssxsy example of rotation in Office
sssgA should equally accord with the
Republican spirit of our constitution
lssxE tic ideas of liberty and safety
uzfertaiued by our people" But. CIV
niE tN The unsettled condition OF
.xGxatrs and the urgent plea of practic-
sisw efs whole nation. he consented to
,xssxG four years more. When his
sscsma term was over, however, he
spen6kefy decided to retire. and he so
snnnKnced in his farewell address. He
-ufznzcrd to his wish to retire four
scnFs earlier and. while not using the
nxzuzsion "third term" made It so
-nlnE rs to his ideas on this point.
7s11iGh- we're doubtless we'll known in
Hy snse. that the house responded
sz.N- this significant declaration:
Yor- our country's sake. for the sake
nI Evpuhlican liberty. II Is our earnest
rG1k that your example may be the
rn6a& az your SUCCESSORS. and thus at
s5se Aesng the ornament and safeguard
xE Cke present age. become the patri-
ssgusS or our descendants.
1ESx was this politics--as 1t may be
asSred the recent slayden resolution
mx * was the honest view Of the
OF the people in the
:Nr r796-men who had all lived
dxngGgh the trying times Of the reyo-
akoExH-and was an expression of
St4g belief that no president should
xxye more, than tw0+ terms. 1t can
~ sunstrued in mo other light, 80
7zsmas Jefferson assuredly so un
Gafstund II. and in repeated refer
y~ees To the subject he made 1t plain
almr ne. regarded, Washington as the
faismSar of the custom. For inc lance.
sNsfKN he wrote:,
Gk&E. Washington set the example OF
's3sssa aary retirement after eight years.
& nkkzu follow 1t. And q few more pre-
196n1ks will oppose the obstacle of
rSfsdk Go anyone after q while who shall
sxSn2yor to extend his term.
The legislatures of nearly all the
ssnEsg urgently requested Jefferson to
10 60 candidate for a third term in
iFd&. arguing that his services were
.rcessxrN because Of our unsettled re
iassuns with England and France
,z@s BE refused. More significant still.
E;yfew of some present claims, was
IN refusal to run in 1912. when the
3ccnd war with Great Britain was
SSenihg, and need was felt OF strong
4usat at the helm Jefferson plainly
s5Szs rot regard the four-year inter
NxMum as having any bearing on the
snta.. and peremptorily declined, TAX
ng advantage Of the opportunity to
s&~gkre to the ''one-man-whocan
people his firm con
xHsauy in the ability and steadfast
sexs of Madison.
grorn that time third-termism be
sxsrfs a moribund issue for more thar
ID years, but it was revived within
s- memory of many persons now
xsag. During General Grants sec
sr,E term movement arose for his
in 1876. There was i'm
sssiate- opposition. William Cullen
ysy,xst, then editor of the New York
Post, and recognized as the
sasTug Republican Journalist of the
karr at once declared against third
asss1ism. The Republican conventions
IN yearly every northern state took
lsEaise stand against the violation OF
70. precedent. 1t is Illuminating to
u,ssy shat the convention Of Kansas. a
,zsso which now seems to be leader
a. Che third-term fight, made this
'axs unwritten law enacted by the ex-
,rv,cSs OF he Father of his Country in
sss,V5,ine q reelection to u third term
q IN controlling as though IL was IN
earrsorated in the national constitution,
go ought never TO be violated.
nhs Pennsylvania convention re
stged:
Kf,at we declare and affirm unquali-
gef adherence to the unwritten law OF
10 republic, which wisely. and under
,,ss sanction of the most >venerable or
,nrnnples limits tho presidential serv-
N OF any citizen to two terms; and