The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1913-09-10
THE RESULT In MAINE.

Explanations of the defeat suffered
by the Democrats and the Bull Moos-
ers in Names Third Congressional
election have been a little slow in
making their appearance. This is
undoubtedly due to the difficulties in
the way of framing satisfactory ones.
AS matter of fact, these difficulties
appear to be :nsurmountable. Neither
the Democrats nor the ProgresSiveS
have a leg to stand on. And this is
more particularly true of the Progress
sives. The lamentable showing that
they made must bring throbs of real
pain to the hearts of the Bull Moose
leaders.
So far as the outside world knew.
from the news of the progress of this
campaign that fitted over the wires,
the contest was practically being
confined to the Democrats and the
Progressives. They got all of the no
toriety. They flooded Names Third
district with their star orators. Victor
Murdoch left his congressional duties
to stump the district for the Bull
Moose candidate. Many other valiant
Moosers helped him make the old
welkin ring with denunciatfons of the
Republican party. Even Secretary of
State Bryan left his diplomatic duties
and actually denied himself the OPP
portunity to chautauqua a bit so that
he could rush to Maine and put in a
few good ticks for the Democratic
candidate and the cause. But the
efforts of the Bull Moosers and the
Democrats, large as they were, avail
ed nothing. The Republican candi-
date won a most convincing victory.
standard bearer of the Progressives,
the candidate of the coming party"
savored of slaughter. Colonel
Roosevelt received 1886 votes in this
same district at last November's cleo
ton. But the best the Progressive
congressional candidate could do the
other day was to poll 6.4s7 votes. The
Republican candidate received more
than twice as many. And yet the, die
tum has gone forth that there can
only be harmony between the Pro-
gressives and the Republicans provid-
swallow the plans and propaganda of
the Bull Moose leaders hook, line and
sinker. In other words the tail must
wag the dog.
Nor does the comparison of the re-
cent vote in Maine with the vote in
the same district in the presidential
election substantiate in any way the
claim that the Bull Moose party is a
popular party; that it has appealed
to Democrats as we'll as Republicans.
This premise is shattered by the fact
that the vote received by the Demo- |
cratic congressional candidate is prac- |
tically identical with the one that was
given to President Wilson. To put the |
matter differently, the vote that Col |
onel Roosevelt received came entirely |
from Republicans who were disaf |
fected for the time being and who
followed new leaders into strange |
pastures. That less than half of them !
have stuck to the new party shows
plainly itsspresent weakness. And this |
condition of affairs does not prevail |
in Maine alone 1t has cropped out |
wherever it has been possible to com |
pare the political alignments of the |
present with those that developed last |
November. In New York City. for in
stance, the Bull Moosers polled big
vote in November, but their number |
that has enrolled for primary pur-
poses there with the Bull Moose party |
is a mere fraction of that vote. 1t |
is insignificant.
AS far as the Democrats are con-
cerned their defeat in Maine is in the |
nature of a hard blow. 1t is not the |
endorsement of the Democratic ad-
that they expected and |
for which they worked so hard to at |
tain. 1t will be useless for them to
argue that this congressional election
was of no importance anyhow, and |
that it's result is without significance. |
If that were the case, they would not |
have sent Mr.. Bryan and other wheel |
horses to Maine to campaign for a |
victory.