Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1914-08-05
PRESS OPINIONS
TEXAS TURNS TO REAL ISSUES.
Washington, D. C., Herald)

Texas has followed Alabama in dropping political fads. Thomas Il. Ball is one of the big Democrats in Texas, and he Iad the support of the president, Secretary Bryan, Post master General Burlesoa, and all the Democratic organizations in Texas in his campaign for governor. But he was beaten at the Democratic pri- maries last Saturday by a man who had never been in politics, who had never been candidate for anything, is only country banker, and a few weeks ago was unknown outside his own neighborhood.
 1t looks like a political turn over in Texas. and probably is, but only a partisan Republican would go so far as to see ill the defeat of the admin istration candidate vote against President Wilson and repudiation of his policies by tIe Democrats of Texas. The Democratic explanation is that the friends of Bill continued to hold on to a political fad after it had run its course.
 Senator Sheppard owes his seat in thC oHilNu olotCo oSiolC lO Pi CiiieA' ton, and he is the apostle and proph- ct of that fad in the Senate as Capt. HobSon is in the House. But Alaba- ma led the way and Texas followed in dropping the fad to take up leglti- mate political issues. Alabama re- pndiated Hobson to stand by Oscar Underwood, the Democratic leader who stands squarely on Democratic doctrines in appealing to Democrats, and who represents what has been the Democratic economic policy for several generations. Thomas H. Ball is not like Capt. Hobson, a man with only fad for an issue. He is big in brain and Drawn, is known all over the country as one of the able and popular leaders of Texas, but he was forced upon prohibition platform by those who had witnessed the success of Senator Sheppard and who believe that the hystcria was still prevalent in the Lone Star State. They were mistaken. MT. Balls brilliant record ia congress, the support of the ad- minlstratioa his reputation as a great | lawyer and successful business man, l and his personal overwhelming defeat | by an unknown country banker, be- cause he was handicapped with the same hysteria which Underwood had cured in Alabama.
 Mir. Ferguson, the successful can didate, expressed the opinion that Texas had had too much discussion of the liquor question, that too much talk about liquor was almost as bad as too much liquor. that the agitation l about prohibition had side tracked all real political issues and prevented the Democratic party from settling a number of questions in which the people were seriously interested, and
 which must he settled to insure the
 prosperity and tranquility of the
 state. He would have none of it. He
 would leave to individual citizens all , questions of purity, morals, and re-
 ligians, and to the various communi- ties the regulation of the liquor traffic, but he was opposed to drag ging 1t into state and national cam l paigns. because incorporate agitation of the temperance question could ao
 help settle the land question which is live issue in Texas, or the question . of taxation and the intelligent ad . ministratioa of the affairs of moro . than four millions of busy people.
 The Democrats of Texas seem t, /, : have agreed with MT. Ferguson, all, r decided to drop hysteria and ge
 down to business. Texas is now th