Rock Island Argus., 1914-09-24
.CALESBURC SEES
FORMAL OPENING
OF THE CAMP AlCN
Roosevelt Makes Set Speech
There, Repeating Some of
Statements Here.
CITES EXAMPLE OF LINCOLN
Asks People to Follow Principle and
Lose Sight Of the Names
of the Parties.

/ Aheodore roosevelt entered upon a
two-day campaign in Illinois today in
behalf OF Raymond Robins. senatorial
candidate of the progressive party of
I Illinois. 1t is his first political visit
to the state since the campaign OF
1912, and besides his address here to-
day he is billed to speak at Springfield.
Marion and East st. Louis before en-
tertng Indiana in the interests OF for
mer Senator Beveridge who is striv-
ing to return to the upper house at
Washington as a progressive. Wheth-
er he makes rear-platform addresses
at smaller towns will depend on the
condition of his voice.
In his address here Colonel Roose-
/ welt deplored blind adherence to
names. rather than to principles. He
said that talk of progressive return
10 either of the old parties was absurd.
"One of the most mischievous mani
[ festations of this habit of ours is the
way in which the ordinary citizen
I the good, decent citizen-tends to sur
render his soul into the keeping of
INSCRIPTIONS and constituencies ma
chine politicians on the theory that
Z thereby he is being loyal to party
/ ties" asserted the speaker.
! Slavery to Names Obstacle.
Slavery to the Names" he contin-
ued, lis often the most lamentably eff
ficient obstacle in the way of fealty to
ideals. The dead hand of all allie
glance to a party name when the spir-
it that first formed the party is itself
dead results in hampering beyond
measure the effort to use parties as
living instruments for the welfare of
the people 1t is this tendency to make
a fetish of what he calls party regu-
larity' on the part of the average good
man who has not the time to think
very deeply over the issues of the day.
which is by far the most important
factor in giving strength to the mere
machine politician. The machine poll
tician himself usually has not the
smallest scruple concerning party reg
ularity. and has not a sentiment of
any kind in connection with allegiance
to his party. But he trades on the
fact that his dupe. the good average
citizen. does possess this scruple ana
feels this sentiment.
Lorimerism Non-Partisan.
in this state. for instance. Lorimer-
ism has been an almost non-partisan
and most certainly a bipartisan phe-
nomenon. The most prominent among
the machine supporters OF Mr.. Sulli-
van. who is now running for the sen
ate on the democratic ticket. have
been in the past the very men who
have made Legislative and other COM
binations with the Lorimer wing of
the republican party. We have seen
the same thing in New York and many
other states. The machine leaders
who make the most impassioned ap-
peals to the public TO the fetish of
party loyalty. in their own actions
show not the slightest preference for
one party over another, yet il is the
fact that their appeal meets with some
response in the soul of the average
man that really enables them to dom
mate. through the machine, their own
party organization. Their loyalty is
10 the machine (that is 10 themselvesD
and not in the least to the party. Their
appeal is to that spirit of loyalty to
the party in which they themselves
are totally deficient Unfortunately
the appeal is too often successful. The
rank and file of those VINO follow them
are not corrupted. They are simply
misguided. and are the slaves of
terminology. the slaves of names. The
average man has not the time to at
tend minute details of party WORK. and
he finds il only too easy to substitute
the declaration that he belongs to such
a party and always votes that way,
for the faithful and laborious perform
ance of the work necessary 10 control
his party.
Lincoln Left Party.
AT this moment the only way to be
loyal to the principles of Abraham
Lincoln is by opposing the party which
in middle life Abraham. Lincoln helped
to form Until he was a man OF mid
die age. until he was well toward so
years of age. Abraham Lincoln was a
a member of the whig party. But he
was loyal to principles and not TO
names. and when the whig party ceas-
ed to be an instrument of value for the |
accomplishment OF high ideals, Abra- !
ham Lincoln unhesitatingly left IL
and helped to form a new party. The
men who are true TO the principles OF 1
Abraham Lincoln can thus be true only 1
by adhering to the principles and prac- /
tices of Lincoln, and leaving the party /
of their youth exactly as he left the .
party of his youth when that party 4
ceased to be an instrument for serv-
ing the people.
"Our opponents ask you TO be true
to the party. ask you TO be true TO the
principles OF Abraham Lincoln"
In Illinois the colonel said that the
worst scandals in connection with
which such matters as the election OF
Lcrimer 10 the senate. OF to the organ
ization of the legislature in the inter
est OF both machines. have all been
scandals in which the members OF both
parties who now support Sullivan and
sherman have worked hand in hand
..tn the same evil end" He added: