Gilpin observer., 1915-03-18
TWO YEARS OF WILSON

On the fiftieth anniversary of Lin
coins second inaugural. Woodrow Viii
son completes half his presidential
term.
These two years of the Wilson ad-
ministration have helped to make
more history than any other two years
since Lincoln. The coming two years
OF the Wilson administration must
inevitably be the most momentous
period that this country has known
since the civil war.
1t is a fact of enormous Importance
that this crisis finds in the White
House a president who is completely
master OF himself Being master of
himself, he is master of his party and
of his administration.
There is no kitchen cabinet. There
are no back-stairs advisers. There
sway the policies of the executive.
No underground wires run from the
White House into Wall Street or in
to the headquarters of any political
Committee. Men may agree with Mr..
Wilson or disagree with him; they
may like him or they may dislike
him; but everybody knows that he
and he alone is president. Every
body knows that during the remain
ing two years of his term he and he
alone will be president.
A very unusual man, meet to cope
with a very unusual situation in the
affairs OF mankind-a president who
in all his official relations displays
neither vanity nor resentment, nor
anger nor personal ambition. If he
has friends, their friendship counts
for nothing in the affairs of state. If
he has enemies, their enmity weighs
nothing in the balance of govern
ment. He seeks neither to reward
the one nor to punish the other.
So evenly does he hold the scales
that the members of the diplomatic
corps, with all their highly developed
facilities for obtaining information,
have never been able to learn where
the president personal sympathies
lie in the great conflict that is now
devastating Europe. Whatever his in
dividual opinions nay be. he has
smothered them in the responsible
ties OF his office.
AT this period in their first term
most presidents have been carefully
calculating tEeir chances of renomina
tion and reelection. Nobody knows
whether Mr.. Wilson intends to be a
candidate fer reelection or not. Not
member of the cabinet. not mem
Der of congress, can say of his own
knowledge that the president desires
a reelection or tat he would not
refuse denomination. What all of
them know is that the president
would not stoop from principle to win
either denomination or a reelection
That is where his great strengih h
lies. That is where his great useful
ness lies in this crisis. II is easy to
rattle the saber.Ht is easy to make
the welkirg ring. 1t is easy to be
spectacular and sensational and thea
trical. 1t is easy to be a demagogue.
1T Is easy to juggle with the fate of
a nation when no man can foresee
what the next day will bring forth
But it is not easy to be calm and re-
strained and judicial. II is not easy
to face every responsibility without
prejudice and without passion. 1t is
not easy to hew straight to the line
Of first principles, regardless of ap-
plause or censure or praise or denun-
citation. 1t is not easy to be sane
when the world has given itself over
to madness.
The enormous good fortune of the
people of the United States in the
storm and stress of these coming
years is that their chief magistrate
Is sane-the sanest mind today that
is intrusted with the responsibilities
OF government anywhere in civil a
tiOn-New York World