Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1916-07-13
WHY THE WORLD
SUPPORTS WILSON

SUPPORTS WILSON
New York World: The World has
kind and an affectionate regard for
Charles f. Hughes.
1t was through the influence of The
World that he was appointed counsel to
the Gas Investigation committee, which
gave to him his first public recognition.
1t was through the recommendation of
The World that he was selected as coun-
Sc! to the Armstrong Insurance COM
mittee, which established him as one
of the commanding figures in New York
affairs.
The World not only urged Mr.. Hughes
nomination for governor by the republi-
cans, but it supported him vigorously
for election 1t again supported him
in 1908, 1t upheld his administration
long after large element of the repub-
lican press had deserted him because
of the factional quarrel that he had
carried within his party.
There are circumstances in which
The World would be glad, indeed, to
support MIR. Hughes for president. Ii
he were president today, in the circum-
stances in which Mr.. Wilson is presi-
dent, we should throw party and poll
tics to the winds and exert all the in
tluence that we could WELD to prevent
a change OF administration and to keep
Mr.. Hughes in the White House. We
would feel that the election of any other
man, no matter how able or how COM
petent, would be calamity, in that it
would reveal to the world lack Of po-
liticai stability on the part of the Amer
lean people and a failure to appreciate
the necessity of continuing foreign
policy in this great crisis of civilization.
For the same reason we should regard
the defeat of Mr.. Wilson by Mr.. Hughes
as national calamity. Aside from all
other considerations. there would be
period extending from Nov. Z to March
4 in which the foreign affairs of the
United States wauld be in chaos. Eu-
rope would know that the American
people had repudiated Mr.. Wilson. It
would have no official knowledge Of Mr..
Hughes, ,eof what he purposed to do and
what he purposed not to do. That very
interregnum might in itself plunge the
United States into war. This is pecu-
liarly the case when Mr.. Hughes candi-
dacy is vehemently supported by the
professional German leaders, who are
determined to punish the president for
presuming to have a foreign policy that
does not meet the demands of the Ger
man government.
Great as Mr.. Hughes abilities and
talents are, we can find absolutely no
reason in public welfare why he should
be elected president at this time. He
is the candidate Of sordid and reac-
tionary party that is blind to every con-
sideration except power and privilege.
He has no issue on which either he or
his party dares to take an uncompro-
missing position AT best he would be
an experiment when the country cannot
afford to make experiments. His lack
of experience with the foreign affairs
of the country during the war would be
a continuing handicap. The leadership
of his party would compel him either to
| be another Taft, or waste his adminis-
| tration in fruitless factional feuds, as
he did when he was governor of New
York.
1t has been the good fortune of The
| World to be able to contribute whatever
measure of public influence it could ex-
ert to the political advancement Of both
the candidates for president. We have
| battied for Mr.. Hughes and we have
battled for Mr.. Wilson. and we are
grateful for the opportunities that en-
able US to dc it; but in this campaign
we are unqnalificdly and unreservedly
on the side of Mr.. Wilson, whom we re-
gard as the greatest living leader of
democracy.
Not for partisan advantage does The
World support the president in this
crisis; not to serve the ends of the DEM
ocratic party or Of democratic politics,
but unqualifiedly and unreservedly for
| the Republic