Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1916-05-10
Who Will BE THE
NEXT PRESIDENT
Approach of National Conventions
Brings Increasing Interest in
Nominees.
LONG LIST OF REPUBLICANS
WILSON ONLY DEMOCRAT
While Democratic Convention Will
Have No Opposition to Wilson
Many Republicans Are
Seeking Nomination.

Continued from first page.)
promises to be in the reckoning at the
Chicago Convention, and so that our
readers who are interested in watch
ing the trend of political events
as every true American should be-
may know this man as do those who
are pushing him forward, we quote
below portion of a biographical
sketch which appeared in one of the
April magazines.
Last year the farthest west got
its nerve and began discussing the
idea of business man for President,
of John Hays Hammond before the
public in connection with the high
est executive Office in the land. Later
on the Middle West and the East ,ook
up the inquiry, with the futher re-
suit that its business people are try
ing to enlist an out-andout business
man as a candidate for the Presiden-
tial Office.
Their choice has fallen on so pc
culiar type of the American bust
ness man that he is worth telling
about. A Kentuckian by birth. sou
of the state which produced Lincoln;
an Ohioan by education, schooied i'll
the state from which sprung Hsrri-
son, Hayes, John Sherman, Allen q.
Thurman, Garfield, Foraker, Grant,
Hadley, Judson Harmon, Mckinley.
Taft and host who achieved to the
presidency or who aspired to il; a
miner in the coal pits and member
of the knights of Labor in their time;
a professional engineer from the best
school in the country. A street car
driver in the days of "old Hard
Tails" as the mule motive power rs
ed TO be called; a great manufacture
err; good roads advocate who show
ed the faith that was in him by build
ing a modern road system. wholly
with his own money, for his state, a
business man who was so little OF a
tyro in politics that he had relieved
his own state from the domination
of it's legislature by corrupt ring a
philanthropist to the extent Of CIV
ling a million at clip to the school
lin which he learned his profession,
land other proportionate sums to in
lstitutions and movements which ex-
lcited his interest and sympathy; and
a rich man, withal, with a whole LOT
of red blood and human sympathy in
Ibis make-up-surely, If the business
man were going to groom candidate
for the Presidency, they had their
beau ideal in the possessor of this
group of qualifications as vote
getter.
Thomas Coleman Dupont, of Will
mington, Delaware, the controlling
spirit of the Equitable Life Insurance
Company and the man who surpris-
ed New York by buying the old build
ing site of that company and putting
forty story building on it with his
own money. at.
Dupont is name that smells of
powder in this country, and that is
Ordinarily associated with the family
that is the greatest producer of pow
der for war and commercial purposes
in the world. Coleman Dupont was or
this family. its poor relation, as it
were, who was called on to build up
the industry when it was not nearly
as big as it is now-and who sold
out when his associates insisted on
exploiting the present foreign war
for corporate gain and advantage.
Coleman Dupont, as a powder max
err, had the patriotism to help the
government found it's own powder
mills, and gave it the benefit of his
own experts, his own secret formulas
and his own services. Coleman Du-
Ipont was the powder-maker who
made the operations Of his company
during the Mexican trouble subject
to the direction of the American ma
tional administration, without the
formalties of an embargo or other
legal limitation. And Coleman Du-
pont ceased to be powder-maker
and sold out his interests to his as
sociates-to fight about them
when his influence ceased to be great
lenough to prevent them from the ex-
Iploitation of the warning countries
Of Europe for the extended sale of
their products. So that as powder
maker Coleman Dupont was a good
citizen so long as he could be, and
when he couldn't be one any longer
he quit being a powder-maker.
Then he got new job.
A disastrous fire had ruined the
Equitable Building in New York and
Its wonderfully valuable site was for
sale. Coleman Dupont bought it and
put up the 40-story Equitable Build
ling that stands On it, at price for
the whole transaction that might
have made King Solomon and his
friend the Queen of Sheba wonder If
some one else didn't have at least
part of all the money there was in
1.-THE world Almost at the same time
he acquired the stock control OF the
Equitable Life Insurance Company.
On the questions which are occupy
ing the public mind at this time and
that are likely to be the subject OF
public attention during the next four
years Gen. Dupont has some pretty
clear notions that have commenced
him to those who are endeavoring TO
have him become candidate for the
presidency.
His attitude on the subject of pre-
paredness is indicated by the fact
that he has for years been in service
in the natioanl guard, being at the
present time Brigadier-General of the
Delaware state troops. AS much for
the military as for the agricultural
development of the country he is in