The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1916-08-04
HUGHES FORMALLY ACCEPTS

Mr.. Hughes formal address of ac
ceptance of the Republican nomina
ton for President was delivered IL
Carnegie Hall, New York, last Mon
day night to an audience that taxed
the caapcity of the auditorium. Th'
address was long, it might be sale
wearisome, computed to be about si'
thousand words. There is nothing
striking nor original in it--no force
full, impelling sentences calculated tt
stir enthusiasm or quicken the pulse
Even his dominant AmericaAism'
and america first and America eff
fiqient" fail of impressiveness, be-
cause the sentiment Intended to bI
conveyed is obscured and has been SC
much more forcibly expressed by
others.
His criticisms Of Wilson's admin
istration-and that is the burden OF
his theme-seem strained, a reaching
out as if trying to find something
tangible to fit his purpose. He de-
votes most of his address to Mr.. Will
sons foreign policy; The array of con-
structive, wholesome and universally
beneficial legislation, those domestic
questions that mostly concern the
country, are not touched upon, either
to approve or condemn. They are
questions and achievements in which
the people are most vitality concerned,
yet Mr.. Hughes has no opinion to ex-
press on these, and fails of the te-
merity to assault them. He would
have the people forget, but the results
are before the country and they are
enjoying them.
Mr.. Hughes denunciaJion Of the
administration foreign policy is
wholesale rather than discriminativc.
Not a virtue, nothing commendable
can he discern-only blunder, sinister
purpose, failure to attain results in
any direction. His very extremity
fixed efforts to discrcdit, to arouse
partisan prejudice and confuse the
undiscerning, weaken whatever ia
vorabIe effect his words might have
had as to his fairness and sincerity.
The address is adroit, has some lit
erary merit and reads smoothly, but
there is nothing rapt, compelling, APP
pealing to the generous senses
nothing that takes hold on and clings
to the mind of the reader as of use.
Throughout one is reminded of the
specious pleading Of lawyer for his
client-a strained effort to minimize
everything pertaining to the contest
ant, exaggerating notes into beams.
If Mr.. Wilson had done this or that
the results might have been different.
Doubtless, but would they have been
better? Mere guess work, to try to
confuse the public mind and to lift
the critic by the boot straps on TO
some sort of a plausible plane of at
tack. But Mr.. Hughes fails to recite
any great achievement of his party
that warrants confidence in it to deal
successfully with the grave and deli
cate questions of diplomacy and neu-
trail rights that a whole continent at
war and the anarchistic conditions in
neighboring republic have thrust
upon this country. Mr.. Wilson has
met these conditions with saneness,
firmness and craftsmanship that with
stand all criticism Of partisan hatred.
His enemies may rail and agonize,
but the results Of his administration,
with it's array of unprecedented con-
structive legislation, together with the
peace, business confidence and gene
raj prosperity of the country, speak
for themselves.
It is safe to say that Mr.. Hughes
address will not be widely read nor
hailed with delight by his partisans
as a forceful campaign document;
nor will it be largely quoted either
by the party organs or Republican
stump speakers. 1t is too common
place, too much of rehash of what
other Republican carpers have al
ready said, to arouse enthusiasm or
persuade voters.