New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-11-14
with the power which it has at present to

Every one agrees that the reorganlza-
ton Of the Republican party is now lnevi-
table. But what difference will reor-
ganization make in New York if Herbert
Parsons is kicked out, as he ought to be,
and William Barnes is put back. as he
ought not to be. And this is all that will
happen in New York if New York is left
to itself. And if this is all that happens,
do the Western Republicans think that 1t
will be a better national convention four
years hence. with Barnes voting for New
York instead of Parsons?
Let the Western Republicans reorganize
the national party; let them take control
by virtue of the power that they have or
that they can acquire. Let them ruthless
ly and unhesitatingly refuse to have TO do
with Parsons, with Barnes, with Penrose,
with all the rest of the men who have
fought the West at every turn, who hate
and oppose all that the West holds worth
while and will never under any circum'
stances be loyal or faithful to Republic
can party reorganized by the West
The Western Republicans have success
fully fought their bosses and destroyed
the machine leaders who opposed them.
They have disposed of the local reaction
aries; they are in control by virtue of their
own courage and their own capacity for
fighting. Do they not now owe service
to that portion of the East which shares
their views but lacks their power or their
capacity? They have cleaned out their
own stables, but will there be any real
hope for the future of the Republican
party before they have aided their natural
allies in the East to clean out the Eastern
stables?
Let the West come East; let it come
with its fighting clothes on and its con-
quering spirit nerved to new contest.
Let the Western leaders agree among
themselves and their constituents to have
nothing to do with the machine leaders of
the East, who have neither policies nor
principles, who know only one kind of poll
ties and only one sort of principles. Let
them look for the men and women who
believe as they believe; they will find them.
When they have found them, let them
stand with them, let them make the Re
publican party progressive, nationally, not
parochially, east of the Mississippi as well
as west of the river.
The East is ripe for political revolt.
Both political parties are dead; they are
things without honor and without appeal
to millions of men and women. They are
hulks operated by politicians like Herbert
Parsons and Charles f. Murphy, whose
points of agreement are far more numer-
Gus than their points Of difference. Wood |
row Wilson, backed by the Western Demo-
Gratis, has put his foot on the Eastern
Democracy, and it has ceased to count in
national conventions or party councils.
Let the Western Republicans choose their
own agent and follow the same course with
the Eastern Republican organization.
Two generations ago men from the
North and East went out West to keep
Kansas free and make the West exactly
what it has become. There are few of the
older villages in New England and New
York which have not contributed some
thing to the creation and development of
the West, not on the material side alone or
chiefly, but first of all on the side of prin-
ciple. Towns like Lawrence, Kan, still
preserve some memory of their moral OBJ
legation to the East. Is this obligation
discharged only by negative national vot-
ing and self-satsfed denunciation of
Wall Street?
Machine politicians and the press which
they control will now talk of Western
treachery. This represents the opinion
of the Eastern politician and the party
hack, but it stops there. The East is no
more unitedly reactionary than was the
West twenty years ago. 1t isn't untedly
anything, and it is not likely to unite on
anything because it has no men Of light
and leading to point the way. Eastern
Progressives thought it was more impor-
tant to defeat Mr.. Wilson because of his
handling of foreign affairs than to do any
thing else. But if Western Progressives
thought differently, that was their right,
and no Eastern Progressive criticises.
By their local votes the Western Pro-
gressives have demonstrated that they
mean to stay Republican. But the Repub-
lican party cannot exist half progressive
and half reactionary. If the Western Pro
gressives leave the Eastern reactonaries
in control of the Eastern Republican or
ganization, these will in time, thanks to
the power that money gives them, regain
control of the party nationally. Actually
they have never let 60 of it. The way TO
prevent another 1912 is not to wait until
the next national convention and then
bolt if things go badly.
Of the West come East II knows now