The Washington herald., 1916-04-11

EXPECT WILSON
TO HIT KEYNOTE
Democrats Believe He viii
Touch on Campaign Issues
at Banquet Thursday.
MAY DISCUSS MEXICO
Border Tangle Likely to Hold First
Place in Campaign-Roosevelt's
MAY DISCUSS MEXICO
BY JOSEPH p. AMIN.

What will President Wilson nave to
say at the Jefferson Day banquet next
Thursday? The aSair is to be held
under auspices Of the Common Coun-
sci Club at the New Willard. Sena-
tor Walsh is to speak to the toast:
Three Years of the New Freedom"
Senator Hollis is to discuss the atti-
tude OF the administration toward the
agricultural interests, and Represen-
tative Carter Glass will tell of the re-
lations between the administration and
business men and bankers.
So far, and as Democratic State
chairmen are to be guests of honor,
the setting would seem 10 be perfect
for keynote speech from the foun-
tain head. President Wilson is to
speak last. No one previously will
have more than scratched the sub
ject OF the administrations foreign
policies, which have been the principal
point Of attack by Republican orators,
particularly with respect of Mexico.
VIII the President break the silence
with which the recent speeches of
Roosevelt, Root, and Borah have been
met, and lay the groundwork for the
hardest work of his Democratic COL
leagues in the coming campaign-that
is, the defense of the Mexican policy
and the submarine controversy?
The Mexican Controversy.
Democrats. in public Office and out.
believe that the coming campaign will
wage more furiously around the Mex
lean controversy than any other issue,
even including preparedness. The
anianimity with which Republican
leaders from all sections of the coun-
try have hammered away at this point,
and the fact that numerous Republican
State conventions have given promi-
hence in their resolutions to condem-
nation of this policy, leads them to
believe that it will dwarf other issues
REPUBLICANS will declare, with every
promise Of receiving credence, that but
for our inirm and vacillating policy
Of repudiating our nationals as soon
as they get into trouble in Mexico, that
contempt Of Germany which eliminated
in the sinking of the Lusitania and
the long string of subsequent subma-
rine outrages never would have been
incurred They. will insist that our
present precarious situation, on the
brink of embodiment in the world war
harks back directly and clearly to the
sacrifice of our national prestige in
dealing with the Mexican problem.
Whether the President will admit
any general criticism of his Mexican
policy to the extent OF making a key
note defense, is of course problemati-
cal. The President may content him
self with an Affirmative rather than
defensive position, though it is taken
for granted that he will deal largely
with his foreign policies.
Coalition Is Significant.
Many Republican politicians are con-
WINGED that the seeming coalition of
Roosevelt and Root forces is with
view to again having these two in
White House and State Department
respectively during period when they
believe the foreign relations of this
country are going to be strained most
severely because of the loss of ma
tional prestige by the present admin
istration. They believe the most ire
mendous pressure will be brought to-
bear upon the Monroe Doctrine fol-
lowing the end Of the European war,
and that no two men in the country
could more firmly impress upon any
possible aggressor from over seas than
Roosevelt and Root the determination
OF this country to uphold the spirit
and letter of that doctrine
1t is interesting to note that those
Democrats who formerly believed and
declared that Roosevelt would be the
easiest man for the Democrats to de-
feat. are now anxiously inquiring for
the strength Of the Hughes boom, and
very apparently hoping that the Su-
preme Court will furnish the next
Republican candidate. Despite the
early reports that the West would give
Hughes firm support should he be
nominated by reclamation, it is now
becoming apparent that the West and
other sections would be loathe to name
a man from whom nothing had been
heard on any of the great national
front.