The weekly soliphone., 1916-12-08
TEDDY Comments
ON THE ELECTION

/
interviewer. We now, for the sake
of the nation, earnestly hope Mr..
! Wilson will meet with every sue
cess in the task ahead of him"
Theodore Roosevelt, in the Christ
mas Metropolitan Magazine, publish
ed yesterday, thus concludes his
summary of the election. Speaking
| of the reelection of President Will
son and of a democratic senate and
to the closeness of the party diyis-
ion in the house, he says:
ITO men who feel as the present
writer does and who hold their con-
| yictions with a fervor of intensity,
and who wished to see the Ameri-
can people repudiate Mr.. Wilson's
policies by an overwhelming major
! ity, the disappointment is naturally
keen.
"As in all such cases, the result
is more easy to explain than it had
been to foretell. The appeal made
| for Mr. Wilson was one which would
tell very strongly with good, honest
citizens whose preoccupation with
| their own pursuits was such that
! they could not be expected to look
deeply into our international rela-
| lions and the general world condi-
tions. This appeal was in its es-
sence that we should vote for Mr..
| Wilson because he had kept us out
of war and because we were pros
porous. 1t would have been highly
creditable to the average man if he
had possessed the vision and disin-
terestedness to disregard such an
appeal; but the fact that he did
not disregard it merely means that
we are not able to make the issue
clear to his eyes. 1t does not mean
that he would remain morally OBJ
fuse if he could be shown in con-
vincing fashion where his duty lay.
'No sensible man wishes to go to
war if he can honorably keep out
| of it; and when to this natural in
clination is added the fact that the
man is very busy and is puzzled
about the issues involved, he is GER
tain to cast his vote on the side that
he is told will guarantee peace.
Evidently people tend to look
at the dreadful crimes committed
in Belgium and Armenia, in the
OF MI Of hn nj IN
Mexico as analogous to disasters
such as an earthquake or a fire !;
as properly exciting a discreet sym
pathy but not as calling for any ac-
| ton which would jeopardize the
comfort and well being of those not
Immediately concerned. | do not
approve of this attitude. l am
merely stating it. Insofar as our
people permanently preserve it,
they will steadily tend to the Chi
nese level. 1t may need a serious
shock to wake them from it. Yet
/ am sure that it is possible to
wake them and that when thor
oughly reused, they have the fur
ther possibility of showing the great
qualities of the men and women of
the revolution and of the civil war.
again, every man does---and
ought to---prize a material well-be-
ing. To prize it is only wrong
when it is permitted to get out of
perspective and to become the sole
end of life instead of merely one of
| the means to the end important, but
to be sacrificed without hesitation
by all lofty souls when its retention
is clearly incompatible with some
higher good.
I'VE are at the moment well off.
The cost of living is very high, and
the government is rapidly becom-
ing unable to pay its debts; but
business men, farmers and wage
workers are all profitably busy. I'm
der such circumstances only men of
unusual insight and foresight will
make political change because of
| just concern about future condi-
lions. They do not pay much heed
to the forecasts of politicians.
1--WE have permitted our politi-
clans, our candidates for public of
flee, to treat the promises made in
party platforms and on the stump
with cynical Indifference which
now reflects itself in similar in
difference on the part of voters.
"When public men are readily
pardoned for making any promise
which they think will secure public
favor before election, and for re-
pudiating any promise which they
think it inconvenient to keep after
election. it is impossible to expect
that the voters viii not finally
grow skeptical about all promises,
prophecies and statements made
during the course of a campaign.
In addition to these counter
claims there was the fact that the
Adamson bill unquestionably pro-
duced great effect in Mr.. Wilson S
favor in all labor circles. 1t was