Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1916-12-08
HUGHES AND WILSON
ONCE WARM FRIENDS
FORMER INTIMACY RECALLED
BY POLITICAL WRITER, COM
MENTING ON CAMPAIGN.

| lallOn 10 PRESIDENT wilson, and Pres
ident Wilson has answered it, folks
have been recalling the intimacy that
existed between the two families until
this year. Wilson and Hughes were
warm friends, each having high ad-
miration for the abilities of the other.
writes an Eastern political observer.
1t is fact that Wilson, nearly a
year ago, stated to friends that if he
were to be defeated for reelection,
he knew of no man whom he would
rather have defeat him than Hughes,
this writer continues. Wilson felt
that way about it because it was his
conviction that Hughes had the char
acter and at:ainments of worthy
president.
At the same time, Wilson, it is be-
lieved, did not think Hughes would
leave the supreme court bench for
the presidential nomination. 1t is
known that Democratic political man
ayers who kept reporting to the pres
ident that Hughes would take the
nomination were informed in turn by
Wilson that in his opinion they were
doing Hughes and the supreme court
an injustice in assuming such to be
the case without possessing more def
mite knowledge than was available
at the time.
Best Man at Sayre Wedding.
The social relations that existed
between the White House and the
Hughes family were of the pleasant
est. 1t is only necessary to recall, in
this connection, that Charles E.
Hughes, Jr., was the best man at the
White House wedding of Miss Jessie
Wilson and Francis Sayre, just three
years ago. Certainly the disillusioa-
ments that have come to both fami-
lies is one of the striking things Of
the campaign "reminiscences.
! The prevalent criticisms of Hughes
for delaying so long his telegram Of
congratulation come from all classes
of Republicans, but the oldliners are
most vehement and scornful They
never did like Hughes and took him
as candidate only because they
thought that he could win. For the
Hughes personality they had abso-
lutely no liking. Now that Hughes
has failed of fulfilling their expecta-
tions, they have nothing but merci-
less censure for him. 1t is the fash
ion of sordid politics.
The evidence that accumulates at
the national capital criticises Hughes
chiefly because he was impervious to
advice and that under the conditions
that prevailed in the Republican
councils, the ultimate responsibility
for fall-down rests with himself.
Anyone who knows anything about
the Hughes campaign, about the
Hughes personality and about poll
tics in general, knows perfectly we'll
that National Chairman Wilcox is no
more to blame for all the things that
he is blamed for than is Gabriel. WILL
cox, in the campaign, and before the
campaign, was pretty much the crea-
ture Of Hughes.
Hughes Selected Wilcox.
Hughes is responsible for Wilcox
because he was his personal selection.
If Hughes selected Wilcox to be the
/ goat, he has succeeded admirably, for
never before has such anathema been
heaped on any political manager as
is now being heaped on Wilcox. He
is as dead politically as is Hughes,
perhaps more so.
Wilcox is blamed for forcing
Hughes to make so many dashes up
and down the country. Wilcox is
blamed for the fatal error of sending
Hughes into California before the
primary contests of the Republicans
were settled and yet Hughes, person
ally, was warned that it would be
| putting fire to dynamite II he ven
tured into the Golden State while the
Johnson Progressives made their
fight against the Old Guard.
Much of the contention that is
being visited on Hughes and Wilcox
is hindsight. If Wilson had been de-
feated you likely would have found
him and his managers getting some
of the same whipping. In this con-
nection, however, it should be stated
that even before election day, it was
a matter of common comment that
the Democrats had much more eff
cient campaign personnel and ma
chinery-and they did their work on
less money.
The great complaint is that Hughes
was appallingly unresponsive. He
listened and that was the end of it..
He was genial in the early part of the
| campaign but his excessive running