The public ledger. [volume] (Maysville, Ky.) 1913-1968, 1916-04-03
IN THE SUNNY SOUTH.
darlington Leader.l

| unlIlenuiy CIlllClbm OF fIesluenJ WIZ
son and his policies by the partisan
and Independent press of the north,
but when Bourbon Democratic
paper from as far south in Dixie as
Florida rises to discourse upon any
great failure of the Wilson admins
tration," it is time to wonder what
else is coming to pass in these re-
markable days.
| The Times Union, an old and widely
known Democratic newspaper, pub
lished at Jacksonville, is the offender.
But let the Times-Union speak for it.
Tseli. Il says:
IF we take it for granted that the
( Baltimore platform correctly express
! ed the views of Democrats, we find
that domestic issues of paramount inn
portance demand attention and consid-
GRAFTON. Those issues are still unset
tied in any permanent fashion and
much remains to be done toward per-
fecting the processes by which re-
forms were to be brought about.
But because the administration has
done little or nothing to secure due
and proper recognition of our rights
from the belligIrents of Europe, it is
more than probable that foreign poll
cies will receive greatest consideration
during the coming campaign-at a
time when our home affairs are most
deserving of thought we find the whole
people engaged in discussing the af-
fairs of others. After studying the is.
sues of protection until some decent
understanding of the real nature of the
tariff had been absorbed by the people
at large, we find ourselves shifted
away from our own business greatly
to our loss that we may talk and write
about the business of some who insist
that they be allowed to work out their
own salvation. Here is really the
great failure of the Wilson admins
tration. Had a simple and clean cut
decision been enforced early in the
war we would now be ready to vote
on onr proper policies instead of fight
ing here the issues peculiar to Europe
If ornaments over the sea so endanger
our safety as to justify the need of
preparedness proposed to us, it would
haYe been cheaper TO make the
strength felt while Europe is divided
"a pledge that armed preparedness
was to be ended might have engaged
our help and a decisive decision pro-
NOTED at much less cost than pre-
paredness would impose upon us. On
the contrary, We could have maintained
our position of isolation by declaring
non-intercourse until our lawful de-
mands under the law had been terated
with proper respect-neither party of
bclligerents could have endured the
loss of our benevolent neutrality To i
declare the rule and to ask the sup
port CT other neutraIs would have gone
far to restrict the diffusion of the war
sipirt; without such restraint we may
see yet other nations about the bat |
tlefelds compelled TO take sides. Hol- |
land and Scandinavia are suffering al
most as much by neutrality as they
would suffer as belligerents-Ruman
and Spain may be driven into line at
any moment.
To-day we stand in greater danger
OF trouble than when the war began
we have taken positions from which
we can not recede and the parties OPP
posite refuse to yield an inch. The
deadlock in diplomacy with us is as
firm as that in the renches of Eu-
rope with the difference that we need
not have taken any such position
while 1t has been forced upon them.
The President held in his hand a wea-
pom that would have proved more ef-
teetive than armies or navies; If he
shrank from the thought of embargo
or non-intercourse would have have
called upon the army and navy to de-
fend our view of the law? The lack
OF an army could not have made him
watch and wit in the case of Mexico;
when he now asks for preparedness
We must assume that he would still
have protested in vain though his con-
tinental army had been ready when
Americans were drowned by whole
sale and American business inter-
dupted by the belllgerents of Eu-
rope"
The trust magnates now ON trial
ahnt.Ia /