The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1916-08-24
Observation-Disclosures
By FREDERIC J. HASKIN

I Americanism to work too hard, and
those who are not on the payroll keep
those who are, busy by their persistent
and determined efforts to get on. Thus
the national committee is thrown on the
defensive early in the game, and has a
hard time getting around to the ag-
gressive features of its work.
Of course the thing is pretty well
systematized. There is a man for each
particular complaint, and he has sew
eral assistants, each of whom will hold
the enemy for quite while, so that it
is only the most determined and the
most favored who get any where near
the committee chairmen, For example,
if Colonel Quill, editor-in- chief of the
Shellbark Weekly Struggle, wishes to
tell the chairman of the Democratic
National Committee what his paper can
do for the cause and what the cause
can do for his paper, after a reasonable
wait in the ante-room, he reaches a
polite but non-committal assistant in
the public bureau, who sizes him I'D and
his sheet, and either shuts him onto
side track or passes him up to higher
realms, according to what his PROPOSE
ton assays.
The plans for electing presidents
that are laid before the men are often
unique to the point OF incredibility. For
example prominent actress called at
Democratic headquarters with a plan
for placing President Wilson prepared
ness policy before the people in a pleas.
ing light. She offered to buy a big
tierce-looking bull dog, provided the
committee would give her the money,
and name him President Wilson. Ow-
ing to her prominence in the public
prints the newspapermen would of
course ask her why she had named her
dog after the chief executive. She
would then explain that he was a
peaceful dog; who held himself aloof
from the average dog fight. but that if
driven too far, he would bite.
Then there was man from Texas
who wanted fifty thousand dollars with
which to found Democratic news
paper, so as to keep the Lone Star
state from going Republican; the negro
champion crap shooter who offered to
'bust" all the colored voters in his
district if the committee would furnish
him with the money to make a start.
and to cancel the debt on the sole con-
dltion that they vote right; and the
barber who said that the men of his
craft were against Hughes because he
wears beard, but who offered to
swing the chin scraper vote if he was
treated right.
The women are there, too. One of
/ them offered to demonstrate how the
tariff had injured women by wearing a
] swell trousseau, to be provided by the
committee, and so labeled as to show
the baneful effect of the tariff on the
prices of certain articles of wearing
apparel. Society women of the kind
whose husband haven't much except
their social position, are not uncommon
around both headquarters. One of them
wanted the committee to paw her
/ husbands back club dues, so that he
could once more attend the fashionable
New York organization and urge the
young men to vote, for Hughes. An
other of the same class suggested that
the committee pay the expenses of a
series OF teas and receptions which she
would give at her town and country
houses. To these exclusive affairs
would be invited all of the social climb
ers who had money or influence. The
gracious hostess would tell them she
hoped Hugehs would be elected, and
they would follow her advice out of
gratitude. In return. she wanted for
her husband a position paving at least
fifteen thousand year
But for genuine generalship and in
genuity. the man with the land scheme
had them all beaten. He proposed
that every Republican in Pennsylvania,
for example, be given an acre of land
in some Western state where the vote
is apt to be close. The grateful re-
cipient would then carry the Western
state for Wilson, while enough Re-
publicans would be removed from Pen
nsyyania to assure Democratic
victory there.
And all of these geniuses, we are led
to believe, were turned down. Is it
fair? Politics is the great American
sport Why should active participation
be reserved for politicians and the
methods limited to political oratory and
editorials? There is a great future for
a party that will make one of its planks
policies of the people. for the people
and by the people.
! Creek, West Va.