New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-03-05

than Mr.. Asquith was in Great Britain.
His pathetic reliance upon the written
word has not been more perilous to his
country than the faith of Vivian IN the
spoken word. Contemplate as is our pres
ent national legislature, it is not more
contemplate than that legislature which
represents France in the most heroic mo-
ment of the French race.
The truth is that this great crisis IN
human history has inexorably destroyed
most of the men in public life who sought
to grappe with it and were exposed as
impotent as a child in the presence OF an
avalanche. Actually the problems and the
perils of this period have proven beyond
the capacity of the statesmen of the hour.
Mr.. Wilson has failed like most others, be-
cause like most others in all nations, he
has been incapable of measuring the eX-
tent of the storm. and he has been unable
to take his impulse from the great and
enduring splendor Of the mass of his fell
low countrvmen, but has continued to fear
their selfshness instead of relying upon
their patriotism.
British democracy, French democracy,
both have failed quite as grlevously as
American in producing a statesman in
this supreme hour. There is no man IN
any nation who measures up to the mo-
ment or stands disclosed as equal to the
emergency. Those legislators in Sen
ate and House who disgust US are not
more contemplate than similar legislators
in the House of Commons or the Chambre
des Deputies. The truth is not to be mis-
taken; democracy has patiently failed IN
the greatest crisis it has had to face. 1t
has failed, and Mr. Wilson is not more
obvious evidence of the failure than those
men, who, all Unexpectedly, were called
upon, as was he, to deal with world
storm they did not understand and could
not measure.
To Mr.. Wilson there has come a second
chance. one of the rarest gifts of all that
the gods bestow upon mankind. If he has
learned, if he will lead. men will forgive
and follow: but if he still finds it imposSl-
BILE to lead. if he still distrusts the pa
triotism of his fellow countrymen and
takes the voice of cowardly politicians for
the will of the masses of his countrymen,
if he hestates between brave words and
the deeds that brave words demand, he
will hereafter be remembered-or forgot
ten-as was Buchanan, the little man, the
feeble man, infrm of purpose and incapa-
BILE of action, who, to the terrible injury
of his country, held. power when a great
storm gathered.
Mr.. Wilson's personal fortunes are too
intimately joined to the welfare and safety
of his country to make it wise or expedi-
ent in the present hour to foreclose upon
the future. He cannot do well without
serving his country greatly; he cannot do
i'll without bringing suffering and harm to
millions of his fellows. If he fails us now,
his punishment will be great, but the SUI
fering of his country will be greater
Thus it is that to-day our minds must be
fixed rather on the future than on the
past: we must hope, despite our fears,
that the failure of the past will be COM
pensated for by the success of the future
Our fate is for years and in a large meas
ure in his hands.
Fifty-six years ago President of the
United States took Office in the midst Of
the greatest crisis in our history. He
made mistakes and he failed in much that
he sought to do, but he learned through
his failures; he found success, and in all
the storm he never for a moment doubted
the courage, the patriotism, the self-sacri-
fee of the millions who followed him. He
remains our greatest American, and the
consciousness of what Americans owe
Abraham Lincoln grows with each sue
ceeding generation. In the presence of a
new national peril, only degree less than
that of half a century ago, will Mr.. Will
son not see in the example of Lincoln the
solution to his own and our problem?