The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1918-10-25

that, although he has mentioned Re-
publican candidate for president for
whom he thinks he once voted, it does
not appear that this is possible, un-
less he is in error as to his own age.
Patriotism is Issue"
"The issue is infinitely more impor-
tant than any merely political issue.
1t is the issue of straight American
ism, of straight patriotism and of pre-
paredeness for the tasks of peace and
of war as against particularly fool
ish and obnoxious type of pacificism,
preached in peace and practiced in
war.
"This is the first time in the his
tory of our country in which cam
didate who has been nominated for
high Office has spent enormous sums
of money in demoralizing the people
of the United States on a matter OF
vital interest to their honor and well
fare.
"The expenditures on behalf of
pacifcism by FIR. Ford in connection
with his peace ship and in connection
with his great advertising campaign
in favor of the McLemore resolution
and of the pacifist and pro-German at
titude against our participation in the
war, were as thoroughly demoralizing
to the conscience of the American peo-
pie as anything that has ever taken
"The failure of Mr.. Ford's son to
place.
Cites FOrd's Son
go into the army at this time, and the
approval by the father of the sons
refusal, represent exactly what might
be expected from the moral disinte-
grafton inevitably produced by such
pacifist propaganda.
"Mr. Ford's son is the son Of man
of enormous wealth. If he went to
the war he would leave his wife and
child UNNECESSARILY distant from all
chance of even the slightest financial
strain or trouble, and his absence
would not in the slightest degree af-
feet the efficiency of the business with
which he is connected.
"But the son stays at home, protest
ing and appealing when he is drafted,
and now escaping service.
"Your two sons have eagerly gone
to the front. They stand ready to pay
with their lives for the honor and the
interest of the American people, and
while they thus serve America with
fine indifference to all personal cost,
the son of wealthy Mr.. Ford sits at
home in ignoble safety, and his father
defends and advises such conduct.
at would be grave misfortune to
the country to have Mr.. Ford in the
senate when any question Of contin-
uing the war or discussing terms Of
peace may arise, and it would be an
equally grave misfortune to have him
in any way deal with the problems
of reconstruction in this country.
Michigan is facing the test, clear
cut and without shadow of chance
for misunderstanding, between patriot
ism and Americanism on one side, and
on the other pacifism and that foolish
sham-cosmopolitanism which thinks it
clever to deride the American flag
and to proclaim that it would as soon
be Hindoo or Chinaman as an Amer
lean.
eff there should be at any time in
the future a Hihdoo senate, and it
should choose, in a spirit of cosmopol-
itanism, to admit outsiders, there is no
reason why Mr.. Ford should not as
pire to membership therein; but he
would be signally out of place in the
American senate so long as that body
is dominated by men who zealously
believe in the American ideal and
faithfully endeavor to serve the Amer
lean people,"
Taft Hopes for Election
Former President Taft's letter is
as follows:
81 write to congratulate you on be-
ing the Republican candidate for SEN
ator in the state of Michigan. l sin
cerely hope that you will be elected,
and am very certain that if you are,
you will render to the state and to
the country valuable service in your
high Office. feel that / can say this
from personal observation of the way
in which you discharged your official
duties both while you were assistant
secretary of the navy, and while you
were in the same cabinet with me un-
der President Roosevelt.
"It is of the highest Importance
that in the settlement of the import
ant questions growing out of this war,
we should have men in the senate of
your experience in governmental mat
tiers, and of your political views. The
Democratic majority in congress has
not been one upon which the president
of the country could depend for the
adoption of measures adequate to the
winning of the war. i. ,rrya
"The people of the United States
can be much more ,sconfident, if we
have Republican majority in both
houses, that the legislative branch of
the government wilLlwisely cooperate
with the executive administration and
nv constructive criticism make that adj