The Washington herald., 1918-03-21


Yesterdays meeting of the un-
official Presidential cabinet with
the National Executive is a step to-
ward the very end sought by Sem
ators who have pointed out our war
inefficiency-co-Or and the
better achievement of our war
tasks.
Friends of the President and sup
porters of the war cabinet legisla-
tion grant this freely on the Hill
They see now. just as some of them
have seen all along-though they
have not admitted it to their con-
ferees geuerally-that the Senators
had in mind constructive and not
obstructive measures.
The new step. so all admit, Is
bound to make for good. II means
a discussion of problems that was
not possible under the old scheme.
1t means a settlement Of problems
that was not possible under the old
order. 1t means an advancement
OF Americas cause, In short. that
was not possible under the old
order.
The end of all OF the investiEa
tions and Of the speeches which fol-
lowed them. therefore, IL that our
war program has been immensely
helped by it. Things are moving in
ways they would not have and could
not have moved had the invcsti-
cations not disclosed our weak
nesses and had the Senators not
pointed out the lessons to be gain
cd from them and the remedies to
adopt.
From a casual talk with several
OF the Senators we gather that
they are not at all incensed by rea-
son of the fact their recommen nda-
tions have not been followed ex-
plicitly. They were only seeking
results. They were not insistent
as TO the details by which those re-
suits should be achieved.
They knew results and not Idle
talk or vagaries or evanescent NUT
terings would count against his
fendishness the Kaiser. They knew
1t would take Americas best efforts
to bring him to terms and ii was
those efforts they wanted to bring
forth.
Some Senator. whom We will not
name. wanted very much 10 go abroad
with Secretary Baker.
lie wanted TO go, oil, so badly.
lie was told TO present himself 70
the President and ask the President
IL he might go. lie did 20 but was
promptly told by the Executive that
It would be better for him TO remain
here.
We are not saying anything about
the reason the President gave. But
we are saying something about the
reason the President did not give The
President simply didn't want &c he
worried about this man being quoted
here and there and everywhere and
purpOrting to I've the administration
spokesman i'm his quotations That
was it. Nothing else. And do you
blame the President.
A surprisingly large number Of
States have no recourse to the initia-
tive and referendum 10 settle their
great questions.
It is too bad that this Is so-but the
defect will be remedied as time goes
on. Both reforms are worth while.
Both make for efficiency Neither
should be feared by the conservatives
Of any State. for, frankly there Is
nothing 10 fear.
We hope to observe the operation OF
these principles at no far distant date
In Pennsylvania. Boies Penrose has
feared them. great big strong man
that he is. But he never had a valid
reason for doing so-save perhaps that
he thought under one or the other
form the people would get too much
power and might perhaps decapitRte
him. But even he will change his
mind when he sees the l. and r. in
operation.
The result OF President Wilson's In
dorsement of Joe Davies will be ru
bring on the very political game that
followers of the administration have
insisted should not be played at this
time. And the President can be
charged with helping 1t considerably
himself. His effort to condone his in
dorsement of Mr.. Davies 10 a strained
| one. He is pronouneedly unfair to Mr..
Lehroot and he goes a long way to-
ward alternating a large number OF his
best supporters by his so-called acid
| tests. For instance, IL Mr.. Bryan were
running for Office he could hardly in
dorse Mr.. Bryan. For the latter was
| for the passage Of the McLemore reso-
| luton, which was opposed by the
| President. and he was opposed to the
1 armed neutrality bill. which the Pres
| ident wanted to have passed by Con
| gress. Mr.. Bryan SCORES only .333, fol
no was with the President on only one