The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1919-09-26
The Presidents Chair Has Never In
the History Of the Nation Been
Occupied by Business
Man.
MANY WAR HEROES
Soldiers, Lawyers and Teachers Seem
to Have Had Best Luck in Be-
coming Leaders of the
Nation.

Why do Americans never choose
business men for their presidents!
There has never been a so-called bust
| ness man at the head of the United
States government since the beginning
of our career as nation. Many of the
first men of the land have been popu.
lar war heroes, a great many of them
We're lawyers before they became
presidents and others of them were
| teachers prior to their positions at the
white house, but none of them have
ever been business men.
George Washington was decidedly a
soldier president. At fourteen he was
planning to enter the British navy
as midshipman At nineteen with
the rank of major, he was adtutant
general and inspector general of the
Virginia militia. He fought with
Braddock against the French and In
dians and in ITS he became com
mander-in-chief Of the American army
and served for eight years. He was
also. it is true, a great statesman but
he was first soldier and military
war hero.
James Madison was never in the
field with the army. He came into
the presidency at the time of the wal
of 1912 and his second term was un
doubtedly the result of his determined
war policies.
James Monroe had been a soldier OF
prominence and conspicuous valor in
| the continental armies but 1t was MS
political experience that landed him in
| the executive office.
| 1t was largely the Battle of New
| Orleans that put Andrew Jackson
| "Old Hickory" in the presidency. He
had been fighter from early youth
/ in the Indian campaigns. After his
defeat of Wellington's veterans he was
the great war hero of Americans until
the civil war, being really more con
lspicuous than the heroes of the Mexi
can war. n
Another Indian fighter "Tippi
canoe"-William Henry Harrison
then stepped into the presidency. He
was with Wayne at Miami and fought
against Tec,lmseh where he won his
sobriquet and he was over Swallowed
as a military hero only by Jackson as
the result of Harrison's defeat of the
British General Proctor at the Battle
of the Thames In the war of 1872.
Battle Field to White House.
| Zachary Taylor was another decided
soldiers president. The Mexican wal
| put him in the white house. He was
commissioned lieutenant in the
United Sites army at the age Of "a
His defense of FIT Harrison four years
| later won for him a brevet majorship
his fighting against the Indians of the
| Wabash in 1914, the Black Hawk wal
| of 1882 and the Seminole war in 1886
established his reputation in the minds
! of his countrymen and he was ordered
| to defend Texas against Mexico in
I1S45. This was his great opportuni
/ ty and what he did TO Santa Anna al
Beuna Vista made this distinctly army
man so popular that the wave of pop
lularity carried him to the presidency
although it Is said he had no political
ambitions.
Two other soldiers out of the Mexi
can war contested for presidential
honors in 1852, Franklin D. Pierce
democrat. and General Winfield Scott
whig. Pierce had been made briga
der general by Polk for his bravery
at Vera Cruz and under Scott at Con