The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1919-06-05
A Legislator for President.

discussing presidential possibilities q
lar Western paper remarks that there .s
never been a President who was nom;
mated and elected as business man ,and
the comments further made that "statas
manship," not business, is the nr;rna
qualification. That is undoubtedlv cnn
rect, not only as matter of history hit
as policy which should be pursued ~
the future. Those qualities which .ra
commonly in mind when one refers ~ 49,
! business man are important but are MY ny
IN themselves sufficient in one wb. ~
likely to serve satisfactorily as the Cb;af
Executive of the nation. sStatesman
ship includes some of the qualifications
OF a business man. That is to saw. a man
might be successful business man with
out being statesman, but he could not
be successful statesman without havina
many OF the qualifications of a business
man.
while it is true that no man has ever
been nominated and elected President he
cause he was classed as a business man,
there have been some nominated and
elected who were not in fact and were
not believed to be statesmen Thew were
men who possessed neither qualifications
necessary for successful MANAGEMENT of
business, nor experience in public affairs
which would Justify confidence in their
directing public policies They were
chosen because they had become Justly
famous and popular through other Iines
of public service
probably the nearest we have come
to nominating and electing man Presi-
dent on the theory that he was a sbus;-
ness man was in the election of William
Mckin and hiS
cause of personal experience in business
but because in his legislative career he
had come SO frequently and closely into
relation with the business world that he
was thoroughly familiar with it's govern
mental interests and the effect of govern.
mental policies upon American industry,
Mckinley was in peculiar way the bust
ness mans candidate. BY his wears of
satisfactory service in the House of Rep
resentatives he had demonstrated a high
order of craftsmanship which included
an understanding of American business.
public and private. His administration
was characterized by efficiency and econ
omy. The policies of his administration
tended to development of American in
dustry. So far as governmental policies
affected American business there was
probably no other time in our history
when the government and American en-
terprise were more thoroughly in har-
mony.
mo man with open mind can serve
long and diligently in Congress without
becoming familiar with the problems
which confront American business. He
may be, it is true, SO prejudiced by pre-
conceived notions, or so bound by parti- |
sanship, or so limited by sectionalism,
that he is unwilling to concede facts, al /
though clearly demonstrated Such men. |
however, are the exception and not the |
rule. There is no greater school of states I
manship than the American Congress. |
before which are submitted all great |
questions affecting every phase of Ameri-
can economic interest Problems of in |
ternal improvement, of foreign trade reg
ulatlon, interstate commerce, encourage /
ment Of agriculture, advancement of the |,
cause of labor, improvement of our bank |
ing system-these and a multitude of !
other questions are submitted for the de- |
liberation of the legislative branch of the |
Government, and before the members of !
that body conflicting views are discussed
by men thoroughly conversant with the
practical problems involved"