Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1919-11-10
RECENT State VOTING
CAREFULLY ANALYzED
Effort Made by Politicians 70
Fathom Real Sentiment OF
American People.
cRATs SEEK HOPE
Best Judgment Is That Neither OF
Two Great National Parties Gam
Afford to Take Anything for
Granted.
ny }. FnEDEnICk EssAn,.

by }. FREDERICK EsSARy
WASHINGTON. Nov. 9.--Wherever do.
nestle politics Is n matter OF vibrant
interest. the results of the recent state
elections are being carefully analyze1
and an effort Is being made on a basis
OF these returns to fathom the real sen
timent OF tho American people. TO de
terminc whether any Democrat who
may run for President next year can
nope for election and whether the Re
pnblicans can get by" no matter whom
Ana the best political judgment to
nate is that neither OF the two great
national parties can afford to take any
thing for granted: that with the right
man at the head OF the ticket. the Dem.
ocratS VIII have good lighting chance.
make Killing they had better Of
ier The country the timber they have in
OF nc tide now running against the
party IN power. a tide which had set in
i,ecisirely when the congressional clcc-
lions, lion we're held last year. and which
has not been wholly stemmed even
now This feeling OF hostility againtt
|. is the direct result OF hardshlps ' ana
the irrltations Incident 10 the war and
reo has been of Tin madS more pronounced b.
some VIM Wear on.
But good deal OF this Will wear on
in the course OF time, particularly 20
when tie country begIns weighing the
really great achievements OF The pres
OF the constructive work Of recent
Democratic Congresses. Tho pendn.
lum Will swing back to degree. the
more certainly it viii II the. Ropubii-
rnn leadership fails to SHOW any
marked capacity for constructive soiu-
lion OF the vast problems which ne
country now faces.
The most partisan OF RculDii.a,ir
must admit 10 themselves. IL not aloud
that heir leaders III the House ana
senate have been dismal fanuroa since
IN. extra session OF Congress began
In neither branch OF the national legig.
laturc mas there been produced any
thing but destructive legislation. The
TO wrccking tie peace treaty. and tic
House TO wrcckinE the war machinery
OF tho administration. Although they
. have had hair years notice that the
railroads would be turned back To their
owners In January. ono OF tho Rcpubll-
can leaders confcsscs their inability TO
bring out a railroad policy 70. tic
future.
vital Reconstruction Problems.
The fact is the new Congress has
dealt with none Of the more vital re-
construction probicms. They have
found no. way OF meeting the labor
crisis. They have even SHE'D at this
troublesome situation. prefcrrng TO
| unload the whole burden upon tie al
ministration. They have done little
toward cRcciing necessary economies
They nave framed no new fiscal iesis.
lation tending to tighten taxation.
They have no merchant ;nariy.s pro-
gram. no new army program and have
not even given Us new immiS ration
measure.
| IL tic regular session of Congress.
which begins in pccember. IL FILTERED
away AS wantonly AZ the extra sCs-
sion. the Republican leadership vii
convict Itself OF total Inability co
meet shc grave conditions which nre;.
have very little to promise tho s-neri-
| can people beyond tie radical change
which comes with every new regime.
While. therefore, the odds At tho
present moment arc decidedly against
the election OF another Democratic
President, the prospect is not ono OF
utter hopclessness. II the Republicans
should nominate Il mere wrccker, such
as Hiram Johnson. or an oui-and- out
| militarist. such as Leonard Wood. and
| constructions, of the type OF Herbert
| Hoover or man OF great sober COM
mon sense. such as Thomas Il. Mar
| shall. then il is by no means certain
/ scribcd as the great American middle
! class Will intrust It's fortunes TO a Re
| publican regime.
! Political Wisdom OF wiison.
| Moreover. there Is always t.ic pro-
| found political wisdom or Woodrow
! Wilson to calculate upon. the kind of
! when he offered his congratulations TO
| Governor Coolidge. stroke OF the pen
which took all of the partisan buoyancy
| out of the Republican victory in Massa
! chusctts II lie should further recover
1 his health he may be depcndon upon
] TO contribute handsomely 10 the poiiti-
| cal hopes OF his party.
Tho recent votes show that there Is
! no overwhelming stampede into Tic Re
! publican fold. II IL shows nothing more.
| New Jersey gave the whole country 1,
| surprise by turning a complete somer-
| sault. Maryland remained in the Dem
/ ocratic column, contrary to the conf
| dent expectation OF national Republi.
can leaders.
! IT is very obvious fact that neither
| OF the TWO national parties know Just
| now where they stand or what they
| will be able to count on next year.
! Nobody knows what will be the state
| OF mind OF labor. Nobody knows wha.
will be the state of mind of capital.
| and nobody knows what will be the
| state OF mind OF the millions of people
who belong TO neither of these classes
y very great deal may happen be-
! tween now and next November. \
great deal is happening every day in
| this country. At this stage in 1915
| very few professional politicians mag
| ined that Woodrow Wilson could be re-
| elected and Yet he triumpled. The
| most discouraRing circumstance which
| Democrats have 10 consider is the fact
| that they have only one Wilson. No
body in the party has yet risen up TO
L.