The star-progress. (Opelousas, La.) 1917-1921, 1920-02-07

to a political career have sought some
other means of service.
Woodrow Wilson, of course, was
political accident. He obtained Ga
democratic nomination in cons
quence of the bitter conflict between
the Bryan democrats and the Ryan
democrats, and slipped into The
White House because TheodoTs
Roosevelt was determined to destroy
William Howard Taft for the offanss
of INSTRUMENTATION. He has main
tanned himself not because of the love
and affection in which he is held b
the politicians of the democratic pai.
ty, but by the sheer power Of the most
penetrating and dominant intellecG
ever known in the White Housa
When a venemous partisanship that
could not deal with him on plane 81
mental equality succeeded in break
ing him down, nervously and phys.
cally, the American people suddenly
discovered that they were without
leadership and that their government
had ceased to operate.
Unless his successor is equally Cal
pable of achieving the leadership d
the country by force Of ability, char
acter and conviction, there viii be no
leadership, and throughout the period
of reconstruction we shall have moth.
ing better than an imitation govern
ment manipulated by the managing
politicians of the party that happens
to carry the elections.
The fundamental rights and liber
ties of the American people are nen.
aced today as they have never beer
menaced before. On the one hand
raidicalism is pushing its theories e
the very verge of anarchy, and on The
other hand conservatism has poinea
hands with Bourbonism to destroy
liberty in order to maintain the ex
IRENE individualistic theory Of prop
erty rights. Between these two gredey
groups of fools and fanatics, there i
a great middle ground which Is held
by the vast majority of American
and which they will continue to hod
under competent leadership, but CON.
petent leadership there must be and
no man better embodies it than Her
bert C. Hoover.
He has worked with his hands and
he knows from personal experienee
the point Of view Of the man Whe
works with his hands. He has beea
a director of labor in great enteElfl
ses and he knows from personal exps
rience the responsibilities and difit
culties of the director Of labor. hs
knows the economic condition Of tas
world better, perhaps, than any othss
American, and economic understand
ing is now vital element in covers
ment. He knows the diplomacy ana
the politics Of Europe as few Amer
cans have ever known them. MoH
over, he knows them at first hard g
he knows conditions in the Far Eaa
at first hand, and such knowledge hA
become essential to any intellig
direction of the foreign affairs Of 2
United States.
Those Americans who want q bush
ness man for president can find Y
Mr.. Hoover, who has brilliantly msH
aged one of the most successful oqs
mess undertakings known to history
Those who want progressive IN "
White House will find in him an p
stinctively democratic progrsssss
Those who want administering a1lF
ity will find in him administrarss
, ability Of the highest order which nA
proved itself on three continenlA
} Those who want an unyielding enan
pion of human rights and q respoas
BILE government under law will fina Y
him candidate about whom sns
. need have no misgivings.
The presidency Of the Unl's
States is varying office. lts
stitutionai qualifications are
and rigidly defined, but It's o
t qualifications change with cnap
! stances. After this war it can ns.s
t again be safely made refuge =
/ parochial politician of negative ~
, acter who owes his nomination z
{ fact that the managing politisla
his party think well Of him e
: penser Of patronage and that e
as the rest Of the country y eon's.
/ ed, there is nothing to be saia
/ him.