The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1920-09-09

senator himself will be to persuade the
nominee of the necessity of making more
trims. He found, himself fascinated by
tbe experience. He didn't intend to
make any speeches or talks en- route, He
had expressed himself against back
pIatforming, yet the appeal of the crowd
was irresistible.
And when Senator Harding comes out
and shakes hands and manages to have a
suitable greeting for everybody, whether
the individual be the leader of a band or
Ia farmer or laborer or war veteran,
the sum total of his effort is as good as
any campaigners in recent years. The
Republican managers think this trip. will
settle the thing-that Mr.. Harding will
make more trips hereafter. OF course,
the truth is Senator Harding always was
a good campaigner. In other years, he
has stumped the country for the Repubf
Iican ticket and he knows how to handle
crowds.
Fundamentally the objection to a big
campaign trip has been the necessity of
making numerous speeches, and Senator
Harding has been firm believer in the
idea of preparing carefully a few ad-
dresses that could be distributed to the
newspaper in advance and examined de-
liberately in the editorial offices of the
country. This trip shows that Mr.. Hard
ing can meet the folks and make a good
| impression and keep his campaign dis
cussions for the larger meetings. He
will not talk eXtemporaneously on vital
matters.
| Meanwhile the Republican leaders are
thinking up schedules for Senator Hard
| ing to follow and the plan, tentative
/ = /
east and west from Marion-not as far
as the coast perhaps but westward. The
senator will surely 90 to New York-all
candidates usually do toward the end
lof October 1t wouldn't be wise for him
to go to Chicago until the Republican
primaries are over. In fact, in several
states the national ticket is trying hard
| to avoid ENHANCEMENT in fractional fights
within the party. 1t will be recalled that
Mr.. Hughes struck snag in California
| in 1916 by. entering that state before the
primaries had settled the issue there.
By staying at home, thus far, Mr..
Harding has kept free from entangling
alliances. But as the important month of
lOctober approaches, the pressure for
speeches and trips is growing and many
a Republican manager will whisper to
you that Senator Harding viii be absent
quite frequently from the front porch
hereafter.
Senator Harding didn't like the idea
of talking from a grandstand to an out
door crowd. The state fair, however, in
vited all the candidates. Two days ago
Governor Cox spoke from the same stand.
Crowds that come to see horse races and
other sports at state fair are usually
content with look at the celebrity and
then they want the sports program to
start Governor Cox ran into that sort
Of impatience at Milwaukee and also at
the field games at Sheepshead Bay. New
| York, a fortnight ago. Senator Harding's
effort to read long discourse on agricul-
j tural matters to a crowd from the state
1 fair grandstand was a severe test on his
| speech away from the front porch at
| Marion. Indeed, were it not for the
/ pleasant incidents along the route he
would have gone home with an inclina-
/ ton against further trips like this He
expressed his regret that the local com
mittee didn't get a small hall for the
| occasioB but arrangements were entirely
in the hands of the state fair board. The
political organizations didn't take the
senator in hand until afternoon
The senator had mapped out his single
address with the utmost care and nat
urally didn't relish the idea of reading it
to an outdoor crowd moving around i'm
patiently, either because of inability to
hear or special interest in other features
of the program. Still, that's what ALWAYS
happens at state fairs.
D