The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1920-06-04
PARTISAN PLOT AGAINST THE
PRESIDENT
Continued from Page Two),
in this country to the last man.

wish l could forget. All will agree.
even his most bitter enemy, that the
President made a noble fight for his
ideals Nor will any decent man deny
that the ideals cherished by the Presl
dent are the very highest. Suddenly
the end came. The President was
stricken down. He had declared that
he was willing to die for those ideals.
and his words were almost prophetic
with truth. So far as the RECORD
shows. during the long months OF his
illness there was hardly a word OF
sympathy from the opposition. AT
first it was intimated that the Presi
dent really was not sick, that he was
simply shamming, that he had gotten
cold feet, that he wanted to quit. The
statement of his physicians was not
accepted. And it is actually true that
when one day in this House a Repub
lican leader, summing up an attack
upon the course of the President, used
the words, and that is when he got
SICK to the everlasting shame of the
Republican majority in this Chamber
the Record shows the statement was
applauded. There are men in this
Chamber now who were present and
know that the Record. speaks the
truth.
When it became certain that the
President had been sorely stricken
the conspiratOrs changed tactics. The
charge was made that the physicians
of the President were c0ncealing the
truth 1t was openly intimated that he
did not have the capacity TO attend
to the many public business. Then
came the most brutal of all the many
brutal acts levied against this world
leader. A representative of those
who opposed the President must be
sent to his bedside to ascertain just
what the condition of the President
was, with instructions to report within
48 hours. The doctors attending the
President were posting daily bull
letin. They said his mind was clear
as a bell. There was not even a sug
gestiOn in any bulletin that he was
not competent to attend to the public
business, but this did not satisfy.
The opposition demanded the right
to send one of their number, OF the11
own selection, into the sick room OF
the President with peremptory in
structions to report within As hours.
l pause here and now to say / do not
believe there is any Member in this
Chamber willing to stand up and ap
prove such action. believe 1t IS
safe to say that in all the history OF
| American politics, during the hour OF
the highest passion, no President 81
| the United States has ever been treat
ed in so brutal manner. 1t never
| seemed to have occurred to any Re
publican how decent it would have
! been to introduce and pass resolu
| ton of sympathy, coupled with {
declaration of intention, to support the
I President as far as consistent. dlsa'
vowing any purpose to embarrass.
! Such a resolution would have beer
worthy of a generous opposition scorn.
ing any tactics which are not fair
President Garfield was shot in the
PENNSYLVANIA Railroad Station. Dur
| ing the weeks he fingered no man
can recall anything but consideration
and sympathy from the opposition in
| Congress. The great, kind-hearted
noble Mckinley was shot in Buffalo.
When the news was flashed over the
wires a Nation broke down in tears.
! remember we'll how the news was
! received in the village where | live.
The courthouse bell was rung, in 6
! short while the courtroom chamber
was filled. Almst every person pres
ent politically differed from Mr.. Nc
Kinley, but l can truthfully say J
never, on any occasion. heard more
sincere expressions of sympathy and
regret. A telegram was sent to Mrs.
Mckinley Immediately, and that tele-
gram carried a prayer to God that the
President would be permitted to live,
How different the treatment accord
ed to President Wilson, all for politi
cal reasons No man will deny the
high purpose of the President. Every
act Of his presidential career has
been intended for the betterment
mankind, but when he led the Dem
! cratic Party to power he committed
an objectionable 81 against certain
Republican pOlitici rs who had come
to believe that they, and they alone
were invested with a sort of divine
right to shape the destiny of America
SO when nothing else would accom-
pllsh the purpose. when every effort
10 break the influence of the Presf
dent lad failed fearing another vic
tory under his leadership a combina
tlon launched a campaign to ruin this
great man in the White House. God
forgive them. Mr. Sneaker they Lnovr