Indiana daily times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1914-1922, 1920-10-18

%. The Surprise of 1916
BY FREDERIC ]. HASKIN

WASHINGTON, d. C-The campaign
of 1916 will doubtless live long in the
memories of men as an election when
thousands of persons, including the Re-
publican candidate, went to bed believ
ing that the Republicans had won and
woke up to find that the reverse was
the case.
All of the Republicans and many of
the Democrats seemed to believe that it
was Republican year, and the whole
strategy of the Republican campaign
seemed to, be based on the assumption
that the Republicans would surely win,
provided they did not commit any eyre
gious blunder.
caused by the detection of Roosevelt
four years before, had been ostensibly
healed. Roosevelt had lunched with
Hughes, the Republican candidate, and
had emerged with the announcement that
he and Hughes were in complete accord.
All of the Republican papers announced
that the Grand Old Party was once more
a fawless unit in the battle for right
eousness and prosperity. Democratic and
independent organs, however, did not
fail to remark that the Republican plat
form of 1916 bore no resemblance what
ever to that of the Progresslves in 1912.
and that a good many Progressive lead
ers were not obviously following their
late champion back into the fold Rooses
welt was cartooned as the prodigal son
returning home bringing his own fatted
bull moose calf with him, and the said
calf was pictured as a small and reluc-'
tant creature. Certainly II was not the
husky animal that had caused so much
commotion four years before.
HUGHES CONDUCTS PRETTY
SOAP BUBBLE CAMPAIGN.
The Hughes campaign was distin-
guished by it's remarkable negative char
acter Never, in fact has such another
noncommittal campaign been conducted
in this country, unless the present year
be considered as breaking all previous
records in that direction. Mr. Hughes
announced that he was for undiluted
Americanism, but both he and his sup
porters RETAINED from any exact detini-
ton of that quality. He also announced
himself as in favor OF a very conserva
tive view Of the presidential office, stat
ing that, in his opinion, the President
was merely the administrative head of
the Government and not the leader OF
bis party. He advocated a higher tariff
but indicated that the making OF this
tariff was up to Congress and not to
him
The reasoning on the part OF Republic
an leaders which lay back OF this nom
committal campaign is not hard to guess,
nor WIS It then employed for the first
or for the last time 1t was fact
admitted by all that Wilson had raised
up a host OF antagonisms against him
self. The pro Germans were against him
because he had written rather sharp
notes to Germany, and the red-rag pa
triots and allies were incensed that
he had not declared war on Germany
The Irish were more or less peeved about
his attitude toward Ireland. and the
Catholics did not like his Mexican
policy.
The professional politicians who man
age campaigns doubtless argued that the
wise thing to do was to sit tight and let
these animosities beat the Democrats. 1t
was not necessary, they reasoned, for
their candidate to take any very positive
stand. and It was imperativeiy necessary
that he should not provoke any antagon-
ism on his own account He was chosen
as a man OF high character and fine
record whom no one had anything
against, and the big idea was 10 keep
him thus unsuliied. Hence he was put in
glass case of conservatism. and set to
blowing pretty soap bubbles of platitude
and generalization, while Mr.. Wilson and