Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-10-15
Presidential Campaigns
ny Frederic .. Hssklu
XIV. Their Results

Washington, ID. T., Oct. ID W nen one
reviews the long succession of Presldential
elections in the United States, considers
the methods, manners and emotions of
them, md the types OF men they have
thrown into the highest office, few facts
stand out sharp and unmlstakabie.
II is clear, for example, that our Presi-
dents have been Of two types. Many of
them, and perhaps most of them, have
been commonplace politicians, chOseu by
politicians largely because Of Their mega
tive qualities 4 few Of them have teen
men Of marked personality and intellect,
and these always seem TO have arrived
either by accident ~ by reason ~ the
fact that their unusual qualities were not
known II we pet a President of large
calber it il not because Of the system
by which he is chosen, but in spite of It.
Until the time Of Andrew jackson We
were ruled by an arIstocracy. The men
who won the Revolution and founded the
nation did not believe in the capacity ~
the people to rule. They believed IN a
strong central government, administered
bv men of brains and conscience, IN the
interests Of All classes. Washington,
Adams and Jefferson we're notable ez-
amplcs Of this type Of man. They we're
I'll men who had personality and ability,
and who were chosen by their peers for
that reason
jackson was the first If cur politician
Presidents TIe was nominated by q gort
Of outlaw popular convention and elected
by an immense popular vote, n the ds-
treas and amazemcnt Of the old arlsto-
cratic clique Jackson, as II happened,
was also a man of personality and bralng
hut he was man of the people, full of
personal and partisan preIudIces and
auim0sitcs. He was the father of prac-
tcal politics rs we know IT, of the @polls
system and of the political machine After
his death the machine he created fen INTO
Ices able hands, other machines were
built 10 combat it, and the merry gam
was on.
THE JACKSON REVOLUTION
Jackson, . strong man, had snatched
4 ihn power awav from the aristocratic
/ clique, and. theoretically, he had prt II
/ II The hands of All the people. But prac-
I ticallY be mad created 4 system by which
weak ard INSCRIPTIONS men could weld
that power Bosses and demagogIez began
i eprinrjrig ~ all oyer the country. Never
/ great mcn and seldom good men their
one great desire was to place n Office men
who pero not any stronger than they
8IFIIFF came DkAE AF}ifL+f-1i ffbfFEttthi'fftt
carefully managed from behind the scenes
ot which the politicians strive nightly,
and usually with success. - nominate
men whom they can manage after election.
Occasionally they make = mistake
Lincoln was such 4 mistake. His repu-
tation before he was elected was that Oi
shrcwd country politician Ile had
PLAYED practical politics NTH skill and
rad been a staunch party man. He had
shown himself amenabie ~ party dis-
cIpIlne and had not announced any radical
or original views on anything. He "a
chosen by the politicians At . convention
in direct defiance of popular Will, becauS
the politicians believed he was safe.
After he got into Office Lincoln dis
PLAYED several qualities which no one haC
suspected him 81 possessing. He developed
q flne conscience. for one thing, which
hcsitated to make compromises WITH
exped.encv For another thing, ne showed
4 far-rcachIng sympathy which extended
even 70 his worst enemies; ana unlike
most Presidents ne developed no synp-
! toms Of big-head. He was not carried
away bv ambition OF by any convlctlor
that he was az inspired superman. L
3 result. q tremendous opposition 70 hin
among the politicians developed. and b
lace Of that opposition. largely becaus'
Of a victory IN the field which came a
t1e cruclal moment.
WHAT CLEVELAND DID.
Cleveland, another man Of lndOubte'
abilltv. W4s also chosen under the This
apprehension that ne was ; small man
He also aroused IN opposition wnIcI
finally DESTROYED MS influence. ROOse
veit. man far less stable and clear
sighted than either Of the other two Du
bern leader none the less, succeeded z
the Presidency by accident. Other case
"lH readily suggest themselves 70 tn
rcaders of TINS series. Never has 3 sU
perior man been deliberately chosen FOL
the Presidency By the political power
that be.
Another fact which seems pretty cleA
IS that these few superior men Bho hav
slipped through the gaps N the polItlca
fence. have been largely responsible 10
the constructive measures which nav
kept the political machinery working
Il would take the space OF a book to con
slider this question adequately, and n,
doubt many exceptions would be foun,
10 the above statement, vet Il seems Il
general to be borne out by this bref re
view OF American pouticS. If you NIl
consider the administrations OF the typlca
ulchlne-UaGe Presidents, who wen
chosen by the politicians and Tor IN
politicians. YOU viii observe that the,
usually bore one d two characters.
such President Is in harmony with IN
Congress, II usually proceeds 10 enact
mass Of partisan legislation, the prCjuc
OF many compromises among contendlnl
interests and without anv clear direction
OF cons SStency Such administrations pro
duce the enormous pork barrel bills 70
pensions and rivers and harborS SUcl
administrations produce our worst anl
most unworkable tariff and taxation bills
Few constructive measures Of lslStIu;
merit can be traced 70 them.
STRONG MEN DID THE WORN
Every man Of personality, courage anl
intelligence who has held the Presidency
on the other hand, has done something o
permanent value Without the fortunat,
accidents which briugsuch men q power
it Is hard to see how the national ma
chIneIY would have been kept running
much less how any progress would have
been made Lincoln abolished slavery
and made the Union a permanent thing
undoubtedly the two greatest achieve
ments Of any President What woulc
+ have happened il Mcclellan or Tha3deu,
Stevens had landed in the ncSidcntia
/ char ut the Civil War peg!cd2
Cleveland set his face against the Spoib
= y ~