The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1920-10-28
An Editorial in The Chicago Daily News
An Independent Newspaper
Published October 25, 1920

ineffective These elementary truths long
have pervaded the very souls of the Amer
lean people, serving to guide them in great
crises. Righteousness exalteth a nation.
Freedom to act at the appropriate moment
\ for righteous purposes is, more than half
the battle. If we Americans have faith in
our own idealism as that excellent attri-
butte has been demonstrated consistently
in the many years that have passed since
this nations rebirth in the agony of civil
war, we should guard most zealously the
springs of action fed by that idealism,
since they have produced flood of honor
able achievement.
Ours is forceful, sinewy democracy.
It has had to toll continually with brain
and arm to erect, stone by stone, the i'm
nense structure that has become the most
powerful nation on earth. If at the build
ing there frequently arose a babel OF
voices, at least there was at all times
great inspiration to sweeten the labor,
and there were leaders strong with the
strength of an honest, self-sacrifcing
purpose. And the work was truly CO.
operative, representative, vital with popu-
lar impulse. Even flaws in plan or In
workmanship were so much the peoples
own that these were taken to heart and
made of permanent value thereafter as
examples of demonstrated error. Of late
years, however, our Juggling, sweating,
hard muscled democracy has been sub
jected to occult -inspirational treatment
In these years it has tugged and sweated
on faith. For it has been continually
admonished to get it's decisions ready
made from the White House, to substitute
for the sum of countless individual judy
ments a specially fabricated judgment
guarded from analysis or revision by mys-
tic faith in the president" But this,
manifestly, was patriarchism, not democ-
racy patriarchism that merged into autoc-
racy, since it was applied through the
driving force of the national administra-
ton.
The patriarchal manner has a compel
ling emotional appeal when well put on. 1t
carried the president through the war
period with extraordinary facility in spite
of such appalling developments as national
unpreparedness for war, unpreparedness
projected through many long and anxious
months of imminent peril of war; mon
strously burdensome war taxation devised
and imposed by the party of which the
president was in full control and colossak
waste of war funds by the war-making
branches Of the presidents administration.
Patriarchism failed him, however, when
two years ago, the president called upon
the American people to elect democratic
congress- in order that the executive might
go on working his will in Legislative as in
administrative affairs. Fortunately for
the nation, his autocratic rule was not
permitted by the voters to continue that
enormous spread of power over the ma
tons destinies.
In spite of the adverse verdict returned
by Americans at the polls in November,
1918, the president few weeks later
made himself the sole authority in nego-
tiating peace for the nation, the sole au-
thority in deciding for the nation, the
terms on which it should agree to join
with other powers in guaranteeing world
peace Having made in Paris, on his in
dividual judgment, decisions for the whole
American people bearing upon innumer-
able grave questions; having done there
everything in his power to commit the
American nation irrevocably to tremen-
dous obligations involving both foreign
and domestic policy, he returned to Wash
ington to insist that the senate ratify his
decisions without modification.
The Daily News has held throughout
the long controversy over the covenant of
the league of nations that it would be a
calamity to bind the United States to the
unqualified terms of that formidable in
strument. 1t has held that the interests
of the nation and the world must be safe
guarded by a considerable number of care
fully framed reservations modifying the
terms Of the covenant The reservations
that it deems essential are included in the
so-called Lodge program. In view, how
ever, of the unbending attitude of the
president, which he has succeeded in fore
ing upon his party and his party's candi-
date for president, Mr.. Cox, The Daily
News believes that Mr. Harding, while
renewing his advocacy of can assication
of nations for the promotion Of interna-
tional peace" is well advised in demand
ing complete restudy and restatement'
of the subject Of American participation
in world league to maintain world
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