Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1920-08-05
THE TEST OF COX.
New Yorl, World)

- ular interest in the preside tial
campaign. A great deal of noise has
been made by professional potitic-
! ians, but TIE great mass of the Am
erican people are neither talking
about poll cs nor thinking about pol
itics.
For the time being they are in
different to both candidates. Senator
Harding's speech of acceptance SAL
| istied nobody except the reaction
aries and the bitter-end opponents of
the League of Nations, and to the
| American people as whole Gov.
! Cox is still an unknown quantity.
They have not yet had the oppor
tunity to take his measure.
Whether or not there is to be a
real and vital interest in the cam
paign will depend on Gov. Cox. He
can quicken it into life, or he can
turn it into a colorless contest be-
tween two Ohio politicians engaged
in trying to sneak into the White
House through a cellar window. The
decision rests with him.
Gov. Cox's chances of election de-
pend upon the kind of appeal he
makes to the great body of indepen-
dent voters. He will get nowhere by
trying to compete Harding in the
manufacture of platitudes, nor can
he further his candidacy by relying
upon the ordinary methods of organ
ization politics. The Republicans will
have the money, as they usually have.
They will have a better organization,
as they always have. In any contest
that hinges upon political manipu-
lation and political barter, all the
advantage rests with them.
Unless Gov. Cox determines to ap-
peal to the idealism and conscience
of the American people his campaign
will be wasted effort. Unless he dem
onstrates that he has courage and
convictions he will appear to the
great majority of voters merely as
Democratic Harding, and Dem
ocratic Harding is defeated from the
start.
The Republican . managers have
challenged Gov. Cox to make the
League of Nations his chief issue.
1t is a challenge he should not hest
tate a moment to accept. 1t means an
issue that he cannot evade without
destroying himself. If the Democrat
ic party does not represent the
League of Nations in this campaign,
if it does not represent the moral OBJ
legation of the United States to ex-
ert all it's power and influence to end
lwar and compel disarmament, if it
does not represent the vast response
bilities incurred by the United States
on the battle-felds of France and the
supreme duty of the Republic to-
ward civilization, it represents moth
ing except the ambition of office
seekers.
There is not serious problem
that confFonts the American people
which can be disassociated from the
/ issues of the World War and from
the issues of the treaty of peace.
There is no isolation left, except in
the minds of Republican politicians
Nothing of consequence can happen
anywhere in the world which does
not affect our national tranquility
and prosperity. Without political
and economic stability i'm Europe,
there can be no political and eco
nomic stability in the United States.
To subordinate the League of Ma
tons is to wreck the Democratic
campaign. The League has become
the symbol of all the great liberal
and progressive policies to which the
Democratic party is pledged. 1t is
not the only issue by any means, but
it is the issue by which Gov. Cox's
fitness for leadership will be tested.
Harding can be a puppet and trust to
the Republican organization, but Cox
must lead or fail disastrously.