Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1920-10-05
PRESIDENT WILSON
PLAYS A LONE HAND
Ignored by His Own Party Leaders, He
Writes a Defense Of His Inter.
national Policies


As NO one else seems to be troubling him
"A self to defend the President and justify
his course. Mr.. Wilson has taken that grate-
full task upon himself.
And why shouldn't he? No one knows
better than he what his purposes have been
or the reasons that have led him to do as he
has done And no one Is more fully con.
vinced than he that his achievements have
been distinguished both in quality and
quantity.
He doubtless regrets that the members Of
his own party are not showing greater ap-
probation for him and for what he has done.
They let him draw their party platform. but
after they had gone thus far they turned
their backs on him. and group Of leaders
with whom he has had no dealings was
allowed to nick Governor Cox as the presi
dental candidate. Cox. aware Of the source
Of his nomination, has done nothing to Of
fend the patronage mongers who conspired
against the friends Of the administration to
put him over In the San Francisco conven-
ton.
Cox, it is true, called on the President in
Washington few days after he was nomi-
mated. But Cox in his speeches has not
been extolling the glores of eight years Of
wisconsin. Indeed, he has said very little
about the achievements of his party while
it was in control of the national govern
ment. One would have thought that a
candidate who was appealing to the country
to keep his party in power would devote
himself to justifying it on its record.
But the candidate has been devoting him
self to other matters. He began by charging
that the Republicans were trying to buy the
presidency with huge slush fund. But it
was not long before his own financial man
ayers frankly announced that they were
seeking all the money they could get and in
directly discrediting his charges against the
opposition. AS result we have not heard
much about the Republican campagn fund
in recent weeks. Cox's great sensation burst
like a toy balloon squeezed in the fingers Of
O baby. He has lately been dcvoting him
self to Senator Harding's speeches and to
nn attempt to prove that man who has
been in the Senate for nearly six years does
not know enough to be President.
Mr.. Wilson and his pet policies have been
ignored as though they were dynamite. 1t
Is the suspicion that it was not safe to
touch them that has led many observers to
conclude that Governor Cox has been po-
litically prudent in following this course.
There are large sections of the country
strongly Democratic in which the President
has hardly a friend His face. when shown
in the moving picture houses in Birmingham,
Mobile and New Orleans, is received in
silence. The western states which voted for
him in 1915 have had enough of him. and
Cox has not been able TO persuade the
voters there that any other Democrat is to
be trusted in the White House in the i'm
mediate future.
Wilson and wisconsin handicap Cox. He
| knows It very we'll and he is struggling to
overcome his difficulties. He has refrained
| from asking the President to come to his
| assistance just as persistently as he has re-
| Trained from aDnealing for the support Of
| the voters on the nlea that he would con-
tinue the policies Of the past eight years.
So the President njects himself into the
campaign.
Is he magnanimous enough to ask the
| voters to elect the nominee of Murphy, Nu-
| gent. Taggart and Brennan?
| One searches his address TO "My Fellow
| Countrympn" in vain for any reference to
| Governor Cox or to the Democratic narty.
| II Is as innocent Of appeal for Cox support
az was the statement given out over the
signature OF Secretary Tumulty a few days
ago explaining that the Irish could take
their grievances to the League of Nations. a
| statement which was read with CONSERVATION
in the Democratic Headquarters. The ad-
dress is really a justification Of himself as
though he were the presidential candidate.
THE issues OF the present campaign" he
writes "are of such tremendous I'm
portance and I have necessarily
had so much to do with their development
that am sure you will think it natural and
proper that should address to you few
words concerning them
| To 80 stiasuaa - hut bo ,nootiope q
only the League OF Nations, as though that
alone were what was before the country As
a matter Of fact, the plain people are giving
| little thought to that question. They de-
cided that some time ago
| The real issue on which there is division
so far as division exists at all. Is on whether
the Democratic party shall be retained In
power for another four years. But that. as
well as the League of Nations issue. was
decided by the voters before the nominations
were made. 1t has been patent to politica
observers for many months that the country
had had it's fill OF Democratic rule and thai
it was going to give the Republicans another
chance. Wilson was elected the first tim,
because of a split In the Republican party
Taft and Roosevelt pollcd ! 800 900 mort
votes than were cast for him. He was
minority President. He was re-elected il
1915 because the Republican breach Of fou
years earlier was not completely healed ant
because Of his kept us out of war" atti
tude. In 1920 the Republican party l.
united, and hundreds Of thousands Of Demo
Gratis who have been ignored or trample
upon by the autocrat in the White House ar
as eager for a change as the most arden
Republican.
All this was generally admitted before tn
Chicago convention. The nomination O
Harding, a candidate not widely known
failed to stir the enthusiasm Of the Republi
can voters. Superficial observers then bega
to say that the Democrats had a chance t
win. But as the campaign has progresse
the sterling qualities Of Harding have i'm
pressed themselves upon the country. and
is now admitted that Cox can not be save
without the intervention of a miracle.
The Presidents plea for the League
, | Nations Is supererogatory, for the reaso