Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-10-12
Presidential Campaigns
xxII.Mr. Bryan's Third Attempt
By Frederic J. Hasl<in

'oyaifhhbtis ~ NSss Wv i|s -.
Presidential campaign Of 1908 is worth
recalling as proof that we have re-
turned In at least one way 10 pre-war
conditions. That is, we have returned to
the state Of political apathy which seems
TO be the usual state Of the greater part
of the American public.
In 1912 Mr.. Wilson succeeded IN stir
/ ring up certain amount Of popular en-
thusiam. The people were led to believ c
that the old game Of pie and piffie had
given way To something real. Then in
1916 the European war gave everything
a tense and interesting character
But back in 1908 the people viewed the
presidential campaign spectacle very
much as they view il today-that is,
without strong feeling, and With CON
vIction that the differences between the
parties and the candidates are hardly
worth fighting over.
IL s true that Mr. Bryan came into the
fight as a radical reformer, but the plat
form on which he ran Was NOT really much
more radical than that Of the Republicans
He whooped as Of old for all his pet
neasures, such as initiative and refercn-
DUN, but he did not get the response he
had previously won. The people seemed
20 have lost interest in these things. Even
W aAA DkiF1k fAtl IUb FffLt tetaANt hbtlN
Mr.. Bryan This il shown by the fact
that 10 put I'D very little money 10 beat
him. The Republican campaign fund
was smaller than it had been for years,
and smaller than il has ever been snoe
Ia this way the 1908 campaign was even
more pathetic than the present one. We
have Mr.. Cox's word for Il that some
people are willing 70 spend money 10 beat
him, which ls more than Bryan could
claim But then the 1903 campaign Vas
launched at the end Of period Of hard
times, while the present one finds the
money-bags stuffed with war-nade profits
TAME CAMPAIGN.
Az nry rate, the 1908 campaign was
Just such a carefully staged and mildly
applauded show az the present one The
candidates toured and Illuminated and the
newspapers printed their f'liminations
Troops of orators were shuntsd about the
country IN private cars as carefully
scheduled and adverased as musical
comedies and modest crowds N staunch
partisans turned out at every town 20 yell
at them Nobody seemed AZ aIl 7lre that
Mr. Taft was going 70 WIN, and nobody
outside Of political circles seemed very
much 10 care. One editorial writer de-
scribed 10 as an ERA Of no feeling and
remarked that there vas nothing about
the candidates to inspire any.
Mr. Taft's chosen role u good hurnor
and q reassuring smile, he observed.
And the difficulty with Mr. Bryan =
that his fre works have an been exploded
before
The result showed ooncluvsTvefy hist =
reasguring smile il a better bet than ex-
TT.
twice AZ much of the electoral vote "a
Mr. Bryan did. The Republican press
decorousv ernbalned and buried the
Democratic party for All time
One significant thing happened IN 1903.
The American Federation Of Labor under
MFR Gompers entered politics. It = true
that It did 70 N no avail. Mr.. Gompers
promised 10 deliver the labor vote 20
Mr. Bryan IN consideration Of the fact
that there WIS an anti-inIunctson plank n
the Democratic platform He vae about
as successful as he might have beer N de-
GverIng water N SIEVE. The labor vots
spilled out Of It's organization and ran
where il would the evidence al landing
to show that il divided between the tuo
parties much as usual.
LARon ENTERS FoITI1.
But there was agnIfcance N he fact
that Organized laoor had tCod 70 enter
politics, aad had done 20 without con-
sDicuols damage % itself Ever since It's
organization me American Feoerat8on
had made i 81 announced poilcy 20 keep
out Of politics The excellent reason Tor
this wAs that both of Is predecessors, he
National Labor Union and the knights
of Labor, had gone % smash n their
efforts to enter politics. 30 the campaign
Of 1908 showed inst organized laoor
could at least 20 through TIE motions Of
political activity without having ltz
integrity shaken. In 1915 the feoerstlon
got very definite benefits for workmen
during the war IN return for It's political
support. This year il IS sgaln N politics,
but with 50 little TO choose between
In the two major parties that il PROMISES
TO accomplish little But the organisation
Of Farmer-LabOr party Is not to De
forgotten.
An interesting though perhsps Dot
important phase II the 1908 campaign was
the conduct Of the Republican end q .
BY Alr Hitchcock. His efforts IS cam
psaign manager reAlly marked the end of
the old era Of loose methods and prooi-
gahty in campalga management. and the
Inauguration OF the stnctly-buslneS> sys-
tenn Of making Presidents.
Mr. Hitchcock may DC said 70 have
elected Mr.. Taft with card index Mr.
Taft would perhaps have been elected 10
any case, but it WAS generally conceGed
that the Hitchcock methods had mach
70 do with the large majority hc got.
ana these same methods have hgured IN
campalgOs ever SINCE.
When he Republican headquarters
Nero opened, the usual hosts of the faith
full gathered around. There we're the
great orators who were accustomed 70
receive from one hundred 70 Eve hundred
dollars week each for several weeks h~-
fore the election, together with al the
expense money they could expend There
WAS the great brotherhood Of poAtIcal
who were accustomed 30
being Accommodated with soft Jobs, and
who always had been SO accommodated
before. There was the thinN disguised
black kmailer who would throw his coun-
try to the Democrats unless he v rs prom
sed campaign job aud the postmaster
ship in his homo town.
oUSTING rHE DRADHEAps.
All Of these got scanty courtesy They |