Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1920-07-22
THE OCCUPA-
TIONAL VOTE
By FREDERIC J. HASKlN
WY AsHINGTON,. D. c., July IS
NN| Senator Harding, we learn, is
w sure of the chauffeur vote

7 OAN, -. -, u uly To-
w sure of the chauffeur vote
all over the country because
he drives his own car with great
skill, and because he is an honorary
member of the Professional Chauf-
feurs' association of the District of
Columbia. 1t is understood that
Chauffeurs' clubs will be organized
in all cities to support him.
This fact certainly ought to con-
tain suggestion for those gentle
men of political power who manage
presidential campaigns. 1t is evil
dent that the chauffeurs are not 60
ing to support Harding because OF
his record as an executive, nor yet
because of the platform on which he
record as a chauffeur. 1t would
seem that if a candidate could be
found who had devoted himself to
enough different occupations at one
time and another. and If these oc-
cupational sympathies could be prop
erly worked upon, he would sweep
the country.
This tendency to play up facts
about q candidate which have moth
ing to do with his fitness for the
BILE in every presidential campaign,
is evidence of a weakness in the
Democratic system of government
which has been pointed out by every
critic of it. This weakness is that
the average man feels more strong
ly than he thinks, and is therefore
apt to vote for the man who can
most strongly arouse his sympathies.
rather than the one who is logically
fit to serve in office. The man
one who is most like him. But this
average man is not genius, he is
mediocrity. Hence it is argued.
the tendency is always to choose me-
diocrities for office and exclude real
ly gifted men.
You can easily think of many
facts in support of this idea. In
presidential campaign, or any other
kind Of political campaign, there
is always a great effort on the part
of each candidates supporters 10
bring out all the homely facts about
him, which make him seem similar
to the average man. If he IS fond
of babies. or buttermilk or funny
stories, If he shaves himself, or
is strongly in his favor, although
having little or nothing to do with
his capacity for running nation.
In this copntry it is almost neces-
sary that he SHOULD b1T be Of hum6 nS
that he should have had poor
education and a hard time in his
youth. These early privations are
at best Of doubtful value in fitting
MIN Lor llWe fFeSlue,lCy, put tHey IN
dictate that. he is just like most of
the rest Of us. We are afraid of
the superior man because he is diff
ferent, argue the critics of democ-
racy., We want to feel that the man
in the White House is one of us al
though obviously what we need there
is someone a good deal different
from most of us.
A symptom of the same spirit is
the tendency of the opposition to
dig UP all facts about the candidate
which indicate that he differs from
the conventional type of man. Es-
pecially if he can be shown to have
done anything scandalous or uncon-
ventional in his relations with wom-
en-, this can be used powerfully
this is because we want man for
President who is a model of the do
nestle virtues. We are shocked and
science Of psTchoanalysis, however,
that in reality our instructive oppo-
sition to the unconventional man is
due to envy. Most of US, they say,
are consciously or bconsciously.
somewhat chafed by the bonds of
conventionality. We would really
like to be free. We envy the man
who is free. And therefore we vote
against him.
Here again, a mans personal or do
mestic life has little to do with his
capacity as a statesman. In fact,
many greatly gifted men in all lines
have not been patterns of domestic
reading the biographies of those who
have been dead long enough so that
biographers dare to be frank about
them.
So the critics seem to make out
a strong case to the effect democracy
is merely a method of choosing
mediocrities for high Office and
keeping. really great men out But
little reflection shows that there is
another side to the question. The
average individual may fear and
envy the superior man, but he also
has a need for leadership which he
feels very strongly. Hence his great
capacity for hero-worship, which
Carlyle points out. 1t is evident that
once the superior man is gotten into
the limelight and demonstrated con-
clusively that he has powers which
the average man lacks, then the aver
age man tends to follow him loyalty
and even blindly. This tendency
could be traced from primitive times,
if there were space here. Thus the
medicine men of shamans of all prim-
tive tribes are superior men who
have demonstrated their abilities and
have obtained great power. But the
witches and sorcerers, who are killed,
are individuals Of the same type, who
are overcome by envy and an
tagonism.
1t takes only a glance at history
to see that many really great and SUI
perior men have attained leadership
and that people have followed them
blindly. Christ, Mahomet, Caesar
and Napoleon were great men, each
of whom was a law unto himself.
Each of them encountered envp and
antagonism at first, but later rose to
power.