The Kansas City sun. (Kansas City, Mo.) 1908-1924, 1920-11-20
THE MEANING OF THE ELECTION
Not All a Republican Victory.
BY ]. Dallas Bowser.

Blest of God, the God of Nations,
Hail. Columbia, Hail to thee!
Let the lips of happy millions
Sound the notes of Jubilee.
Northern b~reezes, watt the anthem!
South winds blowing, swell the strain!
While the Rockies catch the echo,
Sending back the glad refrain.
One in heart, with voices blending,
North and South, your tribute raise
Sound aloud the mighty chorusl
Shout! o shout Columbia's praise!
The recent Republican victory was
more than a Waterloo. It was an
avalanche, wherein the ice-fettered
mountains of a quasi monarchial dy-
nasty had tumbled into the sea. For
the administration of President Will
o had been that of an imperial SOW
ereign with hereditary tendencies.
But while the Republican party may
justly claim the brilliant victory of
November 2, it should not "lay the
flattering JUNCTION to its SOUL" that
1t supplied all the ammunition that
destroyed the rock ribebd bastile of
the Democratic party. History re-
cords that when a people want a
change of government they forget
their partisan affiliations and at once
become allies of a political revolution.
While Napoleon Bonaparte, as EN-
peror of the French, was climbing the
Alps and adding to his freshly won
victories at Lodi and the Pyramids
of Jena and Austerlitz the French
people hailed him as another Alexan-
der the Great looking for yet other
worlds to conquer; while England,
Prussia and Germany looked on
aghast and trembled at twhat he
should do next. But. when he buried
the bulk of his great army amid the
SHOWS of Russia, the Western world
took courage, and with Wellington
and Butcher overwhelmed him at Wa
terloo and SEM him to die in solitude
upon the lovely isle of St. Helena.
So, in the United States in 1856,
Fremont, the first Republican candi-
date for president, was beaten by half
a million Democratic ballots. Four
years later the half million Democrats
had been converted to good Repub-
licans and gave their votes to Abra-
ham Lincoln. 1t was the Nations
first mighty uprising against the
slave power.
Eight years ago Woodrow Wilson
owed his election to a split in the
Republican party since the combined
votes Of Taft, Roosevelt and the
other candidates exceeded him by
nearly two and a half million votes.
Four years ago the tide had again
turned and the more than a million
of disaffected Republican votes were
given to President Wilson in the hope
and belief that he would keep US
out of the war"
In this year of grace 1920 it was
remembered by overcredulous Demo-
Gratis and recalcitrant Republicans
that he neither kept us out of the
war nor succeeded in formulating a
constructive peace protocol which
would make future wars impossible.
Thus Republicans, Democrats, Prohi-
~bitionists, Socialists and the Farm.
Labor party all ~instinctively rallied
about the Republican standard bear.
er. And the result would have been
the same kind, though differing in
degree, no matter whom the Repub-
licans might have nominated, nor
what the working of the platform.
1t is a veritable Republican year and
there was never a show for the Dem
ocrats to win.
Locally, the campaign had its vari-
atoms. First of all the massive G.
o. P. elephant as he went through
the canebrakes and jungles of the
bogg ridden North Side and its Jack.
son County e%nvirons, carried its tail
with it, its huge feet contributing to
the general crush.
The residence wards, non-partisan
in determination, brought up the re.
serves, so for a term or years the
reign of graft, protected vice and bal.
lot stuffing is at an end. The aver
age Negro Democrat stood aloof from
the stampede of white Democrats to
the anti-boss thousands. He evinced
small concern for the salvation of the
Nation or the redemption of his down
trodden race from Southern violence
n outrage. While the revival was
on it was his golden opportunity to
fall into line with the millions whose
banner had as it's motto An men I'm