The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-01-21

From the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
 Y7AMES NJ. COX, private citizen. Twice II member of Congress from Ohio, gov I@ ernor of his state three terms, can didate for his party for the governorship four times and for the presidency once the span of Mir Cox's public service em- braces the most significant period in the history of Ohio with the single exception of the Civil war era. MT. Cox, has been so much a part of Ohio progress at every point since before his first election as gov ernor that his place in the annals or l this state is fixed.
 | The first election of James M. Cox to l the governorship occurred the same year tr at Ohio's new constitution was adopted | As candidate Mir Cox urged the ac- l ceptance of the proposed organic law as
 new declaration of popular rights wniie
 other leaders in both parties were dodg- | ing the responsibility of taking dennite stand for or against the constitution, the Dayton congressman came out flat-footed I in it's favor. The constitution naVihs ! been adopted and MT. Cox elected, It 1eii l to him as governor to see that the many
 mandates of the new charter were writ I ten into law.
 ! That winter of 1913 will long be remem-
 bered for the mass of progressive iegls- I lation put upon the statute books. The | leadership of the new governor was a de- l termining factor at many critical stages He had said before his nomination that &r- tract with the people," and as chief ex- ecutives he proceeded literally on that the ory. So well did he fulfill the sacred contracts of the Toledo platform and so often withall did he tread on .senSitNe
 toes in the process that when he came l up for reelection in 1914 he was defeated By 1916. however the people had revised their judgment. In that year as again III
 1918, the voters of Ohio turned to Jim Cox as the experienced administrator par ticularly needful for the times.
 ! The task of James M. Cox was to mod ! ernize the government of Ohio to con
 form to the impulses of a progressive people. "we can best protect the rights
 of man." he declared in 1912. ''by pro tecting his government from the decade of archaic policies Under the Cox leao- ership Ohio governmental institutions be- came models which other states soon pe- gan to copy. He made Ohio show place | for progressive policies in operation. The achievements of his first two years m the governorship were but the forerunner of tasks accomplished in his second and third terms. Down to the moment he handed over the robes of office to Harry lL. Davis this week his endeavors for }constructive betterment of the state were unproken. The address he delivered to 1 the lecislature one week before the end l of his last term has the same progress sive ring that marks each of his previous
 formal papers.
 Workman's compensation. direct pri- maries, direct legislation. better agricul- ture, better rural education. prison re- l form, strict law enforcement unhyphe- mated Americanism, judicial simplfica-
 ods in state government, the centraliza- I tion of authority and responsibility-msn- ltion any of these mliestones along Ohio s
 path of progress and you call attention
 to the Cox leadership. As chief executive
 during the war lie proved himself an in-
 spira.ional leader in every movement to
 make Ohio aggressively American. Under
 his guidance there was never the slight f est question as to where Ohio stood upon issues Calculated to hasten victory for American arms.
 A man as confinuo,lslv u,,shin. Sor =