Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1921-12-06
Woodrow Wilson
AS | Know Him
BY JOSEPH p. TUMULTY
BY JOSEPH p. TUMULTY
CHAPTER XIII


and without the party hotly con-
tested his leadership and the bit
terness of the opposition grew in
proportion as his candidacy gained
daily advantages. Everything posi-
| bic was done to block his progress
and to make more difficult his road
to the presidency. Everything he
had ever said or written, especial
ly his History of the American
People," was carefully examined in
| the hope of finding some way to
discredit him. All the guns of the
opposition were turned upon him,
but nothing seemed sufficient to
block his progress. All the charges.
intimations, insinuations, and sland-
ers that were industriously circulat-
ed by his enemies were without eff
feet, and TIE trained political minds
ia his own camp were apprehenSive
! lest his candidacy had reached it's
! climax too long before the conven-
ton. How to maintain the present
advantage was the problem that
perplexed them. They were hope
| fully looking forward to the bene-
fits that would accrue to their can
! didate in the roundup" of can
didates at the famous Jackson Day
dinner, scheduled for early January,
1912. This dinner was an annual af-
fair and was eagerly looked forward
to. 1t was expected that the lead
! ing lights of the Democratic party
! would attend this dinner, including
Colonel w. j. Bryan, Champ Clark,
! Oscar Underwood, Ex-Governor
| Folk, Of Missouri, Roger Sullivan,
of Illinois, and the New Jersey gov
| f,,in
! because of his ability as a public
speaker he would make a strong and
favorable impression. They were
| not disappointed.
We were waiting the Jackson Day
dinner with great expectation, and
congratulating ourselves that we
were now safely ''out of the woods"
and that things would move smooth
ly for our candidate, when, like a
bolt from the sky, came the pub
LEGATION of the famous Joline cock
ed hat" letter, which caused an
other panic in the ranks of the
toooptimist1c Wilson forces.
The JOline Letter
This letter was written by Mr..
Wilson to Adrian Joline, PRINCE
ton alumnus and prominent New
York lawyer at the time of the
split in the Democratic party over
the silver question. The letter is
as follows:
princeton, N. J., April 90, 1907.
my Dear Mr.. Joline:
Thank you very much for send.
ing me your address at Parsons,
Kan, before the board of directors
of the Missouri. Kansas & Texas
railway company. I have read it
! with relish and entire agreement.
Would that we could do something,
at once dignified and effective, to
knock Mr.. Bryan once for all into
a cooked hat!
CORDIALLY and sincerely yours,
"WOODROW WILSON"
The publication of this letter
came at a most inopportune time
for the Wilson candidacy, and how
to meet it was one of the most
difficult problems that the Wilson
| forces had to face. Our enemies
were jubilant. They felt that at
last they had broken our lines
and that we would not be able to
| come back"
At this time I was at the state
| house at Trenton and 1 received a
| telegram from the governor, re-
| Washington, where he was confer
| ring with the leaders of his forces
in an effort to find some way to
neutralize the bad effects of the
Joline cooked hat story in advance
of the Jackson Day banquet, at
which Mr.. Bryan would be present.
| On my arrival in Washington |
went to the Willard hotel and found
| the governor in. a conference with
| William F. McCombs, Tom Pence.
Senator O'Gorman and Dudley
! Field Malone. We discussed the sit
uation fully and the character of
reply the governor should make by
way of explanation of the Joline
| letter. Mr.. Josephus Daniels, a
| friend and associate of Mr.. Bryan,
was sent to confer with Mr.. Bryan,
in order that Mr.. Wilson might have
close friend at hand who could
interpret the motives which lay
back of the Joline letter and inn
press upon Mr.. Bryan the present
favorable attitude Of Mr.. Wilson
toward him.
Breach Is Closed
Mr.. McCombs suggested that the
governor address an open letter to
Mr.. Bryan, voicing his regret over
|
assuring him of his present kindly
feelings toward him. 1 vigorously
opposed Mr.. McCombs' suggestion,
arguing that no explanation of the
Joline letter could be made to Mr..
Bryan that would wear the appear
ance of sincerity, or be convincing
and that the letter having been
written there was nothing to do to
eXtenuate it in any way and that
the wise thing to do was to make
a virtue of necessity. I suggested
| that on the following night, when
! the governor was to deliver his adj
dress at the Jackson Day dinner.
he could, in the Iuoss generous
and kindly way, pay y handsome
tribute to Mr.. P"yau tor his unset
fish service 10 the Democratic
party throughout the dark wears
he had been its .e21er' ina l felt
that he would appreciate tribute
of this kind and that he would al
together resent any explanation of
this incident which would appear to
be trucking or apologize in char.
acter. This plan was finally agreed
upon. In the very beginning OF his
speech in the most eloquent, tactfui
way. Governor Wilson paid a trib-
ute TO the Great COnmOner pN say
ing, as he turned to Mr.. Bryan:
"When others were faint-hearted
Colonel Bryan carried the Democrat
ic standard. He kept the fires
burning which have heartened and
encouraged the democracy of the
country"
The speech at the Jackson Day
dinner was a triumph for Wood
row Wilson. While it was tempest
Gus voyage for him, with many dan
gerous eddies to be avoided, he
emerged from the experience with
his prestige enhanced and with his
: candidacy throughout the country
strengthened. The Bryan Joline
| crisis wac safely passed. In the