The Cordova daily times., 1922-06-03
SATURDAY, JUNE 3, 1922
NATIONALIsM VS. PROVINCIALISM

Provincialism as a substitute for natlonal- alism was declared by Senator Wadsworth, or New York, in notable address at the Ma 1jonal Republican Club of New York, last Sat nrdav evening, to be the chief present peril in American politics and public affairs.
 Senator Wadsworth is right!
 Members of Congress with party authority and party responsibility weakened by the aool- i+ion of the convention system under when all exnression of party will was possible, are more and more appealing to public oplnlon as # oxists within their own immediate constlIu- oncios reoardless of the effect of the pohtlcs thus espoused upon the party or the pubic oood. Hence the rapid decline of responslp,!e government at Washington, with chaos ln poll tics and public affairs resulting.
 For many wears so-called independents, re- formers and uplifters have been doing all Tn their mower to break down political parties based moon national considerations, though these are the only practical instrumentaltles of responsible government in republic like ours. To this end the anti-party agltators have tried to take public offices from without the control of political parties, and create lil- stead a huge office holding class, with po- litcal program all its own and constltutlhs 9 new bloc in politics based upon self ln- terest.
 The substitute for the political party is the sectional, occupational or class bloc, anlmateo only by the ambition to put 1t over on the rest of the country. As a substitute for gov ernment by the people through political par ties we have government of the people by or 9anized minorltes.
 No program better calculated to weaken and finally destroy responsible government could be devised. It has been carried to the point where the people have begun to recog 1lize it's dangers through the abuses attendant upon the order that is being substituted, and there is strong reaction in favor of the res toration of the political party as paramount influence in the public affairs of the nation
 The National Republican does not advo cate the repeal of the primary laws: These are expensive and under the present method of operation unsatisfactory, but they can be utilized without substituting personal for na tional party government if accompanied by leg islation making party action possible prelm mary to these primaries.
 Political parties, through the election o1 delegates, under rules safeguarding the righ of every voter of their faith to participate II them, should be privileged by the representa- tive or convention method to name their off cial tickets to be placed upon the prim ry bal lot and either accepted or rejected in favor o other candidates by the voters.
 Such system would make it impossible tt perpetrate in conventions the abuses whicl were responsible for the abandonment of th| convention method and the substitution of { system whereby political party may actually be controlled against itself, and under whicl candidates may be named who openly repu date the policies for which the party, nation ally, stands
 This government is fundamentally repre- sentative republic and not.a direct democracy If it had adopted the "pure" democracy scheme, it would have gone to ruin long ago The direct nominating system, with the repre- sentative method of government in politica