The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1922-08-05
Cop. LEADER
WITH DRIVING
FORCE NEEDED
Mark Sullivan Presents Pic
ture of Mark Hanna, Power
ful Figure of Past, Who
Welded Power Fearlessly.
LETTERS TELL STORY
BY MARX suLLIvAN

chief lack ano the chief need of this
country is political leadership has
been so often repeated that it is no
new story. The fact is revived for the
purpose of this article, only, because
certain circumstances make it posi-
BILE to give picture of one kind of
political leader-a kind that the Re
publican party once had but today
has not
The principal point of this article
rests upon two letters which the late
Mark Hanna wrote to Mr. Herman
Kohlsaat. Mr.. Kohlsaat is now print
ing his recollections in the Saturday
Eveneing Post, and these two letters
appear in them
To understand these letters. and to
take in the complete picture of the
kind of man and the kind of political
leader Mark Hanna was. it is neces-
sary for the reader to know that Han
ia and Kohlsaat were intimate
friends.
Not only were they intimate
friends-they had been, so to speak
political partners-partners in the en-
terprise of making Mckinley Presi-
dent. Kohlsaat, as the owner of two
important papers in Chicago and Han
hd do lll6 LuOoL aggressive l6dueI III
the Republican party, had been the
two men chiefly responsible for the
nomination of Mckinley and for the
direction of the party which that NOM
ination involved
Expected Reference
Kohlsaat, therefore. had a right TO
expect a little Difference from Hanna.
But the son of political leader Mark
Hanna was, does not give Difference
to anybody. Such a leader is not an
advice-seeker. He is not an "ears-to-
the ground" politician.
Such a leader is not the kind that
tries to find out what the people arc
thinking and then adjust himself to
it. Such a leader has a mind of his
own. has convictions of his own.
works out his own program, knows
what he wants and then goes straight
toward it. That is the kind of political
leader Hanna was (It is not. of
course. the only kind of political
leader. There are other kinds. But
the United States now has no political
leader whatever, either of the Mark
Hanna type or of any other type)
Towever, to proceed with picturing
the kind of leader Hanna was:
Hanna was in the senate and Kohl
Chicago The question that came up
was how to bring into the union the
island of Porto Rico, which had lately
been acquired from Spain. Kohlsaat,
with the streak of idealism in him.
thought that Porto Rico ought to be
brought in as an integral part of the
union, on the same basis as such ter
ritories as New Mexico and Arizona.
CThese two, now states, were then
territories.) Hanna had no such no
tion. That Hanna was right, nearly
everybody would not agree. But the
point is not at all whether Hanna
was right or wrong The point is to
illustrate what kind of a political
leader Hanna was, the definiteness OF
his ideas, and the forthrightness with
which he went straight ahead toward
his purposes.
Wrote to Senator.
Kohlsaat, as the editor and pub
Usher of very important newspapers
and as the intimate friend and polit
ical partner of Hanna, wrote to the
latter stating his views. Hanna's re
ply read as follows:
United States Senate
Washington, D. c.
March II, 1900
lIY Dear hOllSddt.
| do not agree with you on tho
Porto Rico tariff measure. and I hon
estiy believe if you had been here
YOU would not have taken such po
sition, but as I have no idea that
can change your views, | will not en-
ter into an argument. | feel my re
sponsibilities and shall stand by oul
policy here. which I know is right
Sincerely yours,
NJ A. HANNA
d To get the full effect of this letter
- and to realize it's bearing on the pres
ent lack of men with foresight per
sorality like this-to realize the con
trast. il is only necessary to let you,
Imagination dwell for a moment OF
the kind of discursive, equivocal let
ter that would be written by most mel
in the senate today under analogous
circumstances.
Can you think of any man now il
the senate who is as confident a
TO what is best to be done. wh'
knows his own mind as clearly, an
goes toward his purpose as forth
rightly as Hanna did in the case 0
the admission of Porto Rico? If ther
we're a leader in the senate. endowe,
with these qualities of Mark Hanna's
how impossible would be, for example
the present condition of tiraid buck
passing about the soldiers bonus.
Kohlsaat, you can infer from tn
correspondence, was not completed
rebuffed by Hanna's letter. He ken
on preaching his own doctrine in b:
own papers; and by a process not frt
uuent among all of us who write, al
parently presented his own editorial
TO Hanna as the consensus of publ
opinion; and seems. the implication |!
10 have threatened Hanna for his d
fiance of what Kohlsaat said was tn
state of public opinion on this que!
tion.
Hanna's Reaction
Hanna's reaction TO this is set fort
pungently in his next letter:
United States Senate
y Washington. D.
March '27. 190i
Ny Dear Kohlsaat:
am in receipt of your telegraI