The Washington herald., 1922-08-19
Concerning Woodrow Wilson.
To the Editor. The Washington Herald:

" hCh o man ihahCS
not to like another he can see no
good in him, whatever Toward
that other. IL he has a spiteful mind.
he looks with a malevolent eye. a
spirit of carping criticism that
readily tortures truth into falsehood,
virtue into vice.
When woodrow Wilson became
President he seems. according to
some men, to have invaded their
vested rights. Mark Hanna. in 1896.
had bought the Presidency for Will
liam Mckinley and those men have.
ever since. they having put up the
purchase money. regarded the gov
ernment as theirs in fee simple.
So. of course. they were not dis
posed to accept Mr.. Wilson with
any degree of toleration. Even
though the candidate for President
of one Republican faction in 1912
had branded the candidate of the
other faction as a 'mollycoddle''
and a 'fathead." and certain of his
followers as burglars" porch
climbers" and "malefactors." and
although these in loving C?) re-
jofnder gave repeated assurance
thoh thlS was
with apologies 20 Mephitis Amer
icana, the fellows who imagined
that they owned the government,
would much have preferred the one
branded ''mollycoddle" or him pro-
nounced skunk" with apologies
to Mephitis A mericana. to Woodrow
Wilson. against whom the gravest
charge they could sustain was that
he was a schoolmaster-and his
name has been anathema ever since.
That Brook c. Hampton hates
and has always hated Woodrow
Wilson Is evident from his temper
Or shall 1 say distemper? 1t is
also evident from his numerous dis
tortions of truth, twisting of facts.
his half-truths smeared all over
with false conclusions. During
eight years of Wilson's administra-
tion. pronounced by many eminent
men, not his partisans. to be the
most brilliant and able in our his
tory, Mr.. Hampton finds not one Of
ficial act worthy of his approval.
This leads me to seriously doubt IL
anything Mr.. Hampton can say is
worthy of serious consideration.
But others have criticised Mr..
Wilson along the same lines. and
whether, because blinded by preju-
dice or simply ignorant of the
facts, have as wilfully distorted
them and made of truth a lie.
Mr.. Wilson may at one time have
favored free passage for our coast
wise ships through the Panama Ca
nal. but Lord Pauncefote and John
Hay. during Roosevelt's admins
tration had entered into II treaty
under the terms of which the ships
of all nations were put on an equal
footing, which was to say that IL
English, French and German ships
must pay toll. SO must the ships of
America. Wilson only insisted in
carrying out this treaty in good
faith.
AS to his Mexican policy: There
was. when he was inaugurated, a
combination of interests in this
country with a purpose to entan-
gle this government in a war with
Mexico that they might exploit
MeXico's vast natural resources.
Wilson saw this game and blocked
it. He then adopted his plan of
Hands OFF," The result is that
Mexico today under Obregon, has
more settled conditions than the
United States under Wilson's sue
cessor.
For Mr.. Wilson to have asked
Congress for authority to put this
country on a war footing upon the
outbreak of war in 1914 would have
been an irreparable blunder. We
were not bound by treaty to go to
the assistance of any of the bellig-
erents, and notwithstanding the
sympathy Of the people was princi-
pally with the allies 1t was by no
the German imperial cabinet boast
ed that there were 100000 Ger
mans in the United States ready to
take up arms for the Kaiser. The
German-American Society claimed
in sympathy with their fatherland
The German Ambassador had the
impertinence to 60 over the head
of the administration and warn
American citizens not to travel on
English ships.
The German government submit
ted this plan: American ships
that is, one a week-would be per-
mitted (note the word) to sail to a
certain English port along q given
line and painted as Germany said.
AS shameful as this proposition
was, there were even members of
Congress who favored accepting It.
A resolution was offered in the
House which practically surren-
dered our rights on the high seas
to Germany. On this resolution
Mr, wilson demanded,a vote. A