Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1922-01-06

national arms conference. Naturally
it would be supposed that these two
great activities in the capital would
consume most Of the interest of legis-
lator, delegate and layman onlooker,
but politics keeps open shop in Wash
ington all the year through, and every
day is shopping day.
1t would not be a difficult thing
for the most violent partisan to write
non-partisan politics at this stage of
the political contest. Does it seem
curious TO use the word contest at
a time when, generally speaking,
throughout the country campaigning
seems to be in an inactive stage?
Well, so far as Washington is con-
cerned there always IS contest on
between the two great political parties.
1t finds evidence in the house of repre-
sentatives, in the senate and in the
various bureaus of departmental life.
Not a Democrat in either house Of
congress and not a hold-over Democrat
ic official in any of the departments
but is watching day by day for those
signs of Republican failure along this
or that line of endeavor which point
in some perhaps promising way toward
change of party rule at the No
vember elections in 1922, and the
greater change in November, 1924.
The limitation of ornaments con-
ference is about the only thing in
Washington today which stands aloof
from the purely partisan political
field. The findings of the conference,
it is perfectly true, have been attacked
by both Democrats and Republicans,
but the attacks have not been aimed
at the purposes of the conference but
rather at the means employed to ac-
complish the purposes.
Lots of Political Propaganda.
The Democrats, however, are ex-
ceedingly busy in congress and through
their national committee in the en-
deavor to show that the Republicans
thus far have accomplished little or
nothing along the line of the promises
which the party made in the CAM
paign of 1920 The Republicans, on
the other hand, are pointing with the
proverbial- pride to the things already
done and are offering explanations
for the things left undone, explana-
lions coupled with the prophecy that
all the odds and ends will be picked
up before another six months have
gone by and that fulfilled" then can
be written after the list of pledges
made in the last national convention
and in the last presidential campaign.
The Democratic and Republican ma
tional committees are still at their
work of political propaganda. Every
editor in the United States, pre-
sumably, and certainly every cor
respondent of newspapers who is sta
toned in Washington, is receiving al
most without interruption more or
less delectable matter intended to be
printed in behalf of the Democratic
or the Republican cause.
One feels that he must say with per-
feet frankness that a good deal of
this material which is received is
the old time campaign propaganda
bunk of kind that would be received
with acclaim only by the mossbacks OF
either party, men who would vote for
Beelzebub if only he happened to be
running on the right party ticket.
Exploiting the Ex-Servlce Man.
The ex-service man is being ex-
plotted by the committees of both
parties. Perhaps it is cruel to say
exploited but such seems to be the
case. The Democrats constantly are
telling what they would do for the ex-
service man and the Republicans con-
stautly are telling what they are doing
for the ex-service man. The soldier
vote has been in American politics
since Revolutionary days. / saw not
long ago the original manuscript, yell
lowed with age, of an address which
was delivered in the state Of New
York in the year 1894. 1t had in it,
but it must be confessed rather in
directly than directly, but perhaps
none the less forcibly, plea that the
soldiers of the Revolutionary war
should ''vote right
1t is to be taken for granted that
the veterans of the War of 1872 We're
sought after in like manner when che
succeeding election campaigns began.
The history of the pleas for the soldier
vote after the Civil war, pleas which
continue to some extent to this day,
is well known.
One of the curious features of this
ex-soldier matter is that the manage
ment of each political party picks out
here and there an isolated case of
Justice done, or injustice done, and
exploits it as if It were the general
rule of the party to which credit or
>liscredit is given.
There are good many shrewd poll
ticians who think that lot of time
and energy is being wasted by the
political managers in seeking for the
so-called soldiers vote. Democrats
are Democrats and Republicans are
Republicans, whether they fought for
their country or not, and the seemingly
shrewder politicians in congress and
out take this for granted.