Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1924-05-27
INDIGNANT VOTERS
OUT FOR REVENGE;
c. D. P. IS WORRIED
BY ROBERT I. SMALL
Copyright 1924. by the Consolidated Press
Acknowledgment Leased Wire
to The Atlanta Journal

to The Atlanta journal
WASHINGTON, May 24.-Re-
turning from a ten days trip into the
great American hinterland, the
writer has brought back with him
deeply engraved impression of the
discomfort of the people. They are
discontented in a confused sort of
way. 1t is wrong to suppose that
they are not interested in politics
and not talking it. The smoke rooms
of the trains hum with it. The lob
bies of the hotels are bee-hives OF
political discussion. The women are
meeting at luncheons and teas and
threshing it all out.
The most casual survey or the
country finds the people not only dis
contented with the way things have
been going at Washington, but re-
sentfui as well. They do not know
as yet just how they are going to eX-
press this resentment, but the de-
sire to express it somehow and
somewhere is a condition and not a
theory that the two big political par
ties have got TO deal with.
1t does not take seer to see that
if a personality of the Roosevelt
type were to take the field this year
on a third party ticket and a plat
form containing only the words, "a
plague on both your old houses"
he would find a following which
might easily sweep the foundations
from under one or both of the grand
political divisions of American life.
This personality, however, does
not exist. Senator LaFollette can not
get away with it. He has caught
the imagination of only a limited
number of persons in a narrow belt.
There apparently is no one else to
lead the cause. Consequently the
resentment must find its expression
at the polls within one or the other
of the two old parties.
Congress Blamed
The developments in Washington
have been SO long drawn out that
even the more intelligent types Of
men and women have either lost
track of them or have failed utterly
to grasp their significance. They
are locking for someone to tell them
the A B of it all over again. The
campaign orators this fall are going
to find the most fallow fields that
ever were set before them and are
going to face more voters ready to
be swayed one way or another, re-
CARELESS of previous party Convic-
tons, than any other time in his
tory.
In a general way, the people are
inclined to blame congress for the
confused state of their minds, for
the confused condition of legislation.
for the confused condition of govern
ment affairs, and for a confused con-
ditto nof public opinion. The becloud
ed situation, growing out of this
maze of confusion, is beginning to
have it's effects in business lines, ard
this is arousing added resentment,
for the effect cannot be analyZed or
accounted for in any other way.
The people of the Hinterland can
not understand why it is that they
read day after day of the Republican
United States senate being arrayed
against the Republican president. 1t
is especially confusing to them to
see the Republican senators voting
against President Coolidge and then
going out to make public speeches
lauding him as the savior of the peo-
pie in the coming campaign. The
Opposition" of the Democrats, while
for the delay it has caused, is quite
generally understood The antics
and the tactics of the Republicans,
especially the so-called leaders" In
the senate, are the things which are
not understood and which is going
to be very difficult to explain.
1t is perhaps d harsh word to say,
but one quickly gets the impression
even in the slightest contact with the
people at large, of an ever growing
contempt for congress. 1t is a con-
tempt which does not auger well for
the sacredness of American institu-
tons, or for the sanctty of the CO.
ordinate branches of our constitu-
tional government.
President Must Lead
President Coolidge's chances in
the coming election depend entirely
upon how far he can disassociate
himself from responsibility for lat
ter day conditions in congresS-how
well he can explain the inability of
the executive at this time to exert
the proper sort of leadership, or die
tatorship, if you Will, over the legis?
latiVe branch Senators and repre-
sentatives who have made recent
brief visits to their constituents have
had foretaste Of what is in store
for them at home. Juggling with the
bonus, Juggling with the taxes, jug
Cling with farm relief--legislativ
trickery in short-have had an I'M
settling effect upon the people and
upon business.
Many voters who in 1918 and 1920
loudly cheered the idea that congress
should be freed from the executive
will, freed from the domination of