The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-12-28
DEMOCRATS SEEK. ANOTHER WILSON
 PARTY LEADER
Look For Chieftain To
 Marshal Factions Of The Organization
By RAYMOND CHAPTER 1T ,eased Wire to The Age-Herald.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 27.-Thoughts of democratic leaders who meet Sun day night in Washington, New York, and other places on the birthday of Woodrow Wilson will be turned not only to the past, in which their late leader played, such a conspicuous part, but toward the future and the task of restoring to the party some of the yi- tality which he gave 1t.
 Most party leaders feel keenly that another Wilson is needed-another powerful personality strong enough to marshal the factions into an effective phalanx again. From the moment Wll- son relaxed his grip when he collapsed during the League of Nations fight, the party has steadily disintegrated until it now stands at its lowest ebb since the dismal days of the Alton B. Parker campaign. The campaign of Cox in 1920 was marred by internal differences. The same was true of the Davis campaign.
 Chances Thrown Away
 The party was revealed at Madison Square Garden last summer as a loose federation of stubborn, selfish tribal chieftains. It is pretty well agreed that whatever chances the democrats had were thrown away by these quar- reling barons.
 So, it is natural now, when the mem ,ory of Wilson is revived for moment of homage, that his success in leading the party should be studied and thought given to means of restoring the vigor which he instilled.
 There is a swing of the pendulum toward the idea of strong, vivid per sonal leader. The republicans have gone back to 1t in President Coolidge after the brief experiment with the Harding theory of government by the best minds.
 Leader Is Required
 Political parties have always been more aggressive, and more spirited when infused with the drive of a pow erful personality. Cleveland and Will son have demonstrated it for the dem ocrats. Mark Hanna, Roosevelt and Coolidge have made the demonstration for the republicans.
 Democrats are in a position to do little now until some new figure ap- pears on the horizon. They have lit tie in sight in the senate at present. There is no one there who is generally regarded as a real presidential p0ssi | bility. Senators Underwood and Glass failed to make headway at the last national convention. Senator Copeland of New York is said to have ambitions, 1 but Al Smith probably will always be in his path. None of the younger dem l ocratic senators have developed genuine | availability as yet.
 May Select Governor
 One likely field at the moment is among the state governors-or rather in those who may be elected in the 1926 | campaigns. Any democrat, with a sat isfactory personality and personal rec ord, who can be elected governor of normally republican state in 1926 is bound to be real possibility, as a presidential candidate. For that req son, the national leaders of the party | will match the state campaigns very | closely, just as a major league base ball scout works the bushes hunting for promising big league material. The same holds true for any democratic sen atorial candidate who can make lame duck out of present republican sen ator. There is a strong demand among all democrats-save those little groups who long since have chained themselves to some of the old leaders-for fresh leadership. Most of those who figured in the balloting at Madison Square Garden are regarded as shopworn goods.