Evening star., 1925-07-09
BY FREDERIC WILLIAM VILE.
Staff Correspondent of The Star.

y
| conducted along old lines. 1t will
continue to oppose so-called regular
! Republicanism until the Republican n
| party has liberalized itself in accord.
| ance with the Progressive program.
There will be no surrender 20 "reac-
ton in the meantime. That would be
looked upon as treason to the memory
| of La Toilette. No Wisconsin Pro.
gressive worthy of the name dreams
OF committing SO high a crime This,
in a nutshell, summarizes the situa-
ton as depicted by those who were
politically nearest and dearest to the
departed leader.
They are qualified, of course, to
speak only for Wisconsin. They do
| not pretend to predict the course or
fate of the Progressive cause in the
| nation at large. Wisconsin Progress
sives concede that La Toilette was the
Keystone of the Progressive arch, in a
national sense, and to admit that, the
keystone having fallen. the arch itself
will probably collapse and crumble
into its constituent parts-Republican
Democratic, Socialist, F'arm-Labor,
Non-Partisan League, and the rest.
| They see no one anywhere capable OF
donning La Follette's toEa and CON
solidating, as he did. the Progressive
forces of the country. They seem not
unwilling to acknowledge that as ma
tional movement, marching under a
united leadership, Progressivism was
so effectually checked on November 4
that 1t will not soon again be mar
shaled into an aggressive fighting
force.
Disintegration Not Apparent.
But in Wisconsin 1t is a different
story. Here the movement. with the
passing of La Toilette. has suffered a
grieVous loss, but except for some
scrambling for his crown there Is no
i evidence that the movements disinte-
grafton is imminent. Republican lead
ers who cherish such an expectation
are undoubtedly hugging a delusion.
The cult that La Toilette bred into
the marrow Of Wisconsin has been
soaking into the consciousness of the
State for 40 years. To ask Wisconsin
to turn its back on La Folletteism is
something like asking a people to
change its religion. La Folletteism
has been Wisconsin's political reli-
gion through a whole generation. 1t
will not be easily or speedily re-
nounced. Senator Butler is expected
in Wisconsin in the Autumn for the
purpose of preparing the ground for
wrestling the State from the Progress
sIve grip. He will find his work cut
out for him. If the chairman of the
Republican national committee can
uproot the political philosophy that Is
imbedded in Wisconsin he will be a
miracle worker. Yet there are conserv-
atives who think it can be done. and
that the time is now.
No State was ever so carefully,
ceaselessly and successfully trained in
politics as this State was trained by
a 7 n IN
literal sense, the people of Wisconsin
have been going to school in politics
and economics since 1885. and La Fol
lette was their teacher. His incessant
campaigns up and down the State,
county, township by township, were
not political campaigns in the ordi-
nary sense. They We're more like re-
vival meetings and they were always
campaigns of education. Fighting
Bob" drilled into the Badger mind his
theories and capitalistic tyranny and
the right Of the plain people to their
fair share of wealth until they be-
came a creed. He invariably filed
their heads with hard facts and daz-
Zling figures to bolster up his argu-
ments.
Are Born Economists.
The result today is said to be that
every second man, woman and child
in Wisconsin is a born political econ
cnist. La Toilette made no secret of
his ambition for power, but he con-
vinced Wisconsin that he wanted pow
er only that he might use 1t for the
many as against the privileged few
That his people came devoutly to be-
lieve in La Toilette and everything
he stood for was demonstrated by
their invincible loyalty to his cause.
Cd
him outside Of Wisconsin than within
the State. At home Bob" was al
most untouchable.
Wisconsin today, with La Toilette
in his grave, is his monument. 1t. is
governed both by the laws and the
leaders he gave 1t. Its great univer-
sity, and it's countless boards and COM
missions for regulating railroads, tax
alton, insurance, highways, farming
public utilities and business general
ly-the life, in short, of the entire
community-all bear the indelible i'm
print of La Toilette. No other Ameri
can commonwealth is so saturated
with the political spirit of one man.
In the heart Of Madison stands the
superb $1,000 900 capitol reared under
Progressive auspices ten years ago.
No architectural remnant left by a
Caesar was ever so symboltca1 OF an
epoch. Wisconsin Progresstves point
to their magnificent statehouse and
tell you that the structure La Toilette
created-namely, the Progressive
movement in Wisconsin-will endure
as long as the marble and granite in
the capitol itself because 1t rests upon
equally indestructible foundations.
Many Scramble for Place.
Men to carry on" are as essential
to the maintenance of political move
ment as ideals. 1t is in the purely
personal equation involved that the
best prospect of destroying the house
that La Toilette built probably lies.
though the process Of demolition can
not be rapid. 1t was not within the
late Senator's capacity to anoint his
successor He did not pass the scep-
ter of Progressive leadership to any
designated person. The result Is a
free.for-all scramble for the place. No
one can possibly occupy as fully or
WELD so supreme authority as La Fol
lette did He ruled at times like a
car. He brooked no internal oppo-
sition. When sub leaders squabbled,
a frown from Jove suff1ced to calm
the troubled waters, to whip all mutt
neers back into line. There are able
and younger men to perpetuate La
Follette's work. but none in sight at
this writing reveals anything approx
mating the Napoleonic talent for high
command that made La Toilette ON
nipotent.
If Wisconsin Progressivism is
doomed to disintegrate, as Republican
regulars believe it is, it will mainly
be because the lieutenants La Toilette
left behind him are unable to suppress
personal animosities and rally around
a new leader. The special election for
Senator La Follettes vacant seat at
Washington, and next years general
election. when the fate of Senator Len
-. LII 10 donidad nrnha hlu will de-