Evening star., 1926-10-10
NATION WATCHING
PRESIDENTS PLANS.
Question in Middle West Mind
Is, "He Will Run Again,
Won't He?"
BY ROBERT T. S'''.N.L.


Bl ROBERT L. S'Eh.l.
Special Dispatch to The star.
: NEW YORK, Octol,,i Sit is very
evident TO the careful observer of boz.
sport and politics, that the people of
the United States during the pas;
week have been more interested III
Babe Ruth and his big black bat tnan
: they have been in all the men rInnlnS
for public office. The political spell
binders are abroad in the land, bat
it has been difficult for them 10 Keep
the minds Of tncir audience off tIe
serious problem of VINO was To pitcn
the next day for the Cardinals ana
the Yankees, and whe...ef t..c Gard
pitchers would ever 5.Vc Lac DdDt
anoher chance to Wi.a.e OIe c.>t:r OIt
of the park. TIE nation has bcGn haV'
ing its last fling at the ndt.OIid- game,
and in the words of the inlLnul tdl
Woodrow Wilson, politics has been
adjourned.
Where you have found anything
approaching real political interest,
that interest has centered about the
one question: rs President Coolidge
going to run again.
Question on Every Lip.
Travelling through the Middle West
more than five months asU. this
every turn OF the road. y trip 10
the Mississippi River country thia
week found no chunse in the situa
ton. The question WAS again on
every lip. This time il was to be
noted however that the question
generally was put i'll the form Of an
affirmative Interrogation. 1t WAS
nearly always. Coolidge is going 10
run again, isn't he?" All Of which
goes to show that most people are
interpreting the silence in the White
House as giving consent.
So powerful has been this silence SO
subtle has been the suggestion OF
Coolidge visitors that the President
could not very we'll give up his work
two years from now and leave the
country in the lurch." that this coun-
try they speak of could only he sur
prised now by an announcement that
Mr.. Coolidge would not run. Virtually
everywhere he is regarded as third
term candidate, and. notwithstanding
this prospect. no astronomers have
noted tendency on the part of the
sun to stand still in the sky.
Political precedents and traditions
do not seem to have much effect upon
the people at large any more. The
people are too busy with their own
affairs to bother a great deal about
who holds the average public Office
and who does not. A noted Ohio Re.
publican editor, wise in his genera.
ton, expressed it a little more force
fully Ii short time ago. S1e said the
people didn't care "a hoot in hell, -
and it doesn't take much official or
unofficial observance to agree that he
is right.
"Prosperity" Fine Battle Cry.
prosperity" is fine battle cry for
the party which is in power, for it
knows that so long as the people are
busy making money. or think they
are making it, they will pay little
heed TO the cry of turn the rascals
out" 1t takes too much time and
effort to turn 'em out. In times of
great prosperity. real or simulated
the people do not pay attention for
any length of time to great political
scandals.
IF these scandals came to light just
before election day they might mean
something. But when they break a
year or SO ahead of the general poll
ing date, the people forget. The agi-
tators call it lack of civic con-
sciousness; the politicians who ben
eft call it "Contentment." :
In one or two spots of the West
there is real political activity. I'LL
nOis, for instance, is having quite a
time with its senatorShip. after all
the "Scanda Is that marked the sen :
atorlal primaries. Col. Frank L.
Smith who defeated Senator Ne
Kinley for the Republican nomina
tion. is making d vigorous county to
county speaking tour
He is beating the drums and clash
ing the cymhals and saying that no
body wants to go back to the incom-
petence and cAtravaSanceS of the
Democrats" Col. Smith is out IA
save the peoples money lie admits
II cost whole lot to put him in the
position of running for office on an
economy platform. but he insists il
was worth ito the people. Col
smith insists that the utility inter
ests contributed to his Campaign not
because they loved him more but be
cause they loved Senator Mckinley
less. Col. Smith explains that the
TACT that he was chairman of the
state Commerce Commission and had
to do with utility rates and recuia
tons did not enter into the equation
at all,
Brennan Feels Justified
George Brennan. Democratic Candi.
date for the Senate. also accepted do
nations from Samuel insult the ulil-
tty magnate. and they are calling the
senatorial flight we'll insulated
campaign. Insult only gave Sl5. .0O0
to George Brennan. however. and con.
tributed at least S195 900 to Chairman
Smith. Therefore Mr.. Brennan
feels justified in saying things about
Col. Smith.
40 N no inf
ment is one Hugh s Ma-il. who is
running as an Independent candidate
for the Senate and is belaboring both
Smith and Brennan. Occasionally
Magill and Brennan team up in ar at
tack on Smith. but just as things
seem TO be going we'll Macill turns
on Brennan and says: How about
that SIS ,000?" to which Bremen pc
itely but with a lot of real feeling
replies: "Oh. don't mention it," The
Democrats. ignoring the afore said sum,
are attacking the utilities and their
alleged alliance" With Smith. Ma
gill is making an aggressive fight and
there is no question but that he has
the regular Republicans worried
So true is this that Col. smith is
charging great "slush fund has
heen raised 10 put MaGil over. He
saws he knows things that will rock
the State" before the campaign is
ended. Thus far he has given no in
,timation what they are but the fact is
he is fighting Maeill rather than Bren-
nan shows fear of real Republican
detection because of the primary dis
closures. Brennan will get the organ
ization Democratic vote no matter
what happens, and every vote for Ma
Fill will he a vote taken from Smith