Evening star., 1932-04-24

during which there was much graft and
plain thievery, but the criticism in the
public press Of his administration was
not very severe.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT was turbu-
lent soul and managed to stir up
charges which he successfully refuted by
means of a libel suit. Woodrow Wilson
was war President, but few persons
ever feared for the life of the Nation,
so that he came through the ordeal with
nothing more serious than abusive
charges that he had profited by trading
on the New York Stock Exchange. BY
comparison, Grover Cleveland suffered
much more severely, because he served
through a prolonged economic depression
of terrible severity; In addition to the
adverse criticism Of his policies and ad-
miniStrative acts, he suffered other scan
dalous charges. His wife, incidentally,
was one Of the most charming and gen.
orally loved of all White House hostesses.
The criticism that came his way seems
to have been largely due to hard times.
William Mckinley won his share Of
spirited abuse, but times were hard un-
der his administration also, and he won
the epithet of "tool of the interests"
The great amalgamations of invested
capital and manufacturing were rising
at that time for reasons quite beyond his
control, but he garnered the blame. 1t
was slight compared with what Washing
ton, Lincoln and even Cleveland suffered,
but enough to give him martyrdom.
Of Mr. Hoover, it can be said with GER
tainty that his has been the most trou-
bled administration since that of Abra-
ham Lincoln. This statement might be
controverted on the ground that Presi-
dent Wilson served through the World
War, but there was no time when the
American people believed the outcome
of that war was in such grave doubt that
our national life hung in the balance.
On the contrary, they refused to recog-
nize the danger even when they were
informed officially by the allied high
command that the allied armies were
fighting with their backs to the wall"
Consequently there was a minimum Of
hySteria considering the gravity of the
situation.
Now there Is hysteria. Part of its
manifestation is the issuance within less
than a year of seven volumes attacking
Herbert Hoover's record, both private
and public. He also has lived a busy,
crowded and important life. Beginning
with the relief work in Belgium, he has
been known to all the world. Few more
delicate tasks than that have ever been
undertaken by man accepting the
whole responsibility. Suspicion and the
most careful scrutiny of every act were
to be expected and were faced.
He came out Of that adventure hero.
In two cabinets, he remained hero. Not
until the depression had alarmed the
Nation was he attacked. One of the very
first evidences of what was to come ap-
peared during his campaign for election.
A placard was widely displayed in the
South during the campaign of 1928, show
ing drawing of Mr.. Hoover dancing with
a woman, and the caption was, Flood
Relief" The inference, of course, was
that he had enjoyed some unusual society
activities while reScuing the flood suffer-
ers some months previously. Under nor
NAL conditions it is very doubtful that
even politics would have sunk to such a
level.
RUT there was more to come, a great
deal more! We were told that he
was not even an American citizen Since
then, it develops that he abused Chinese
labor, that he is an engineer only by
courtesy, but in reality stock promoters
worse still, that some of the companies
with which he has been connected left
unSavory records.
have talked with Herbert Hoover as
I have interviewed a great many other