Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1944-05-24
FAIR
ENOUGH
BY Westbrook
~ Pegler

49, ~ yS&ee Wv Wst&84
was nominated for the VicSs
presidency in 1920.
II he had been elected and
Mr.. Cox had died before his in
auguration. Mr.. Roosevelt
would have become his successor
at the age Of 80, at q period
now said to have been the key
to many of the worlds worst
troubles. and with little expert.
ence in the science, or business,
Of government.
Mr.. Cox, fortunately, is still
alive.
In 1920 MIR. Roosevelt then
only three years above the
minimum age set by the Con-
stitution for presidents, ex-
pressed no doubt on the score of
age, or his ability to handle the
presidency had Mr.. Cox been
called to his reward.
In world affairs he was no
less a novice than Thomas Z.
Dewey is today.
DEING a son OF luxury living
- on a family fortune derived
from timber and coal, he had
the advantage of some idle
travel in Europe.
His service of five months
altogether in Europe, in the
summer of 1913, a. inspector Of
the naval forces in France and
Britain and, In 1919, In charge
of the rehabilitation Of those
forces, was administrative, not
political.
And even il those few months
had been devoted to deep study
of European affairs, they hardly
could have given any man q
superior understanding.
Dewey has been seeking ths(
presidential n o m n o n 70.
about five years, and has been
studying world problems and
this country's problems In rela-
tion to the rest of the world
throughout that time. because
any one aspiring to the presi-
dency must be prepared.
When Mr.. Roosevelt, in 1920,
offered himself as q man quail
fed, TO take over the Job Of
head man at any time, he had
had just three years service In
state government in the role Of
state senator.
The average session OF the
Legislature Is only three or four
months. 80 young Senator Roose-
velt'x experience in this Office,
a minor and part time job.
would have been not more than
one year all told.
nov. DEWEY'S experience in
" government prior to his in
auguration on Jan. !. 1913. had
been that of prosecutor and
attorney, in the course of which,
naturally. he had to meet many
constitutional problems.
He handled some tax cases
for the federal government
under Roosevelt's presidency,
and served by appointment OF q
Democratic governor as special
prosecutor in New York for
more than two years.
Inasmuch as his Investigations
largely concerned civic corrup-
tion and evil conduct in labor
organizations, il can be said
that this experience, followed
by four years more as district
attorney, must have given him
an inside knowledge of the
workings OF government and
politics.
WHEN Mr.. Roosevelt finally
w was elected president iYl
1882. he had served two terms
as governor of New York, but
they were two-year terms.
Thus his experience as gov
ernor. which was stressed by
his party as a special qualifica-
tion, was only two years more
than Dewey will have had n
the same office should he be in.
augurated president in January.
1915.
AS to whether Mr.. Roosevelt
was better governor than Mr..
Dewey. opinion will divide on
strict party lines with little re-
gard for the realities, for judy
ment and reason are belonged
by partisanship.
Still, the facts show that
Dewey will be almost four years
older next Inauguration day
than Mr.. Roosevelt was when he
considered himself fit to tackle
the job In an emergency in 1921.
He will have served as gov.
ernor the equivalent of one Of
Mr.. Rooseve1t's two terms which
SO prominently qualified him
for the highest office in the
campaign of 1882.
Copyright, 1914. by United Features, synd.