President Taft’s Walks

SOME time before the assassination of the third “martyr-president”, an editorial appeared on this page of “Every Where”, entitled “President McKinley’s Walks.” It had been said that the Chief Executive was in the habit of taking placid strolls in different parts of Washington, recognized by most of those whom he met, exchanging genial civilities with them, and thus taking every dignified way possible of exhibiting his love for his constituency, and his confidence in them.
     EVERY WHERE appreciated the genial and confiding nature of the man, but protested against his venturesomeness. It pointed out the fact that there were some thousands of people in this country that would like to see him killed—not because he was McKinley, but because he was President. Unhappily, there are a good many individuals living under this government and enjoying its protection, who want all government abolished.
     EVERY WHERE went farther. It implored the President and those around him to be more careful at receptions. In one of those long heterogenous [sic], longi- [368][369] tudinal crowds of people, there might be a maniac, or a semi-maniac, who would shoot him. It almost pre-described the gruesome and murderous event at Buffalo. This description could not have furnished a suggestion to the assassin, for people of Czolgosz’s ilk do not read EVERY WHERE: but it also failed to act as a preventive.
     Who would want to shoot such a person as President Taft? A model citizen; a fatherly, brotherly personage, who in his high estate puts on no more airs than the man who earns his daily bread by daily sweeping the streets; a restful quantity after we had endured nearly eight years of executive turmoil; a man in whom nearly everybody seems to have confidence, and whom all appear to respect and love?
     Apparently—perhaps presumably—nobody. But we believe that there is not one guard around that great, grand, quietly-powerful man, where there ought to be twenty.
     The electing of a President is an expensive process—to say nothing of his rearing, his education, his maintenance up to any particular time. The taking-off of a President is an event which damages us much more than can be estimated: disturbs public placidity, shatters some of the public credit, and mal-advertises us all over the world.
     Take care of the President!—There are plenty of people sworn to kill him.