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Show WILSON ISSUES APPEAL, SAYING: ELECT DEMOCRATS By Unitad Peaaa. j WASHINGTON, Oct. 25. President Wilson today appealed !to he country for a vote of confidence in his leadership J.'both at home and abroad" by returninjr the Democratic congress. In a statement addressed to "My fellow countrymen," he said i that the Republican leaders "have unquestionably been prowar, but antiadministration," and said election of a Republican majority' to either house of congress would "certainly be interpreted on the other side of the water as a repudiation of my leadership." The president's statement follows: "My fellow countrymen: The congressional elections ara at hand. They occur In tha moat critical period our country hag aver faced or la likely to faoa In our time. If you hava approved of my leadership and wish me to continue to bo your unembarrassed un-embarrassed spokesman In affairs at homo and abroad, I earnestly beg that you will express yourselves unmistakably unmis-takably to that effect by returning a Democratic majority to both the senate and tha house of representatives. PRESIDENT IS FRANK. ! am your servant and will accept your Judgment without cavil, but my power to administer the great trust assigned as-signed me by the constitution would be aerinusly Impaired ahould your Judgment Judg-ment be adverse and 1 must franly tell you ao because so many critical Issues depend upon your verdict. No scruple of taate must In grim times like these be allowed to stand In the way of apeaking the plain truth. r ALL ARE PATRIOTIC. I have no thought of auggeatlng that any political party la paramount In matters of patriotism. I feel too keenly keen-ly the sacrifices which have been made In this war by all our C it is its Irrespective Irrespec-tive of party affiliation to harbor such and Idea. 1 mean only that the dtffl-1 dtffl-1 cultlea and del tear lea of our present , task ara of a sort that make It Imperatively Impera-tively necessary that the nation should give Its undivided support to the government gov-ernment under a unified leadership and that a Republican congreaa would divide di-vide the leadership. OPPOSED BV O. O. P. "The leaders of tha minority In the present congress have unquestionably been prowar. but they have been sntl-adnrinistratlon. sntl-adnrinistratlon. At almost every turn since we entered the war they have sought to take the choice of policy and the conduct of the war out of my hands and put It under the control of instrumentalities instru-mentalities of their own chiostng. This is no time either fr divided counsel or for divided leadership. l.'nity of command la aa necessary now In civil actiona as It la upon the field of battle. bat-tle. If the control of the house and senate should be taken away from the parly now In power, an opposing majority ma-jority could aaaume control of legislation legisla-tion and oblige all action to be taken amid contest and obstruction. CONTROL OR SUPPORT! "The return of a Republican major--itV-JP either hnuofcongrees woyjd moreover, certainly be interpreted on the other side of the water as a repudiation re-pudiation of my leadership. H pokes-men pokes-men of the Republican party are urging urg-ing you to elect a Republican congreaa con-greaa In order to back up and support sup-port the president; but, even If they , should in this way impose upon some credulous voters on this side of the : water, they should Impose on one on the other aide. It la well Understood there, as well aa here, that the ReV 1 publican leaders desire hot ao much to support the president aa to con- , trol him. The peoples of the allied i countries wth whom we are associated 1 against Germany are quite familiar 1 with the significance of elections. They would find It very difficult to believe that the voters of the I nited Htatea had chosen to support their president by electing to the congress a majority major-ity controlled by those who are not In fact n sympathy with the attitude and action of the administration. FOR NATION'S SAKE. "I need not teTl ou. my fellow countrymen, coun-trymen, that I am asking your support sup-port not for m v own sake, nor for the sake of a political party, but for the sake of the nation Itself. In order that Ms Inward jmity of purpose may he evident to all the world. In ordinary times, divided counsels can be endured en-dured without permanent hurt to the country. Rut these are not ordinary timea If In these critical days It Is your wish to sustain ma with undt-I undt-I vided minds, I beg that you will aay i so in a way which It will not he possible pos-sible to misunderstand, either here st home or smong our associates on the other side of the se. I submit my difficulties and mv hopes to von. "WMHROW WILCOX." |