Partisan

One morning last week, Manhattan Democrats arose, glanced as usual with real pleasure at their copy of the New York World. Knowing from experience that the World would let no day go by without chucking the Administration under the chin, they turned confidently to the editorial page, ran expectant gaze over a column captioned "Author! Author!" Could it be true? The opening paragraph ran, ". . . Mr. Coolidge really ought to think twice about making such a speech as he made Tuesday evening. Another speech like this one, and first thing Mr. Coolidge knows he may have a suit for plagiarism on his hands, brought by the editors of the Encyclopaedia, Britannica." Democrat readers beamed, folded their papers back gleefully but Republicans were not much alarmed. Had this same lead appeared in the immaculate columns of the Times things would have been different; but everybody knew that the World's partisanship now and then ran away a bit with its common sense. Further perusal showed the analogies to be matters of fact--"seventh in area," "wealth $3,285 per capita," "eighth in rank as a coal producer. . . ." Where except in reference books, such as the Britannica, did the World expect Mr. Coolidge to obtain statistics if he insisted upon using them in his Colorado semicentennial address?