I
THIS autumn a Mr. W. G. Harding, of Marion, Ohio, was
appointed President of the United States, but Zenith was less
interested in the national campaign than in the local election.
Seneca Doane, though he was a lawyer and a graduate of the
State University, was candidate for mayor of Zenith on an
alarming labor ticket. To oppose him the Democrats and
Republicans united on Lucas Prout, a mattress-manufacturer
with a perfect record for sanity. Mr. Prout was supported by
the banks, the Chamber of Commerce, all the decent newspapers,
and George F. Babbitt.
Babbitt was precinct-leader on Floral Heights, but his district
was safe and he longed for stouter battling. His convention
paper had given him the beginning of a reputation for
oratory, so the Republican-Democratic Central Committee
sent him to the Seventh Ward and South Zenith, to address
small audiences of workmen and clerks, and wives uneasy
with their new votes. He acquired a fame enduring for weeks.
Now and then a reporter was present at one of his meetings,
and the headlines (though they were not very large) indicated
that George F. Babbitt had addressed Cheering Throng, and
Distinguished Man of Affairs had pointed out the Fallacies of
Doane. Once, in the rotogravure section of the Sunday
Advocate-Times, there was a photograph of Babbitt and a
dozen other business men, with the caption "Leaders of Zenith
Finance and Commerce Who Back Prout.''
He deserved his glory. He was an excellent campaigner.
He had faith; he was certain that if Lincoln were alive, he
would be electioneering for Mr. W. G. Harding—unless he
came to Zenith and electioneered for Lucas Prout. He did not
confuse audiences by silly subtleties; Prout represented honest
industry, Seneca Doane represented whining laziness, and you
could take your choice. With his broad shoulders and vigorous
voice, he was obviously a Good Fellow; and, rarest of all, he
really liked people. He almost liked common workmen. He
wanted them to be well paid, and able to afford high rents—
though, naturally, they must not interfere with the reasonable
profits of stockholders. Thus nobly endowed, and keyed high
by the discovery that he was a natural orator, he was popular
with audiences, and he raged through the campaign, renowned
not only in the Seventh and Eighth Wards but even in parts
of the Sixteenth.