La Junta tribune., 1900-10-06
DENVER LETTER.
DISGRACE OF COLORADO BY DEMOCRATIC RI
OTERs IN VICTOR AND SALIDA.
Outside of These Two Places Roosevels Trip Through e
State Was Continued Ovation. and Great Good Has
Been Done-Other Speakers Coming Colorado

Denver, Oct. Especial Correspond
encc.) body In the state has been
inIking of the tour Of Governor koose
welt. and everybody has been talking
OF the disgrace brought upon the state
Dy the ruffians In Victor and Salida,
who attempted to break up his meet
ings In those places, and In Victor
made an assault upon him and Ibis par
ty, which was only prevented from do
Ing them serious bodily harm by the va
liant fight put up against the rioters
by Rooseve,t's Rough Rider guard The
most remarkable part Of the thing. and
the most disgraceful to Colorado. is
that the assaults have been virtually
approved by Governor Thomas and the
Rocky Mountain News. Thomas bs,-
gan by publishing an insulting open
letter" to Governor Roosevelt, and the
News says that Roosevelt could ex-
pect nothing else when he went with
Senator Wolcott. In this sort OF talk
the News IS thoroughly at home One
OF It's specialtlcs for years has been in
citing men to riot In this case. II i'm
plies. II 1t does not say directly. that
such treatment as was accorded 10 Nr.
Ioosevelt's party In Victor would have
been perfectly proper IL applied to
Senator Wolcott alone. In other
words, II believes, not in giving IN
your opponent n fair hearing. but in
hooting him. throwing stones mt him.
and running him out OF town III posi-
bL.. Everybody Is aware that these are
Democratic methods OF campaigning
in some states, but IL is unusual to
hcnr and see them endorsed as proper
by high Democratic authority.
But this is only a repetition of the
treatment OF four years ago. There
were not n dozen towns OF any Size IN
the state. in 1896. where a Republican
would have been permitted to make a
speech without personal assault. 1t
was common expression, heard all
over the state. and just as much in the
streets of Denver US In the back coun-
ties. that any man who would vote for
Mckinley ought TO be run out OF the
stale. Ii Is an indication OF the great
change that has come over Colorado in
four years that there were only two
places In which that feeling apparently
now exists. Governor Thomas and 4.
NJ. Patterson have been doing their ut
most 10 stir mp ffs. lawlcss spirit again.
but they have not yet succeeded as
doubtless they had hoped to.
AS for Governor Roosevelt himself.
he bore the assault with the firmness
and courage which have always been
among the strongest attributes OF his
character Mr.. II. ]. Cleveland of the
Chicago Times Herald. who Is one of
the journalists on the Roosevelt train.
secured the following statement from
the vice presidential candidate after
the assault.
'"rhose poor, misguided men at Vic
tor are more to be pi,lcd than CON
dcmncd. Law.brcaking Is never good
political game. i can stand all this
kind of thing they choose To give. It's
the very sort OF thing that l am fight
ing against as n candidate for office
reason and patriotism against the rule
of the mob"
Senator Henry Cabot Lodge tells the
facts very plainly In his statement pub
Iished In the Boston Journal. as fol-
lows:
II was in the crowd at Victor, both
going and coming from the hall. and
was In the hall, on the platform, dur
Ing the entire meeting. The meeting
was broken up by n large body OF dis
orderly men, who went there for that
purpose. They shouted and made such
n disturbance that II was impossible
for anyone to speak. / have never wilt
messed such scene In any public
meeting in the United States. General
Hale, who commanded the Colorado
troops in the Philippines, and Is dis
tinguished soldier was hissed when he
was introduced as a soldier, and was
constantly interrupted. When he made
an appeal for the iiag. upon which he
laid his hand, he was hooted, and there
were cries OF Occur d'Aiene' and Bull
PEN 1t was directed. not against the
I...k II
form OF the United States which he
represented.
''The disorder In the streets was very
great. There was an element present,
evidently determined on trouble. They
struck at Governor Roosevelt with the
poles of the Bryan banners. and stoned
the car on which the governor stood as
the train drew out.
The statement of Governor Thomas
that the disturbance was directed
against Senator Wolcotf. Is absolutely
false. The attack. sEch as 1t was. was
made on Governor Roosevelt, and the
purpose of the roughs who engaged in
II was to break up the Republican
meeting and not permit us to be heard
I believe from very sufficient evidence
that the whole attack was deliberately
planned by the Bryan leaders in this
state. There are no better people any
where than the people OF Colorado, and
this attack on Governor Roosevelt has
created widespread Indignation among
men Of all parties. 1t will contribute
powerfully to the redemption Of the
state, which now seems very probable
from the control of the fusion leaders.
who are capable OF such outrages up
on free speech as that perpetrated by
the roughs in Victor.
The Denver Republican comments
upon the occurrence as follows:
'-The false pre,ense that no insults