The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-03-15
WHICH WILL HE nor

Gov. Roosevelt, of New York, having
waived the vice presidential bauble aside
now comes forward and strenuously
avows that he is not q candidate
either now or hereafter for president of
the United States. 1t is outside the
sphere of his ambition, he tells the world
and that ambition does not lead him be-
You'd the plain discharge of his duty to
the public.
1t Is really instructive and surprising
what progress this strenuous person has
recently made in the arts of the poll
tician, what an admirable pupil he has
proven TO be of his political mentor, the
great and only Platt. 1t is but mere
day since he was playing the role of the
militant reformer. Yet today he stands
convicted in connection with his appoint
ments Of having resorted to the most
vulgar trick of the machine politician
| lying himself out of hole Hts cheap
John record as a soldier and literature
has long since petered out, and his re-
pute as a reformer is fast following after.
| One or two incidents in his career of
! ground and lofty tumbling in his pur.
! pose to stay solid with the machine with.
out FORGETTING popular support Will suf-
flee. lie had an appointment to make to
the Office of state superintendent of pub
| lie works. He gave the place to an in
| dependent Republican throwing down
he oCINi,,
| close to the machine. Then came along
| the appoin tment of state insurance super
intendent In this case the governor
! made himself solid with the machine by
repudiat1ng the wish Of the general pub
lie; he gave the place TO the machine
candidate whom he had turned down fo1
the position of superintendent of public
works. In making his first choice ne
consulted with the recognized leading in,
dependent and upright men of Repub-
lican politics in the city of BROOKLYN.
among others Dr. Truman J. Backus
On the report of DR.. Backus and other
men Of stainless reputation he made his
appointment. AS the appointee had al
ways shown his contempt for the ma.
chine, there appeared to be splendid op
portunity for Il break between Platt and
his pupil. But The break never came
What lid come, instead. was that Roose-
welt, to make his peace with the machine
no doubt. turned around and threw DR.
Rackus out of the position he held as ono
of the board of managers Of the state hos
pitai. and put machine man in his
place.
And now the reform" governor is
openly charged with having lied himself
into the hole in which he finds himself
and of trying to lie himself out again.
He had promised to reappoint DR. Back
US, He had promised his associates in
the board and his personal and politicaA
friends that Backus would be retained
Now, he says that he was under mis-
apprehension. But as his own letter Is
forthcoming showing that there could
have been no misrepresentation, and tina,
he simply went back on his pledged word,
the misrepresentation dodge does not at
all answer his purpose
This once promising public character
has thus thought proper to make terms
with the corruptionlsts for the promotion
Of the ambitions which he affects to cast
behind him. He may be wise in so do.
Ing; but he Is none the less fraud upon
his former self. Events will prove in the
course of time whether he has been
wise or foolish gauged by the politicians
standard. This much is certain: He
has entered on a career which will make
complete smash of either his reputation
or his ambitions. If he Is TO save tho
latter he must go further than he has
gone. To save what Is left of the former
he must turn back. Which will he do?