The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1903-12-12
PRESIDENT
HITS BACK
Rebukes Wall Street Interests Said
to Be Working Against Him.
WAS ASKED TO GIVE PLEDGES
His Refusal, II Il Alleged, started
Hanna Boom, which senator Has
Not EncOuraged--NoveI scheme
to Create Sentiment.

sNSW AAAhf A-lAs A&a = AtI AANAsAfA
prints the following from its Washing
ton correspondent.
Swift and hard President Roosevelt
has struck back at the influences that
be believes are responsible for the or
ganized effort which has been made all
over the country to make it appear that
be cannot be elected to the presidency
and that the party ought to force Sen
ator Hanna TO be the candidate.
'The president believes that the men
who are engaged in the Hanna BOOM
though without any encouragement
from Mr. Hanna, are Messrs ]. Pier
pont Morgan, J. ]. Hill, Il. II. Harri
man and the combination Of the Rookie
Teller Gould interests, and statement
giving some details Of an effort which
is said to have been made to exact
pledges from the president In behalf OF
these gentlemen was made public
There is no doubt that the statement
came from the president and II has
attracted great attention here.
According to the story. about three
or four weeks ago the president was
approached by the representative Of
the great interests Of Wall street, such
as the Rocxefeller-Gould combination,
]. Pierpont Morgan, =. Il. Hartman
and James J. Hill
"This representative wanted to ascer-
tain if an amicable understanding
could not be arrived at He said the
men for whom he spoke were anxious
AIS to the future Of commerce and
finance in the United States They
had no fear Of anything the president
might do during the coming year, say
ing frankly that they thought the presi
dent would feel constrained to adopt
conservative policy till after the presi-
Dental election
what they were particularly anx-
lous about he explained, was the course
Of the president after he had acquired
his second term and the restraining
influence OF the need OF going before
the bar Of public opinion at the polls
had been removed Was it not posi-
bic for the president to give the New
York men some assurances as to Ills
policies during his second administra-
tiong Could he not give a pledge That
nothing should be done which should
destroy business confidence, a promise
to abstain from action at home and
abroad which might have disastrous
effect upon the commercial world?
Rebuff From the President.
"'rhe president is reported to have
replied that he did not know exactly
what was meant by the question If 1T.
meant that he was to give promise
to the effect that he should not forward
the interests of the United States in its
foreign relations as occasion arose he
certainly could not give any such
pledge as that which had been suggest
ed. He would not tie his hands by any
general promise He should go on Just
as he had been going, doing his duty
ms he saw il.
And finally. said the president. as
70 pledges not to upset the business
prosperity Of the country, II any such
pledges are necessary as a condition TO
my reelection | am not fit to be re-
elected at all. | decline 10 give any
pledges
1T Is asserted that the president had
this incident in mind when he wrote
this paragraph in his message:
There shall be no backward step If in
the workings Of the laws 1t proves desira-
Bile that they shall at any point be ex-
panded Or amplified, the amendment can
be made as its desirabllity Is shown
Meanwhile they are being administered
with Judgment, but with insistence upon
obedience to them. and this need has been
exemplided ia signal fashion by the events
Of the last year
This, 1t is said, is what caused the
revival Of the Hanna talk. 1t broke
out In many parts Of the country. First
i appeared in one spot and then in an
other Soon Mr.. Hanna went to New
York, and while there was sought out
by the corporation leaders He was
urged to become candidate He was
told that it was his duty to save the
Republican party
AS a sample OF the Wall street plan
TO beat the president ii il stated That
not long ago several hundred letters
were sent out through the far western
states inquiring if public opinion in
that section had not been changed and
If as result Of the change the presl-
dent had not lost his former popular
ity. These letters were sent out by the
head Of great railway corporation.
"They were addressed to his agents
and employees. They We're so worded
as to indicate Enthusiastically the char.
acter of reply that was wanted, and
the agents, knowing their business.
gave their chief the sort Of answer that
he wanted. Withal these letters in hand
the railroad president is thoroughly
convinced that President Roosevelt has
lost his popularity in the far west and
that this affords another most excellent
reason why he should not be made the
Republican nominee.
''The presidents action in taking the
public into his confidence comedies
with the popular view Of his message
that he intends TO hit back every time
Wall street uses the Northern Secllri-