The Mena weekly star., 1907-04-25
4 NEN ROOSEVELT IDEA
President at Work on Plan For Gov ernment to Pay National Cam
 paign Bills.
PROPOSITION IS IN INDEFINITE SHAPE
The Plan ie to have Government Fay All Legitimate Expenses of Eiec- ton of President and Vice Pres'- dent, Thus Eliminating Money and Corporation influence.

Washington, April 20.-President Roosevelt is trying to evolve recom- mendation to congress which VIII make it possible for the national government to pay all legitimate ex- penses in the condoct of national campaign for the election of pres ident and vice president He also wants to evolve law which will pro- vide for the payment of the expenses of candidates for congress.
 The fact in this connection has leaked out through the discussions which the president has had with some of his callers. So far he has not even evolved the form of a law which he believes will be acceptable to con gress, so he is far from the recom- mendation that he hopes to make eventually to that body.
 The president, when the idea first occurred to him, thought it highly impracticable, and, perhaps, not pos sible of working into tangible shape. The more he conferred with the men connected with his administration who untangle the knotty problems that come he inclined to the belief thas such a measure could be devised, and that he could induce congress to enact it.
 The extent to which such law could be allowed to go has not been determined. The thought now is that 1t could be made to cover the actual legitimate travelling and public ex- penses of each candidate as sworn to by him and his managers, and as in- dicated by vouchers and receipts, the character of which would be indicated by the law It is in mind to have the law provide reasonable amount for the printing of literature.
 It is admitted that the law would have to prescribe specific limits in the case of the candidates for the presidency and the vice presidency and also for candidates for the seats in congress. State laws now prescribe fees which shall be exacted from can didates who wish to go before pri- maries and some elaboration of this idea is in the mind of the president now.
 The object of the president is two fold He is sincere believer in the idea that money and corporation in- fluences sl Juld be as strictly divorced from national campaigns and all elec- tions as 1t is possible. Again. in his recommendations to congress that a law be passed providing for the pub licity of campaign contributions, he was sincere and in earnest.
 It was not his fault that the recom- meIdation was not enacted into law But since that time rich New York democrat, who has tried many times without success to break into the na- tional political campaigns, has spent hundreds of dollars advocating pub licity of this sort and attempting to make it appear that he is the father of the idea and its sole promoter Now, the president purposes to accept him and other democrats at the face value of their public declarations and go them one better by providing that the national government shall foot legitimate campaign bills.
 The president will not be surprised if there is strong opposition to the proposal and if it creates all sorts of clamor and claims of being impracti- cable and uptopian. If he can find plan which, to his mind, is practical and can be embodied into legislation he will urge it in message to the con- gress