Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1907-09-18
BRYANPUTS FINGER ON TAfT'S WEAK SP0T;ApOS1PONER

his political utterances wholly sub
servient to Mr. Roosevelt's views.
But he does both.
Burton and Johnson.
The news that Representative Bur-
ton of Cleveland is to run as the Re
publican candidate for the mayoralty
of that city against Tom L. Johnson
should awaken wide interest There
may be much back of the announce
ment which does not appear on its
face. During the time that Johnson
has dominated Cleveland there has
been practically no opposition to Bur
ton as a Republican candidate for con-
gress. Some men say that this has
been the result of n deal between Bur
ton and Johnson by which the one
should go to congress as Il Republican
and the other continue as mayor. Per-
sonally l think this is absolutely I'M
true. OF all the people in public life
who cannot be suspected of political
trading Tom Johnson is one. But it
is true that Burton has not antago-
nized JohnSon'S street railway policy,
which is the issue on which the city
of Cleveland has been carried three
times by its present mayor. Moreover,
in his letter expressing Willingness to
accept the Republican nomination Mr..
Burton declared that he would DULY
make the race if assured that the com
mlttee in charge of the campaign and
the candidates on the ticket with him
should not be tainted by any sort of
association with traction companies or
| with other quasi public corporations
holding franchises granted by the city.
| This Is an admirable stand for Mr..
Burton to take, but why is he taking
| It? Because Tom Johnson. fighting
| along that line to my certain knOwl-
| edge for more than twenty years. final
| ly enforced on the people of Cleveland
the conviction that public franchises
| belong to the people and should not
be used for private profit Just eX-
| actly as Mr.. Bryan has blazed the way
| followed since by Roosevelt, who has
found much political profit therein, so
| Tom Johnson has lived on the plat
| form which Mr.. Burton now asks that
| his own party should allow him to
| mount.
| But all the same Burton shows cour-
| age. He has been the leader in the
| fight on Senator Foraker and Senator
Dick. He has been one of the men
| Foraker from Ohio politics. When he
announced his purpose to run for may
| or Of Cleveland he gave as his chief
| reason therefor letters he had received
| from President Roosevelt, Secretary
Taft and Secretary Garfield. The last
| of these dignitaries lives in Cleveland:
| the other two know nothing about its
municipal needs. Mr.. Burton seems to
| be willing to run for mayor on n ma
! tional platform. Tom Johnson. who
| has served three terms. is likely to
continue, as he has already done. max
| ing himself the candidate of the peo-
| pie on a platform addressed to the
citizens of his own town and on Il
record of accomplishment and of tri-
| umph.
Mr.. RooseveIt's Six Speeches.
Upon the very best authority l am
| informed that the six speeches which
| Mr.. Roosevelt is now writing at Oys-
ter Bay for the purpose of delivery
| during his western and southern trip
in connection with the deep waterways
excursion are to make his Province
town speech sound as mild as the COO
ing of sucking dove Anybody who
| thought that the president was going
to stop scolding because other people
| scOldcd back will be disappointed
| Persons who had lingering hope of
a modification of the form of presiden-
tial oratory which. as a New York pa
| per said, has made Mr.. Hearst's Even
ing Journal a conservative organ are
likely to be amazed. Somehow as the
abusive oratory of Mr.. Roosevelt be
comes more and more extreme one
| can but remember one of his famous
-