Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1907-04-18
washington LETTER.

summer politics are known 10 this latitude
But there has just been sprung political
sensation that would do credit to the wealth
er with the thermometer at 100 in the
shade. It emanates from the inside Of the
Republican party, and most Of the Republic
can parties seem inclined TO take il serious
". Whatever there may or may not be be-
hind it, the mere currency of the story
shows the deep rooted distrnst that the Re-
publican leaders have Of each other ana the
strong under current Of opposition that is
known to be running against the President
aud his policies in the financial world
The facts or the canard, as one chooses TO
GLASS s,are that as a recent dinner either in
Washington or Philadelphia, Senator Pen-'
rose dined not wisely but too well and
boosted that there was plot on foot to
block the Roosevelt policies for the next
four years by nominating man not Of his
choice for the Presidency. Senator Penrose
declared, 50 the story went, that there had
been a fund Of 5000. 900 started for high
financial interests ia New York, including
the Standard Oil Company, F. Fl. Hartman,
Jacob SchiH, Fl. H. Rogers and number
of others, as the nucleus Of an immense Ger
ruptlon fund wherewith to secure the nomi-
nation in the next Republican nasional con-
vention Of any man, so long as he was a man
whom the corporations could handle and
who was pledged against all Of the Roose-
yelt doctrines.
It was said that there were number OF
real supporters of the Presidents at the table
who listened with astonishment to this re-.
cital, and regardless Of whether the narrator
was responsible for this ntterances or NOT,
they at once told all that had occurred to
the President. Then as sequel came
prompt denial from Senator Penrose that
be had eyer attended the dinner in quest
ion, or that he had ever made any such
statement as was attributed to him At the
White House on the other hand, while it
was not denied that the story had been told
20 the President it was distinctly stated
that the name Of Senator Penrose had not
been mentioned, and outsiders were left to
their own speculations as to how much
faith the President and his advisers put in
the tale. Senator Penrose has always been
counted as one of the loyal il not warm
suppoi tiers of the Administration and it is
known that the President helped him sub
stantially in his fight recently in Pennsyl-
vania. The name Of Senator Scott Of West
Virginia and of Senator Elkins are also
mixed up in the story Of the plot and the
dinner, but there is not enough tangible stuff
to go on except to suggest that there are
things doing under the surface in the Re-
publican party, and that however calm and
cordial relations NAV apDa.r to be there are
developments ahead that will bear close
Watching.
The railroad policies Of the AdministFa-
tion have not crystalized far enough to say
what sort OF legislation may be recon-
mended to the next Congress, but the atti-
tude of some of the big interests were
brought out in the further hearing OF the
Hartman case before the Interstate Com
merce Commission this week. There has
been an argument before the commission
with the Hartman attorneys on one side
and the special governments attorneys on
the other, to decide whether the Commits
sion will press for answers to some Of the
questions that Mr.. Hartman on the adj
vice of counsel refused TO answer recently
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