Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1907-10-09
NEGRO CAUSE OF ANTI-L|QUOR LAWS IN THE SOUTH

to touch the right point in the public
mind. Yet presidential opinions do
leak out from the White House. Some
Of these were given me the other
day by gentleman who spent much
time in Oklahoma during the recent
campaign and who saw the president
almost Immediately after it's close. 1t
Is proper to say that he was not in ac-
cord with the endeavor of the admin
istration to deny statehood to the peo-
pie of the territory. The interview was
had on the day that the news had been
given out that the president would is.
sue the proclamation Of statehood and
not, as had been expected, veto the ac-
ton of the people who adopted the con-
stitution by 10000 majority. In view
of the fact that Secretary Taft was
sent to Oklahoma to fight the constitu-
ton and that every territorial official
holding his office by grace of the power
in the White House had fought it, one
| may be permitted to wonder whether it
was not the size of the majority more
| than any other consideration that led
Mr.. Roosevelt to abandon his supposed
| programme.
| However, my informant told me that
| the president had said that he was not
in fact strongly opposed to the initia
tive and referendum feature in the
| constitution. He thought that for
| counties and cities the system of direct
| legislation has been shown to be prac-
ticable. He doubted whether it would
work out successfully in a. state and
was absolutely certain that it would
| fail if tried as a national device. Yet
the people of Oklahoma had q right to
| test it in their commonwealth if they
so desired. Nor did he bitterly attack
the so called gerrymander which has
been the staple argument of Republic
| an opponents of the constitution. In
| fact, he remarked with philosophical
humor that he had had some expert
ence in New York politics and had
seen Republican gerrymanders there
and was reliably informed that they
existed in other states, of whatever po-
litical complexion. This and the sys-
tenn of taxation adopted he thought
matters for the people of the state to
pass upon.
Curiously enough, not one of the ar
guments advanced by Mr.. Taft in his
speech has been upheld by President
| Roosevelt in the numerous interviews
he has had with public men since the
| Oklahoma vote. AS the story of these
interviews passes from one to another
Washington is buZZing with specula
/ To xx-hn 10 fn nj g
was not one of those trial balloons sent
out to test the current of popular sentl
ment If Taft won, the administration
would be in position to back him and
to claim the glory, for all its officers
were repeating his argument to the
people of Oklahoma. But Taft lost
Today the distinctly Roosevelt papers
are printing editorials applauding the
president for repudiating what they
4 call the conspiracy of federal Office
holders to defeat the will of Oklahoma
people The Washington Post, for ex
ample. finds in his action ground 70:
describing him as the, next president
The Philadelphia North American
thinks that Oklahoma owes its state
hood to Taft. the same Taft that wa:
sent there to fight against it. All pa
pers of the kind that in an earlier ad
ministration We're called "cuckoos" are
applauding Mr.. Roosevelt for dom:
what 10000 majority of the people
of the territory asked him to do. Tht
applause is sweet to him, but how
must it sound to Secretary Taft, vht
did only what he was sent to tht
southwest to do!
Washington, d. @.
WILLIS J. ABBOT.