The times and democrat. [volume] (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1881-current, 1908-04-10

as were mdue ny tue lAsuiohSC Sou
panies to Mr.. Roosevelt's last cam
paign fund or even the general knowl-
edge that q practical man" like f. 81.
. Hartman had been called to the White
House and asked to raiSe S-,2,CjO
three or. four days before election to
carry New York might really create in
the minds OF the voters some question
as to the entire good faith of the party
adopting these methods.
So it would seem that the omission
of any recommendation for the public
: ity bill and the insistence upon tariff
commission rather suggest q scheme
to raise money by devious ways for
use in an election which now the Re-
publicans themselves look upon with
apprehension.
Some White House Gossip.
A Republican senator from the mid
die west says that in recent conver-
sation with the president the latter re-
iterated with vigor his expressed deter
mination not to be candidate this
year. He declared that all he could do
would be done for Secretary Taft, and
indeed the extreme activity to this end
of the federal Officeholders notwith-
standing the civil service reform law
seems to justify the presidents asser-
ton. But the interesting point is that
my informant came away from the
White House with the very fixed opin-
ion that the president was not hopeful
Of the election of Taft, however hope
full he might be of his nomination. In-
deed, it is the belief among keen poll
ticians about the capitol that the
chances for the success of any Repub-
lican this year are so exceedingly. small
that a gentleman with the spectacular
instincts of Mr.. Roosevelt would be
quite likely first to seek the credit of
nominating Il successor even though
he might possibly fail, then make Il
regal tour Of Europe and return to
politics four ears hence to become the
savior of his party and his nation from
Democratic rule
It sounds much like Roosevelt. 40
man in public life is more thoroughly
self seeking than he, and none plays
shrewder politics. The close of his ad-
ministration finds the country facing a
business depression such as has not
been known since 1893. 1t followed
upon a panic which paralleled the one
which nearly fifteen years ago was
charged to Democratic policies. Mr..
Roosevelt has had for seven years al
most unhampered control Of the gov.
ernment Of this natl; i, He has had a
congress which, while Of late covertly
hostile, was long only too eager to do
his bidding. His party and himself are
responsible for the business situation
in the United States today, which led
more than $4,000 people in New York
on a recent Saturday to join in dem
onstration for the unemployed. Mr..
Roosevelt is q shrewd politician. He
knows that the times are precarious
for his party and even more doubtful
for himself. To thrust forward the
good humored Taft would mean that
in the doubtful result of success he
would be hailed as the sponsor of the
successful candidate, while defeat
would merely eliminate Taft, but leave
the only living Republican eX-president
in q position to seek the limelight in
other fields of activity and return to
plague his party once again. This is
the feeling among, should say, almost
a majority Of the Republicans in the
house and senate. To any one who has
studied the Roosevelt character and
career it sounds like plausible expla-
nation of his present attitude.
The Black List and the Boycott.
Much of the pressure being brought
to bear upon congress for radical
amendment Of the Sherman antitrust
law is due to the belated discovery OF
the large corporate employers of labor
that some Of the decisions recently
rendered in courts against unions
which have attempted to boycott goods
manufactured by certain firms may be
appealed to by unions to destroy those
corporations which are maintaining a
black list, so called, Of workingmen
For a time members of labor unions
who had any property whatsoever
were panic stricken after the decision
of the Danbury hatters. One of them
said to me few days after that deci-
sion: II belong to union, and l must
belong to 4 union to work at my trade
and secure fair wages. own little
house, but under this decision if my
union shall compel me and my fellows
to strike and advise boycott Of the
goods Of the firm for which we have
been working l am made individually
liable. The firm could select such
members of the union as it knew were
at all financially responsible and strip
them Of their property"
1t seemed like a hard case, and un-
der the decisions as they now stand it
is n possible one now But the very
employers who are fighting the boycott
and the concerted strike do maintain
black lists. The heads of the labor un-
ions have within the past few days
secured legal advice to the effect that
any union whose members are dis
criminated against because Of their
membership in that union can proceed
against the corporation which has
blacklisted them. OF course what
court will do is not determined until
the court has done it, but it is alto
gether probable that within few days
tho 1,ninnc ,,.ill ctril,a hanl. no rtion lar.