Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1908-11-10
A Modern Rome.

1t was conceded by the managers in
charge of the democratic aud republi-
can campaigns, two weeks before cleo
ton, that New York would decide the
contest. The majority of onlookers,
because they did not know what was
going on behind the curtain, regarded
the contest for New York's electoral
vote as close and doubtful. Republi-
cans said the state was close, with
chances favoring Taft Democrats said
it was close, with chances favoring
Bryan.
There were two notable exceptions to
this erroneous view Mr. Roosevelt,
and Mr.. Taft himself. They knew, and
declared, that Taft would get as large a
plurality in that state as Roosevelt got
four years ago. How did they know it?
One can only guess at the answer; it is
unlikely that either Roosevelt or Taft
will ever disclose what they knew about
the bargain made between Tammany
and Hitchcock or Roosevelt or Taft, or
someone else who could give an
authoritative pledge to that corrupt
political gang of thieves. Wellman, in
letter to his paper, the Chicago Rec
ord Herald, told of the bargain having
been made, three or four weeks before
election day. 1t was such a hideous
political crime that we doubt if it found
much credence throughout the country
We were all ready enough to believe
that Tammany would not hesitate at
any political depravity; but it seemed
impossible that the republican cam
paign managers would, for the purpose
of electing Taft, enter into conspiracy
with Tammany to beat Hughes. Yet
this is just what was done, and the re.
suit in New York City, which gave
large majorities to both Taft and
Chandler, proves this unspeakable
political treachery beyond the shadow
of a doubt. And so the American peo-
pie have before them the sinister spec
acle of an election whose fate hung up
on and was turned by the worst politi-
cal set of corruptionists in the country
outside of Philadelphia, 1.-The Tammany
- aidaA nd hof oA
by Wall street. New York is thus, to
the United States, what the city of
Rome was to the Roman Republic-the
corrupt center and source of political
power.
Alas, poor Senator LaFollette All
the evils in his party that he hoped 10
reform, are more firmly intrenched
than ever. Stand-pat-ism, Jo-Ca1non-
ism, the rule of the criminal trusts, all
approved by popular vote and more in
clined than ever to pursue the bad
policies against which he commended.
He could not even elect Ekern TO the
assembly, the only thing he really
made an effort to do in the present
campaign. Stephenson's money proved
too strong wall for the senator to
buck
We do not sympathize much with the
'progressives" of the republican party
in Wisconsin, in their attacks upon
Uncle Ike His money, and his Mil
waukee Free Press was az that ever
gave them or their leader. Senator La
Toilette, q ghost of show to carry the
state. Even with his purse to draw
from, they could have done nothing
without the aid of thousands of fair
minded democrats as the senator
graciously called them when in need of
their votes. Now Uncle Ike was never
progressive or anything else that
meant something other than his own
political interests. And this they must
have known. Yet he permitted his
paper, the Free Press. to preach .
political creed for years in which he did
not, himself. take any stock. Then.
when be wanted 70 use his own news
paper, for his own purposes, instead of
thanking him for giving them its ser
vice for several years. the devil is TO
pay because he resunAs what belonged
to him all the time Those ''progres-
sives'' are unreasonable, they appear
to think that no one has any business to
be in politics for Sc Ssh purposes.