Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1908-10-03

Lincoln, Neb-William H. Taft en-
tered Lincoln Wednesday evening
first Republican nominee for the pres
idency to invade the home of the
longtime leader of the democracy.
He would not take dare, so accepted
Bryan's challenge printed in the
mCrning papers to express himself on
1.-THE question of publicity of campaign
contributions before the election has
occurred Mr. Taft said that ne takes
exactly the same position that Presi-
dent Roosevelt takes, and added:
81 have always been in favor of
law which will require publicity OF
both contributions and expenditures
Immediately after election
: In his speech the Republican can
didate said:
! "The law in Nebraska on this sub
Ject only requires the publication of
contributions and expenditures after
election. This was the law which the
democratic managers in Nebraska fla
grantly violated in 1904 by failing to
return the receipt of $4,000 from Mr..
Thomas F. Ryan"
Mr.. Taft said that it was natural
that men of means, interested from
patriotic motives and desire to con-
tinue prosperity should contribute to
the campaign of the party that they
thought would maintain or bring
about prosperity. He said that he
nk m
discourage men who desire to contrib
ute for these reasons by exposing
them to "the bitter diatribes and SLAM
derous condemnation of partisans."
The home of the democratic leader
received the Republican nominee for
the presidency we'll. Citizens of Lin
coin sail that the crowd to see and
hear him was the largest since that
which had come to the Bryan notiflca-
tion speech They would not say that
1t was larger, but stood on the state
ment, 1T is one of the biggest lot of
people We ever have had in town"
Mr.. Bryan's telegram asking that
pictures of him be taken down had
been obeyed to this extent: There
were "stickers" which bind litho-
graph to window still sticking, with
the picture missing. Others had COM
promised by placing Taft portrait
alongside a picture of Bryan, carrying
out the spirit if not the letter of the
Bryan telegram. In still other win
dows were pictures of Taft, or Taft
and Sherman. Without attempting to
make O. census, tour of the principal
streets would make it about an even
break counting the "stickers" and
the Taft and Bryan pictures for Bry-
an, and the Taft, or Taft and Sher-
man pictures for the Republican nom.
lnee.
Mr.. Taft was met on his arrival by
1000 persons, to whom he talked for
two minutes. The train then went to
HavelOck, five miles away, where he
made TO the workers In the Burlington
repair shops, talk along the lines of
his CGlicago speech. He was then in
troduced by foreman of the shop,
who was dressed in jumper and over
alls.
Mr.. Taft then returned to Lincoln,
where he was met by $4,000 persons,
with conservative estimate, the nois-
lest, If not the most numerous of the
crowd, being the university of Ne
braska students. The parade formed
at the station, bore him to the uni
verstty, where he made a short talk.
He then went to the auditorium,
where he talked to women, over whom
presided Mrs. George L. Sheldon, wife
of the governor.
The Republican candidate took din
ner at the executive mansion and i'm
mediately afterward was escorted to
the capitol grounds by torchlight
procession and several thousand Ne
braskans who had come to hear Taft,
but who had to be content with see
Ing him, as his voice had reached a
condition in which 1t could not be
heard 10 feet from the platform. Gov
Sheldon and Senator Brown had to
supply the oratory, but the assem-
blage cheered Taft's presence and all
references to him. From the capitol
grounds he went to the auditorium,
where he made the speech in which
he replied briefly to Bryan's chal
lenge.
He became so engrossd in other
topics that he made only incidental
reference to this phase of the cam
paign, and made answer to the chal
lenge in formal statement which he
gave to the press, in his statement he
said:
'Mr. Bryan challenges me to take
the same position that President
Roosevelt takes with reference to the
time when publicity should be made
of campaign contributions, and l ac-
cept the challenge. take exactly the
same position that the president.
have always been in favor of law
which will require publicity of both
contributions and expenses immedi-
ately after election. Mr.. Bryan seems
to favor the publication of contribu-
tions before the election, but post.
pones the publication of expenditures
until after that time. | confess see
no reason why, If contributions are
to be published before elections, ex-
penditures should not also be pub
Iished. think that the character of
expenditures Is quite as important as
the character and source of the contri-
buttons.