Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1908-08-28
Friday. August %. 1908.

III. ID. FLOOD,
OF Appomattox.
HOT SPRINGS---HOT TIMES.
'sDid you go to Hot Springs on the
Taft excursion ?' 'tNaw. Didge your"
"Yaas.u
These questions have been asked and
answered within the past week many
times. The excursion is over and its
influence on the coming election
throughout the nation of course is
marked. MI. Taft and Mrs. Taft, and
Mr.. and Mrs. Taft's friends, and some
other people, must have looked with
establishment over that lot of humani-
ty as it came packed in some trains
which were pushed by heavy freight
engines, up the steep grades of the tor
tuouS twenty-five miles of railroad from
Covington to Hot Springs on the I'M
lucky day-of Friday of last week. Is
Mr.. Taft to carry Virginia with these
lustys, or are they to be some of the
pall-bearers of dead hopes on Novem-
Der 4th next? 1t is certain that had
Mr.. Taft been selecting supporters he
would hardly have selected some of
that bunch. In the effort that the ser
wants of Uncle Sam had made to make
themselves solid with what they feel
SO confident is to be the next admins
tration, they had beaten the brush to
get together the loyal party workers
which went to make up the Hot
Springs excursion, and if not loyal,
something to fill the coaches. The
event had been widely advertised, it
must not be failure. People must fill
the train even if whilst looking at Mr..
Taft they helloed "Hurrah for Bryan"
When the faithful arrived they seemed
to forget the object of their outing.
They began trailing through the
grounds, Oyerrunning the grass which
they were warned by signs here and
tn ere to keep Off They went pell nell
through the stately reception rooms,
parlors and halls of "The Homestead"
where the foot of 'plain people" had
never trod. They went about gazing
at the "Golf Links" where the apple
of the eye of the organizers of the eX-
cursion, the Hon. VIM. II. Taft, is
wont to swat the bali, to see if the
thinks" were larger than those of the
chain which many used at home,
when Cherry and Brindle were yoked
and hitched to a saw log. They hunt
ed for the links, and would not be
comforted because they were not.
When told that there were really no
links, but that the smoothly moved
field with some hillocks looking like
an abandoned mill race, was the play
ground of the would-be president, they
looked at one another as much as to
say, lis that so ?"
When the bugle sounded and the
Stonewall Band blew its sweetest blasts
of 'Hail to the Chief" ''The Conquer
ing Hero Comes" and "Yankee
Doodle" and began to march toward
the Base Ball Park, the crowd realized
that services were about to begin.
Many refused to follow the band con-
tenting themselves with simply look
ing at the candidate and the passing
procession, and Witnessing the pride
illumining the faces of some of our
handsOmest and most efficient public
functionaries. When the park was
reached, and those who had ventured
SO far, had gotten their breath after
the climb up the steep hill, and over
the steps, and more sweet music had
been discoursed, and-quoting from the
Washington Post of Saturday last
''Col. S. Brown Allen, of Chicago, who
lntrod uced MI. Taft, declared that at
least 1900 ex-Confederate veterans
will march, limp, or halt to the polls
on November 3 to cast their unpur-
chased and unpurchasable ballots for
Taft and Sherman. AS there were
few Confederate veterans present to
deny the statement, save some who
may have deserted during the war, or
surely since, the statement went for
what it was worth, though Mr.. Taft is
reported to have smiled when it was
uttered. Then the Col. ''from Chicago"
repeated part of the beautiful Grafton
OF Lamar on Gen. Lee, and applied it
to Mr.. Taft, who smiled again when
he heard it.
Then Mr.. Taft proceeded to read a
very prosy document. Some enthusi-
astic members of the audience occa
sionally tried to get up enthusiasm, but
the fire died quickly, and the fetched
thing would not boil. The audience
largely had to stand and it grew tired
at the monotinous tone of the reader,
and apart from the hand shaking and
the influence of John Barley Corn, the
affair is said to have been tame and
Istless, and many felt like kicking
themselves because they had gone.
The Hot was prepared for this crowd
in a way. The bar was closed. These
unpurchasable and unpurchased voters
had to be contentwith sulphur water
only, to quench their thirst. Many, it
is said, got dust in their Threats. AT
last as night approached the trains be-
gan to depart, and slowly they crept |