The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-08-17
HUGHES IS LEADER IN NEW YORK FIELD Taft Receives Letters Favorable
 to the Governor HANDS OFF IN THIS CASE Taft confers With Secretary of War Wright on Philippine Questions
 and the Matter of Restor-
 ing Freedom In Cuba.
HANDS OFF IN THIS CASE
BY WILLIAM ROSTER.

Hot springs, Va, August 16.-(Special.I William H. Taft stated today that he is In receipt of letters from New Workers expressing sentiments favorable to Gov. ernor Hughes.
 He made the disclosure without hesi tation and coupled with it an assurance that he did not wish to be regarded al taking a part in the New York contest oi | of expressing any preference as to guber. material candidates.
 Arthur I. vorys, informed as to wha, Taft had said, said:
 Well, don't want to be quoted as talk ing part in the New York contest, either but you may say that have received let ters in similar strain myself. Some of them are of a negative nature while some of them inform me they are for Hughes because he is the strongest republican New York can nominate. They say they would favor a stronger man if he can be found. My answer to them has been--for I am looking for information, nothing more-'Who is a stronger man? Who do you think will be stronger?'"
 Incidentally, the significance of the com- bined remarks of Taft and Vorys on the subject is probably to be found in those concluding words of MT. vorys talk Taft declined to be drawn into any further talk on the New York situation.
 MT. Taft was visited yesterday by Man. uel Quezon, who Is a member of the Philippine house of assembly and floor DFf fIa iiofv rtx p1 A,, tomo s. Escamilla, former private secre- tary to Aguinaldo and present secretary to MT. Ocampo, the Filipino delegate to congress.
 Senor Quezon Is making a tour of the world. He assured Mr. Taft that the Filipino assembly Is much more repre- sentative body than the Russian duma.
 MT. Taft and Secretary of War Wright last night had a long conference on war department matters including the Phil ippines, Cuba and Panama. There are four departments in the Philippines at present-commerce and police, finance, justice, education and interior. Under the action of congress fifth department can be created, and there has been some pres sure in the Philippines for the creation of e department of agriculture.
 General Wright talked with MT. Taft at some length on the character of leg islation that ought to remain in force In Cuba after the withdrawal of the Amer ican army from the island
 Discussion of the Philippines called up the work of the missionaries in the Orient, where Bishop Bashford, in statement made a week ago, declared that the CO., operation of Secretary Taft had greatly facilitated the spread of Christianity.
 "The missionaries" said MT. Taft, "are the only men who penetrate to the heart of the east. All that is known about the Orient we have learned from them.
 "They are the outposts of our civiliza- tion there, and it was the value of the work that I saw being done in the east that prompted me. when we took hold of the canal strip, to introduce the same methods on the zone. We had 5000 or 1000 Americans there and 3O,OOO natives from the West Indies. We employed six or seven clergymen of various denominations Baptist, Presbyterian, Methodist. etc. and as soon as the time was ripe we set up four clubhouses under direction of the field secretaries of our Young Men s Christian association. They are doing splendid work. The clubs are the centers of social life on the isthmus