The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1908-05-11
BILL" TAFT
ON THE TRAIL
Continued from Page one3

Continued from Page One)
ly why "Bill'' Taft should drop his
campaign for the presidential nominal
ton long enough to go to Panama, to
look around. and then sail back again
on the Prairie. The politicians, skep-
tical people that they are. think there
is some sort of a coup in the trip. Per-
haps the President has some spectac-
ular stunt for the Secretary to per-
form knowing that that will make the
Secretary more solid than everA with
the people who do not object to some
theatrical performances in their poll
tics. Anyhow the Secretary is keep
ing his counsel. He seems to think
he can safely leave his presidential
boom alone for a few weeks, with such
trusted friends as President Theodore
Roosevelt, Brother Charles P. Taft and
number of lesser lights in charge.
And right at this juncture the
croakers are coming in from every
quarter with dolefuI stories about the
Secretary's running qualities. Wash
ington has become hardened to that
sort of thing in this six months cam
paign for the Republican nomination
for the presidency. But the doleful
brethren are now making the most
voluminous doleful reports ever. Bat
Masterson. the ex-marshal of Dodge
City, Kansas, and the terror of bad
men, who is now deputy marshal in
New York, but spends considerable
time travelling about to gain informa-
ton for President Roosevelt, his per-
sonal friend, anchored in port a day
or two ago. bat" fine sport that he
is. was almost weeping because of the
gloomy outlook for the Republican
party, unless one Theodore Roosevelt
should run again He has been travel
ing in Kansas, which he says Bryan
will carry by 100000 over Taft, and
in Missouri the Dakotas, Illinois, and
so on.
Although he is very loyal Roose-
welt man, Bat ex-gunfighter and
terror of bad men, is not a Taftite. He
made some of the oldsters smile at his
doleful yarns and some of them were
disposed to ask. bat" if he could not
fix it some way to hold his deputy
marshalshfp if "BiIl'' Taft takes up a
residence in the White House. Bat
. went up to the White House to report
to the President on the results of his
Western travels and came away feel
Ing d uLjl6 HIOT6 cheerful. Out tue
doleful crowd in Washington found
his talk about the Western situation
luscious morsel.
1t is quite surprising how gloomy
the Republican prospects are in a
number of States that have favorite
sons. Indiana is going to the bow
wows. OF course, Fairbanks as a pres
idential nominee could carry it. Illi-
nois, great. staunch Republican State,
is sloughing off. No telling what the
enormous army of unemployed in Chi
cago will do when it comes to the vot-
ing day. But, to be sure, Uncle joe
Cannon as the standard-bearer would
make Illinois certain. With him as
the party's choice for President there
would be absolutely no likelihood that
the result of 1892, when Illinois for
| the first time supported a Democratic
President. would be repeated
| Then, there's New York. biggest OF
States and very necessary to the win
| ming party. Everything going to the
! bow-wows there, too, although the
Democratic factions are fighting like
cats and dogs. Nominate Hughes
however, and everything would De
lovely. There would be no question
about his ability to carry the Empire
State and that would prevent the pos
sibility of Bryan becoming President
| Senator Philander Chase Knox, on
| the other hand, can not make that
| plea about Pennsylvania. It is the
| one favorite son State that is not GO
| ing to the bow-wows. AS a matter OF
| fact. if yellow dog We're running or
the Republican ticket he would be
elected in Pennsylvania. Accordingly
{ the friends of Senator Knox have nc
| doleful, stories of the kind that the
| ayers hand out.
| Then there's a whole lot of talk just
| now about the impossibiIity of Score.
| tary Taft carrying Ohio and about the
! tremendous forces that are lined ur
against him. 1t is not the first time
these things have been heard, but they
are being forced home now as never
| before here in Washington, just wheT
l>"Bil1' Taft is starting off placidly fol
/ his trip to Panama. whether it be fol
! restful purposes or to do some theat-
rical stunt. He does not appear to bt
worrying much because of the dolefu
/ talk. In fact there is not doleful
! thing in the genial Secretary's makeup
Secretary Taft is nearing the goal
of a presidential nomination Hi:
rivals see it in the results of the con
ventions held during the past week
The fact is likely to become ever
more apparent in the conventions tc
be held in the week just ahead. Al
are now as good as conceding his nom
ina iOu barripG unforeseen davpI7-9-