The Somerset reporter., 1908-08-06
Mr.. Taft's Speech of Acceptance.

Mr.. Taft begins his able and elab-
crate speech of acceptance by full
endorsement of the Roosevelt policies
that have m ade the President 30 pop
ular with the people. He also de-
clared that the chief function of the
next Republican administration will
be to clinch what has already been
accomplished. But right here there
was a conservative note in his ad-
dress, taking the ground that there
will be serious and difficult work to
do, principally to devise ways and
means by which the high level and
obedience to law which the President
has established may be maintained,
and departures from it restrained
without undue interference with
legitimate business.
Taking up the matter of railroads,
Mr.. Taft thinks traffic agreements
approved by inter State commission
should be allowed; that to determine
the reasonableness of rates phys
ical valuation of railroads would be
eminently proper, though not the
most important factor, and that the
fixing of rates on the principles sug-
gested would not materially impair
the value of securities. He rips up
in great style the planks of the DEM
ocratic platform requiring corpora
ton in inter state trade to take out
federal licenses, when they control rs
per cent. of the product, and limiting
to 80 per cent of the product. The
proposal to compel every corporation
to sell Its commodities at the same
price the country over, he pronounces
"utterly impracticable,o and "absurd
and socialistic.o
With words of mighty weight, he
contrasted the trust policies of the
Republican and Democratic parties.
The policy of one is to regulate and
restrain; of the other to destroy.
Combinations of capital are advanta-
geous and necessary. 1t is when
such combinations are made and
used to defraud the pu bic and create
monopoly that they become repre-
hensible. Bad trusts should be re-
strained, but wealth should not be
destroyed. The Democratic program,
if carried out, would utterly destroy
business. Mr.. Bryan's announced
principles were held up as destruc-
tive. At this point Mr.. Taft said:
81 submit to those most interested,
to wage earners, to farmers and to
business men whether the induction
into power of the Democratic party,
with Mr.. Bryan as its head, and with
the business destruction that it open
ly advocates as remedy for present
evils, will bring about the needed
confidence for the restoration of
property"
Mr.. Taft admitted that the tariff
would be revised; but under it the
country had been SO prosperous that
care should be taken the revision is
not done by, the Democratic party,
the enemy of protection, who would
revise it on the revenue basis. The
Democratic plank on injunction is
vague, and open to several construc-
tions, but the Republican position is
clear. Usually there should be a
notice and a hearing before the
granting of an injunction, but the
Democratic proposition of jury trial
in cases of indirect contempt he con-
siders utterly bad and most dan
gerous attack on the power of the
courts to enforce their orders and
DEGREES. "Never in the history of
the country" he says, "has been
such an insidious attack upon the
judicial. system as the proposal to
interject a jury trial between all
orders of the court made after full
hearing, and the enforcement of such
ORDERS"
The speech makes fourteen news
paper columns, and sounds the key
note of the campaign.