The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1908-06-12
WORK Of COMMITTEE DECIDING
CONTEXT NEARING END.
THREATS OF VIOLENCE
Hale and Oliver Factions Of Texas A.
lese Opponents Tried to Use Hatch
ets-van cleve Says Avoid Labor
Plank.

~ A6Ad6f IL eu0 dIpudUGLlCdl7 1lSL " OL
states, while deciding contests for
seats on temporary roll call.
The work today covered cases in
volving two delegations at large and
q districts. total Of so delegates. OF
these Taft is certain to have 40 and
may possibly have so. The uncertain
delegate halls from the eighth dis
trict Of Texas and 1t Is not positively
known how he will vote. He belonged.
however, to the Oliver faction In that
state, the majority Of whom were in.
structed for Taft. @ 5.si
When the committee adjourned for
the day counting the number secured
by Taft as SO, his managers claimed a
total number Of delegates on the TEN.
porary roll call actually Instructed
and not including delegates for Taft
either by endorsement Or declaration,
to be 554. According to estimates
made by the allies, the number is 539,
this estimate being based on the lat
est figures issued by the allies
The work of the committee today
excited more interest than any pre-
vious session. The visitors, who num-
erous on former occasions, were for
the most part absent today, and as a
rule only such people visited the Coli
scum, where the committee is sitting,
as had business to transact. The
South Carolina contests were the first
called, they being from the first and
fifth districts. Both Of these were
given to Taft after short hearings.
Tennessee Hearing Long.
The hearing Of the contests from
Tennessee occupied by far the greater
part Of the day. each side being allow
ed two hours for presentation Of EVIL
dence and arguments. The fight here
grew out Of q faction struggle over
local issues in Tennessee, all Of the
Hale element being instructed for
Taft. and the majority Of their oppon-
ents, who were dubbed the "Ouver
delegates." being also for the secre-
tary Of war. The result was that
Taft men were seated In all but the
eighth district. where the delegation
was divided at the earnest request OF
National Committeeman Brownlow,
who asked that 1t be done IN order to
give the republicans Of the district .
-:hance Of defeating the present demo-
cratic campaign. The splitting Of the
delegation. however, Is not likely to
make any difference to Taft, inasmuch
as none Of the Oliver delegates was
Instructed for anybody else and q
number Of them had been directed to
vote for him. 6
Come Into Halt Armed.
The hearing OF the cases produced
the only picturesque scenes Of the
day. Jesse M. Littleton, counsel for
the Oliver delegates, asserted that the
Hale men came into the hall armed
and displayed a huge hatchet with
which he said the lives of the Oliver
nsn. had been threatened.
Newell Sanders, chairman OF the
state central committee. supplied a
counter irritant BY telling. IN his argu-
ment, Of the desperate fight which the
Hale men were compelled to make
before they we're allowed In the hall,
ana Of how q big colored man was
about to chop him with an Oliver
hatchet before some Of the Hale men
put the negro suddenly into state OF
coma. His account Of the struggle In
the convention hall was, received by
the committee with much interest.
AntIs Lose Texas.
The hearing Of the Texas cases
came next. and in these the contests
over the seats Of the delegates at
large and those from the third. fourth.
sixth, seventh, ninth, thirteenth, four
teenth, flfteenth and sixteenth dis
tricts were consolidated, and after .
brief hearing the delegates from the
faction headed by Cecil A. Lyon, the
present national committeeman from
that state. were seated. The reorgan-
lied republicans. who contested IN ev-
cry one OF these districts, were COM
pletely defeated, not receiving single
delegates. After this decision the
committee adjourned until tomorrow.
It is understood. although no of1cial
announcement to that effect was
made. that the contests IN the second
and twelfth districts will be with
drawn and that the argument. only
viii concern the hrst, NTH. eighth.
tenth and eleventh districts
Are un;nstruetsd.
The delegates seated tosay from
(Continued on Fourth Page.)