New-York tribune., 1908-06-18
STEP
Continued from first page.

| was also asserted to the members of the COM
| mittee on resolutions by those close to the ao-
| nninistration that if they failed to adopt tue
anti injunction plank, so called, there was every
| likelihood that Secretary Taft would, in his ie'
| ter Of acceptance declare for such statute ana
| In terms even stronger than those which he
I asked that the convention insert ia its plat
| form.
A further evidence Of the Importance in when
the administration holds the adoption OK this
plank was furnished to-day when delegate
who owes his seat in the convention to the ao-
ministration declared that as memper ol tie
full committee resolutions he would vote
against the plank. Every effort was made 20
induce him to alter his decision, but without
avail Finally, Frank H. Hitchcock was sent
for and he reasoned with the recalcitrant mem
her who finally said that he had promised 81
friend to vote against the plank and that noth-
ing but a telegram from the Executive would IN
duce him to break that promise. The teie-
gram signed Theodore Roosevelt, was re-
ceiyed in less than an hour after the statement
was made.
The platform has been framed, plank by plank,
by the subcommittee, and when that committee
adjourned the opinion was expressed ihat ho
contest would occur in the full committee except
over the "anti-injunction" plank There mas
been, unquestionably. grave doubt as to the ad-
visibility of inserting this plank even among
the stanch friends of the administration, many
OF whom have felt that it would have been far
better had the Secretary never undertaken IT,
but there has also been widely felt belief tha''
the proposition having once become an ISSUE I
would be impolitic to the last degree TO REJECT IT,
The assertion of the "reactionaries' who are
so vigorously opposing the plank. that the iapot-
ing all vote the Democratic ticket anyway
is emphaticay denied by Secretary Taft and
rfaE1 1 hon
that votes cast by engaged in manual labor
contributed largely to swell the magnificent ma
jority given President Roosevelt four years ago
They say, therefore, that the proposition 10
ignore the wishes of the moderate laborng men
who ask the inclusion of this plank is folly, and
that it is not in accord with the principles of the
Republican party. which is the party of all the
people alike and which has won its long line or
victories on that ground and only because OF
that fact; that it is the party which has always
stood between the American labortng man ana
the competition of unprotected foreign labor:
that it has received the manifest approval OF
the best class of labor in its prosecution of COM
petition destroying trusts, and that, without at
tempting to cater to the extreme demands or
labor agftators it can now command their re-
spect and their loyal support by including in its
national declaration of policies expression of
purpose to confirm what is the general prac-
tce OF the courts by statutory enactment as to
preclude the even remote possibility of njus
tice to the men whose labor contributes so mate
rally and essentially to the prosperity of the
nation.
Beginning at 10 o'clock to-day the sub-com-
mittee resumed its work in the hope Of COM
pleting it by o'clock the time set for the meet
ing of the full committee. but when that time
came the subcommittee was compelled to ad-
nit that it unprepared to present its re-
port and the full committee took adjourn
ment until o'clock. At that time the sub
committee was found to be still undecided and
another adjournment taken.
PLANK'S FRIENDS PLAY FOR TIME,
While the subcommittee in session the
greater part of the day. there were two or three
rather prolonged intermissOns, and before the
day closed IT became evident that the injunction
clause advocates were playing for time. There
was no period of the day when vote could not
have been taken in the subcommittee and the
injunction plank inserted but, apprecfatng the
fact that favorable result was not so certain
in the full committee the supporters of the pro-
vision sought for and easily obtained the delay
which they seemed to consider necessary before
bringing the matter before the complete organi-
Zation.
The time during the recesses. as well as the
time in which the committee was engaged IN
discussion was devoted to strenuous efforts by
both sides to increase their strength on the full
committee. For the first time since the fight
began the friends of the administration appar-
emily became fully awakened to the seriousness
of the situation, but, being aroused they were
quite jealous their opponents in present
ing the situation to their fellow committeeman.
PLANK'S OPPONENTS USE LEVER.
The opponents of the plank who are members
lled IN heir a
number of outsiders. and neither element lost
any opportunity to advance the interests of the
anti-injunction clause side. The Presidents
friends cited an occurrence in the committee rs
indicative that their opponents are willing 10
question. At its session yesterday the sub
committee had under consideration a resolj-
tion declaring in favor Of single statehood for
the territories Of Arizona and New Mexico, and
laid IT the table by affirmative vote which
included most, IL not all. of their antagonists.
To-day. when the subcommittee met. of
them moved to reconsider the vote by which the
resolution was lost and all of them cast their
vote. in favor of reconsidera ton. This has been
interpreted to indicate that when the test vote
comes IN the full convention the injunction
plank the members of the committee from those
two territories will be with their friends the
opponents of the provision
The formal proceedings of the subcommittee
during the day consisted of the considera ton of
the various planks Of the platform as pre-
sented to the committee All these were care
fully gone over and many changes in phraseol-
ogy made. There also some altera-
tions of essential character in some of the
more important declarations, so that, If the sub
committees draft is accepted, the platform will
be found to be in some particulars, though in no