The times and democrat. [volume] (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1881-current, 1908-06-12
Fixing Up Things.

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Taft's friends being in majority
on the National Republican Execu-
tive Committee have things their
own way, and what they say goes.
The committee has been in session in
Chicago for several days arranging.
the contested delegations, which are
mostly from the South. From near
ly every Southern State there is a
Taft and an anti-Taft delegation,
but this does not worry the Taft
people much. They proceed to fix
up things easy for Taft by putting
the names of those delegates who
are favorable to him on the list.
The opposition is full Of rage, but
it rageUh in vain. AS the Charles
ton Post says "all is Taft that comes
into the hopper of the national COM
mite, or rather all is Taft that comes
OUT of the mill. Evidently it is in
tended that no chance shall be TAX.
en-. The convention is to be most
carefully constituted so that it will
turn out no other result than a Taft
nomination. and the national COM
mittee is on the job. Taft agents
and .exponents hold proxies for
seats on the committee. his en-
sployees swarm about the scene, and
steadily the grind goes on that is to
convert the opposition into support.
In vain do the "allies" shrek to
heaven that they are undone by this
high handed proceeding; that is
what the Taft machine is for, made
and guaranteed for just such undo
ing work and its operators are quite
accustomed and are entirely indlf-
ferent to the shrieks of the victims.
The order has gone out of the White
House to nominate Taft and that
will be done, in spite of the conse-
quences. The full brutality of the
Roosevelt policy is being illustrated
to the eminent gentlemen who are
candidates against the favoriJe.
They may be Republicans in good
standing but they might just as well
be Democrats for all the considera-
ton they are going TO- receive in
this business of Mr.. Roosevelt's.
maybe it is a winning game. but
maybe, too, it will be carried to far.
The Republican convention this year
| is to be a political massacre, and
the shedding of SO much Republican
blood must leave some sorrow and
some hatred behind. Will Mr.. Fair.
banks and Mr.. Hughes and Mr.. Can
non and Mr.. Knox and Mr.. La Fol
llette feel like whooping it up fol-
Mr.. Taft after the convention has
jamrred him at the head of the tick
ct over their mangled corpses? O1
course they will Whoop, all right
but will they feel comfortable ano
enthusiastic? Not very much so. Anc
there will be a good many thousands
who will know their feeling and will
take it out at the polls. The Bepubli'
cans are a well disciplined politica
crowd but they have their limit OF
endurance and the allies may have
reached it this time.
They certainly should have, for
there never was, seen before---nc,
not even when Hanna was framing
up the nomination of Mckinley.
tsuch wanton disregard Of the rights
and interests Of all save the favorite,
as has been in the preliminaries OF
|
the Chicago convention. 1t was
pretty bad in 1896 and the effect OF
| it would have shown in the election
too, except that every thing was
forgotten in the face Of the free sill
yer menace Of the Democrats. There
will be no cloud Of that sort this
year to obscure the enmities Of the
Republicans, nor under the cover OF
which they may make truce, and
the raw spots the convention is 60
ing to make on the party will not
easily be healed C-'The Republican
convention is being run in way
that promises some comfort to the
Democrats. From the point of
view of a Democrat the performance
is distinctly entertaining
| Rryan Will Reat Taft