The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1908-03-06
WASHINGTON.
Legislative and Gen.
eral Topics from
the Capital.
February 80, 1908.

League as it prefers to be called,
is still the occasion of some anx.
iety and some curiosity to Dem.
ocratic leaders In Washington.
They are at a loss to understand
Mr.. Hearst's purpose in spending
untold sums Of money to promote
this movement in National poll.
tics. At one time they thought
that they had found the solution
in the theory that Mr.. Hears
purposed to hold his convention
after the Republican and before
the Democratic National Conven
tions and to endorse himself for
President, with the purpose of
opposing MIR. Bryan at Denver.
1t is now officially announced,
however, that the Independence
League Convention will follow
the National Conventions of both
of the other parties and the pc
litical prognosticators in the nat
ional capital are once more at sea.
There has been q rumor in circu-
lation here to the effect that it
was the purpose of Mr.. Hearst to
have his league endorse Theodore
Roosevelt for PRESIDENT, prospect
i've of what action might be
taken by the other conventions,
and this rumOr is no more vel.
come to the Republicans than it
is to the Democrats. Those who
maintain that this is the real
intent of the Hearst organization
say that be believes that by nom
mating President Roosevelt his
party can poll vote so large as
to make it a central figure in all
future National equations, even
though nothing else is accom-
plished this year, and in support
+, OF their theory they poiut to the
fact that recent editorials III the
Hearst newspapers have been far
more tiattering to Mr.. Roosevelt
than ever before, aud that from
condemnation they have changed
to praise. OF course no such ac-
ton could be taken if Mr.. Roose
welt could help it, as be particu-
larly aDhors Mr.. Hearst. aud has
always retrained from inviting
him 10 the White House, even
when he was a member of Con
gress. while the speech of Sec
rotary Root, which was largely
inspired by the President. was
probably the most potent factor
in preventing Mr. Hearst from
defeating Mr.. Hughes in the race
J for the governorshlp of New York.
! President RoOsevelt's intense
feeling against Mr.. Hearst dates
back 10 the time when, as Gov
ernOr of New York, Mr. Roose
welt felt constrained to refuse a
pardon to woman who had been
sentenced to death for a most re
voting murder. Numerous tren.
zied appeals had b en- aided
to Governor Roosevelt and he
had appointed commission OF
eminent jurists to investigate the
case and advise him. The com
mission advised that q pardon
would be defeat of justice and
he abided by its decision The
Hearst newspapers were leading
the propaganda for pardon and
when the Governor refus d they
printed many lurid editorials in
which they said among other
things, that it would be their un
changing purpose to prevent Mr..
RoOsevelt's wife and children from
ever forg letting that their husband
and father was ssmurderer oil
women" Mr.. Roosevelt never
forgave the reference to his wife
and family.
There is a peculiar situation in
the Senate Com mittee on Military
Affairs. When the final vote on
Brownsville was taken this week,
only two mem bers had the courage
to vote for resolution declaring
that it was their conviction that
the negro soldiers of the 25th In
faDtry did not shoot up the town
of Brownsville. These were For
aker and Bulkely, both of whom
are intense aters of the present
administration. Now. however,
some of the Republicans who
voted as they thought, saying
that the evidence showed that the
negroes did the shooting, are
hearing from the negro voters in
their States and they are becom
ing scared. One of hem, Senator
Warner, of Missouri, who prac-
tically conducted the prosecution
and examined the negro witnesses,
as well as the white ones, has de
cided to introduce q bill proyid-
ing that the President may re
store to the army and give back
pay to any negro soldier who can
prove his entire innocence of hav
ing had a part in the assault, to
the satisfaction of the War De-
partnent. This is, Of course, a
A.. 4 ~.