Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-04-14
At THE WHITE HOUSE
Interest in the Third Term
Talk Divided.
SOME THINK 1T SHORTLIVED
Others Believe It Will Grow Until
the Time of Convention.
UNTIL TAFT GROWS STRONGER
What Secretary's Friends Think
Was the Object of the Presidential
Talk About Roosevelt.
UNTIL TAFT GROWS STRONGER

will run this time not one Of the many
White House callers who recognize it's eX-
istence makes pretensc to predict. Some
seem TO think that il will be at its height
just about the time the republican national
convention assemblies, while others claim
that it will be killed off within the next
month. Most of the Taft people look upon
il as probably short!ived. For the first
time. though. they appear more or less
DESTROYS of smothering it at once. under
rating its Importance and helittling the
idea that the President would ever permit
his name to go before the convention UNI
der any circumstances, even if Secretary
Taft cannot secure the nomination.
At one period of the progress of the
Taft campaign the leaders put forward no
objection to the third term talk. They
felt that II would serve to drive anti
Roosevelt people into the Taft camp and
assure votes in the convention. Now it
is likely 10 act the other way. If Roose-
welt admirers can get the faintest idea
that the President would change his mind
they will not enthuse over the Secretary
Of War and they will want to elect dele
gates who will he willing to join in A
huge clamor for the President. The Taft
people want strong backed men from this
time on. men who will not he swept of
their feet by any Vesuvious-like eruption
that may suddenly take place. All their
energies will be directed from now until
the convention toward securing enough
delegates to nominate on the first ballot.
If the fight goes beyond the third or
fourth ballot they see the end. AS far as
possible. the President himself is cooper
ating with the Taft people to bring about
the nomination on the first ballot. He is
confident that the nomination will then be
made unanimous and the party will go be-
fore the country in a better position than
IL it should appear that the nomination
was forced on succeeding ballots.
Not to Repeat His Declarations.
The third term takers are shrewdly
taking advantage Of the belief that dur
ing the next few months they can ply
heir work without bringing from the Pres
ident another declaration that he will not
accept nomination. They realize how
reluctantly he yielded to the necessity o.
a final reiteration Of his determination
and they are positive that he would not
again make a statement. In a way, there
fore. they can continue their plans with
out official interruption. Those who know
the President believe that he will hold
his last and greatest statement on the
subject until 1t becomes manifest that the
convention. il Taft is not to be nomi-
mated. is fixing to spring his name. Then
he will speak quickly, sharply and I'M
mistakenly in a telegram to be placed be-
lore the convention.
Attitude Of the Presidents Friends.
peculiar phase of the present third
term talk is that some of it is INDUCED
in by intimate friends of the President,
men closely associated with him in New
York politics for a number Of years
There is more than one New York con-
gresham willing to privately declare
that the real choice Of the people Of that
state is Roosevelt and not Hughes or
Taft. Some Of these are men who have
been and are supposed to be friendly
to Taft. There is suspicion that they
are cultivating the Roosevelt talk for
the purpose Of driving the anti-Roose-
Welt men more surely into the Taft COL
umn. thereby solidifying the Taft SEN
timent in that state and furnishing good
excuse for desertion OF Hughes when
ever they consider proper. probably to-
ward the end Of the roll call on the
first ballot, when. by turning from
Hashss to Taft AFT. they h ~, could on In nominate
Welt talk from New York men is the
claim that their constituents do not
warm up to the thought of anybody
else but Roosevelt. In effect that means
that no other man than the President
could carry New York, where acclaim
counts for much.
Underground Wire of Combine.
1dIl ledOcIS IcStct lbdt SupPoS'@u
friends Of the Secretary will lend them
selves to the idea that the Secretary will
not be as strong as any other candidate
and that it will require Roosevelt to win.
The idea is advanced today that this is
being purposely put out by the combine
to defeat Secretary Taft. the members of
the combine relying upon the Presidents
| word that nothing can induce him to take
another nomination. and hoping that If
they can put Taft out Of the running they
can nominate one of their own number.
Taft men say that every objection made
to their candidate AS to weakness at the
polls would likewise apply to the Presi-
dent with the additional objection against
the President Of taking a nomination after
repeated declarations to the contrary. SO
far as the negro vote goes. it is pointed
out that the injuries the negroes claim
to have received from the administration
were inflicted by the President and not by
Secretary Taft. AS to the labor vote. 1t
is asserted that labor leaders are already
showing less hostility to Taft, and will
have no more objection to him than to
any other man who might be nominated
Will Stop as Taft Grows Stronger.
Taft men are of the opinion that the
Roosevelt talk, which they believe to have
been started to check the growth of the