The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1908-05-08
William H. Taft.
From the New York Tribune.

:. From the New York Tribune. ;.
Since the election of district dele
| gates and delegates-at-large to tn,
Republican National Convention be
| gan the Tribune has kept an accurate
| account and published once weel
chosen. In these tables, bearing lit
| tie resemblance to the sophisticated
| returns and speculative forecast!
| which have been supplied to the
press in the interest OF this or tina
candidate for the Presidential nom
nation, we have recorded every in
stance in which instructions have
been given to a delegate and have
noted as accurately as might be the
several cases in which delegates moi
under instructions have explicitly
made their intentions known Thus
as an example of the rule by which
our distribution of the uninstructed
delegates. among the various candi-
dates has been made, we may men
ton Senator Lodge, a delegate-at
large from Massachusetts,, whose
action at Chicago is as completely
assured in advance as if he had been
instructed by his state convention to
vote for Taft. If we have made an
error here and there ii has been
chiefly due to the exclusion from the
several candidates lists of every del
egate whose vote might reasonably
be considered doubtful. In short, we
have published the actual record
from week to week, without in the
slightest degree forcing a conclusion
from the facts which we have collat-
ed with the utmost care and impair
TALLY.
There is, however, nc merit in
preserving an attitude of uncertain
ty when uncertainty has ceased to eX-
list. 1t is our conviction, based on
the facts which we have published,
and on probabilities sc. strong as to
be scarcely distinguishaDle from
facts, that the choice of the Republi-
can convention for President of the
United States has now been determ-
ined and that the nomination of Mr..
Taft has been @foreordained. If
nothing more than what seems to be
already in sight should occur be-
tween this date and June 16 our be-
lief is that Mr.. Taft would. enter the
convention with secures majority
of the delegates behind him and be
nominated on the first ballot-prOb-
ably by not fewer than $50 votes out
of $50. But the tide is setting so
strongly in his favor that the natur-
al process of accretion is likely to in
crease his majority beyond the di-
mansions now clearly discernible.
And we may add, for the benefit of
those who are conjecturing the re-
suit of expected contests, that con-
troll of the committee on credentials
by the Taft forbes is already abso-
lutely assured.
On the morning after the New
York Republican State convention
we said in referring to its action that
Governor Hughes, as the official
candidate of this great state, must be
regarded at that stage in the pre-
liminary canvass as an invaluable re-
serve force on which the national
convention could draw under condi-
lions which might be found to exist at
Chicago. That stage has passed, and
with lit, in our opinion, the chance
of any nomination except that of Mr..
Taft. The people of New York
might generally regret the impossi-
bility of avoiding this conclusion if it
necessarily meant even temporary
retirement of Mr.. Hughes from pub
lie life at the expiration of his term
necessary meaning. On The contrary
unless the public miscolceives the.
spirit in which he CONSTITUTES his duty,
he will not resist an overwhelming
public demand that he continue the,
work he is now doing until it has
been more nearly done.
1t is a consideration not directly
related to the fulfillment of that
duty, but honorably to be taken into
account in the sphere Of practical
politics, that Governor Hughes as a
candidate for reelection would
arouse an enthusiastic interest in the
whole Republican campaign in this
state which could not fail to be of
great advantage to the national tick
ct. Doubtless the same element of
strength would be measurably added
IL Mr.. Hughes at the demand of the
national convention should accept
The nomination for Vice-President
but it is our conviction that he could
not be persuaded to regard that as a
claim which he is bound to ac-
knowledge at the sacrifice of what he