The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-02-09
Massachusetts Man Leads Fight
 In the South
TEXAS IS NEXT ON THE LIST
AntI-Admlnlstratlon Forces Are Deter mined To Down the Taft Sent- ment and Aim To Capture
 Southern Delegates.

Washington. February S.-(Special.)- Secretary Taft and the administration forces are facing the test of their strength. During the next fortnight the President and his friends will be called upon to exert every influence at their command to prevent the anti-administra- ton forces from obtaining footing which would be sure to prove serious menace to Secretary Tafts candidacy.
 That the President will fight, and fight hard Is realized by his enemies. They nave turned the management of the anti Taft, anti-administration campaign over to Senator Murray Crane of Massachu- setts Senator Crane, who led the fight in Florida is preparing to lead another in Texas He realizes that the sentiment in favor of Secretary Taft Is dominant in these states, as 1t proved in Florida, and he purposes to have a handful of men in every state convention who will be ready to bolt and elect contesting delegates to the national convention. Should Secretary Taft control the delegates from all of the states east of the Mississippi river and the solid south, he would be nominated on the first ballot.
 7 The reactionaries and the money power in Wall street, however have realized this from the start, and have been planning to elect contesting delegates from dozen or 15 states. They control the national committee. as shown at its last meeting, when the administrator forces were routed in selecting convention city, and 1t is their plan to have the anti-Taft dele gates put upon the temporary roll of the convention. Under the rules for repub- licsn national conventions the temporary delegates vote on contests from every state except the one in which they are directly interested, and under this rule Senator Crane believes he will be able to unseat every Taft delegate from the south.
 It became known today that the Florida row was planned and carried out by Rep resentative Ames of Massachusetts. He owns a large estate in Florida He went to his winter place last week and fixed up the scheme by which minority of the delegates bolted and elected antiTaft del egates.
 This plan is to be followed in North and South Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and other southern states. In most or these SIaIeS tne fTeSlueHI HdS lHo rank and file of the party back of him, and the organization leaders are, of course, federal officeholders. At the same time the republican vote is made up largely of negroes, and the anti-admn- istration republicans believe they will have no trouble in rival machines by get ting hold of men who have been disap- pointed in obtaining appointments and controlling them with promises of patron- age If the movement is a success.
 The next convention is to be held in Texas. There Is no doubt that Secretary Taft would get the delegates without a contest, and they would be instructed for him. Information received by Secretary Taft's managers today, however, indicated that Senator Crane had agents at work here and had already planned to have a percentage of the delegates bolt and elect a contesting delegation.
 The President has awakened to the sit- uation. and his friends are awaiting his next move. They realize that the admin ,istration is at serious disadvantage since the reactionaries are bound to raise the cry of federal patronage.
 Both the administration leaders and the reactionaries have declared that the whole issue of the Chicago convention hinges on this control of the south.