The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1908-10-30

with determination for labor support
| for Taft. ever since the Chicago con-
vention. and Mr.. Edward A. Moseley,
Secretary of the Interstate Commerce
Commission, are two of his lieutenants
in this effort.
Never Expected Labor Vote.
Arrayed against them in this labor
campaign from Washington are Presi-
dent Gompers and his executive eoun-
ell, men who hitherto have been coop
Grating much with the President in
matters pertaining to the advancement
of labor interests Mr.. Taft was al
ways skeptical, from the time he Sc
riously became candidate, about the
labor vote. He has said time and
again, as before the convention and
since then, that he did not expect or
ganized labor to support him. Presi-
dent Roosevelt did not accept that
view. He believed, and still believes,
that most of organized labor that Isl
normally Republican can either be
swung to Taft or diverted from Bryan.
He feels a sense of personal obligation
to help bring such condition about,
and proposes to do his utmost to that
end.
| New York and Ohio are the two
States where the labor problem, as af-
fecting the campaign, is most serious.
That is chiefly why both Taft and
Bryan are going to devote as much
line as they can to those two States
from now on. But the Republicans are
hurrying labor workers into both
States, and Chairman Mack and Mr..
Gompers are doing likewise. There will
be less of the spectacular in this strug-
gle than in the strife to win other vot-
ers, but it will be exceedingly intense.
While the general official opinion here
is that Taft's chances of election today
are about twice as good as Bryan's
chances, there is also feeling that
after everything possible has been done
to sway other classes of voters, the la
boring men of Ohio and New York may
decide how both those States will vote,
and, accordingly, who is to be the next
President.
The speaking tours recently an
nounced, show that no small attention
is to be given to other Eastern States,
especially New Jersey. Maryland and
West Virginia. All have large labor
populations. If by any freak of poll
tics Ohio should go for Bryan and New
York against him, these other Eastern
States might decide the Presidency.
Dividing the Labor Leaders.
The Supreme efforts to reclaim the
labor vote, as directed from the White
House, have been primarily to show
that the labor leaders themselves are
not of one mind about it. For that
reason the President and Prof. Willis
Moore have been seeking to bring out
some of the vice presidents of the
American Federation of Labor against
President Gompers' policies. In this
they have been partially successful.
They have persuaded Vice President
Daniel l.. Keefe, who is president of
the International Longshoremen, Ma
rine and Transport Workers Associa-
ton to give out statement of which
this is the keynote: "We insist that
the labor movement shall remain as
free and Independent from political DOM
nation as it has ever been in its
history
This is calculated to help Mr.. Taft
materially in such important cities as
New York, where there are very large
and numerous labor organizations under
Mr.. Keefe's jurisdiction. The Central
Labor body in New York City has de-
, clared in favor of Mr.. Gompers
, policies and has voted some money to
help in his compaign for Bryan, but
the Keefe declaration helps the Repub-
Leans to combat that declaration.
Then the President and Prof. Moore
have persuaded Vice President Duncan,
of the Federation, to make somewhat
similar statement to indicate that he
is not in full sympathy with what Mr..
Gompers is doing to swing the labor
vote to Bryan. He is president of the
laborers engaged in granite quarries the
country over. They have tried very
hard also to bring Vice President John
Mitchell into the open against Mr.
Gompers, as Mr.. Mitchell is conceded
to be the most influential labor man IN
, the country, next to Mr.. Gompers. The
, strife for Mr.. Mitchell S political favor
has been most intense and there have
been kilograms and declarations thai
the same were forgeries about Mr.. Nit
chell IS true attitude.
Personal Friend of the President.
OF course Mr.. Mitchell was long and
still is n personal friend of the Presi-
dent. He is now head of Civic Fed.
Grafton organization in New York
where his duties are chiefly to further
, the making of contracts between labor
men and their employers and also to
5 further arbitration of labor disputes.
Because of the Importance of that work
, Mr.. Mitchell does not like to engage in
active politics or take sides to vigor-
ously, although early in September he
/ wrote a letter, printed in the organ of
; the Federation, expressing his sympathy
with the Gompers policies. The Repub
= leans, however, claim that Mr.. Nit
, chell Is statement was by no means deci
/. sive and that, although he is a Demo
crat and could have had the Democrat,
nomination for Governor of Illinois, h,
should stand with them and keep thu
n Federation from committing itself unan
; mously to the Gompers program.
As the Gompers program of "remem
9 bering our friends and defeating oul
: enemies" was endorsed by the Execu
tive Council of the Federation, which
comprises the presiding officers of the
Federation and its vice presidents, 9