The National tribune., 1909-11-18

2
ton speech. during which he put his
seal of distinct approval upon Senator
Aldrich.
Speaker Cannon tarries in the West
conducting his own campaign against
the opposition TO him. Every few days
he is discharging grape and canister
into the ranks of his enemies and lay
ing a strong foundation for the con-
test that he and his friends Will wage
during the coming Summer and Au-
tumn against the insurgents. He blames
the neWspaperS very much for activity
in stirring up enmitieS against him and
his faction, attributing this activity to
his refusal to remove the tariff from
wood pulp and print paper. He claims
that a delegation of newspaper proprie-
tors promised to boom him for the
Presidency and to show their powerful
favor otherwise If ne would help them
10 get cheaper print paper. The news
paper proprietors, particularly Herman
Ritter of the New York Staats Zeitung,
a leader in the delegation that visited
him. Indignantly deny that any such
promise or hope Of reward was held out
TO the Speaker
The Speaker in the Enemy'S Country.
He Is not at all in a hurry about
coming 10 Washing IOIi, anu SApeSlS pS-
fore he does come to have a big re-
joirder to Senator Cummins, who. the
Speaker declares, is not Republican
If he (Cannonl is a Republican. The
Speaker made the first speech attack
ing Cummins in Iowa, and Cummins
replied in Chicago, since which time the
Speaker has been making ready to have
another say. He has gone right into
the heart of the inSurgent country, ap-
pealing to the very people whose Repre-
sentatives and Senators come down to
Washington to fight him in Congress
The Speaker is reported to be making
headway. The WeSterners like fight
ing man, and are giving his side of the
case respectful hearing. His present
activities follow the appearance of the
President in that same section, and be-
fore he comes to Washington will cover
very large section of the big Missis-
sippi Valley. His vigorous champion
ship of his course should help the
Speaker in his efforts this Winter in
shaping legislation and keeping down
expenditures, because his appeals on
the hustings are certain to enlighten
the opposition constituencies and make
the work of their Representatives at
Washington less effective. Other ef-
forts are under way. The Speakers
friends have become alert, and are
spreading information to show how he
mas $1,000 IOT III
and has furthered legislation for many
policies now styled progressive. His
opponents have to admit that there is
a very strong case in the Speakers be-
half. The champions of the other side,
however. have been most active in put
ting their assertions before the public.
The Speaker has been content in the
knowledge that as Chairman of House
Appropriations for many years and
then as the presiding officer of the
House he saved the American people
many millions of dollars, and assumed
without faltering the very unpopular
task of curbing Congress during an era
of unprecedented extravaganza.
Shake-up in the Departments.
There have been numerous tremors
in recent days that seem to forecast
general shakeup in certain of the De-
partments and the ousting of more
prominent officials into the cold, cold
world. Postmaster-General Hitchcock
has indicated that he proposes to have
a new set of Assistant Postmasters-
General, which means that four men,
acceptable to the present Administra-
ton, will take the place of Roosevelt
appointments at 5000 a year. The
three Assistant Secretaries of the Treas
IIry have ali been removed since Taft
took office and new men put into their
places, with the exception of one va
cancy not yet filled. One Roosevelt As
sistant Secretary of the Interior, one
Roosevelt Assistant Secretary of Agri-
culture, one Roosevelt Assistant Secre-
tary of War and two or three Roosevelt
Assistant Attorney-Generals out of sew
en- or eight still remain in office.
4 very few of the deposed men are
being transferred to other places. Such
was the case with First Assistant Post
1naster-General Grandfield, whose ap-
pointmeut as Postmaster of Washing
ton at a salary Of 5000 year has just
been announced. He is from Missouri,
but has grown up in the Civil Service,
knows all the ins and outs of the Pos
tai Service, and is expected to show
visiting Postmasters a model Office right
here in Washington. While much is
made Of these changes in some quar-
GERS as evidence OF the building up of
a Taft machine, IL should be noted that
other Presidents have brought new men
into these Federal offices, notwithstand-
ing the fact that their predecessors had
been Republicans.